Tent camping is open again for the season, reservations are required for all overnight stays. We are currently booking 3-4 weeks out especially on the weekends. We have a full calendar of events this month with the Fall Festival the 9,10,11, the Bare Buns 5k on the 17th and then the Halloween Dance on the 31st. (member exclusive & reservations required event). We will be having a craft fair in the clubhouse on Saturday October 10th in the clubhouse so come out and maybe get some of your Christmas shopping done early.  This months Celebration Dance is on October 10th so come out and celebrate everyone in October. 

Sniff, sniff — what’s that lovely smell when it rains? Oh, it’s creosote! This desert shrub emits a strong fragrance when moisture is in the air and on its leaves — the signature scent of a drizzly, desert afternoon. That’s the smell of the plant’s survival tactic and the healing medicine that this culturally and ecologically important plant provides.

Creosote bushes are a flowering evergreen shrub, which means that year-round they are green and have leaves. They have tiny, pointed leaves and tiny yellow five-petal flowers. Plant leaves have microscopic “mouths” called stomata, which is how a plant breathes in carbon dioxide and exhales oxygen. Creosote’s little leaves are great water savers because they release less moisture than a big leaf. This is very helpful in a desert where it doesn’t rain very often. The waxy coating on their leaves helps prevent water loss as well. Chemicals on the leaf’s surface are released when it gets wet — this is where their iconic scent comes from! These fragrant chemicals can drop into the soil and inhibit other large plants from growing too close. Creosote’s roots spread deep into the ground so that they can suck up water from the water table and having a protected area around the plant prevents competition from other deep-rooted plants (but allows shallow-rooted wildflowers to pop up in that space). That means more water for the creosote’s roots to slurp up!

These plants are producers — they take energy from the sun and nutrients from the soil and water which they use to grow. Not many animals eat creosote leaves, but jackrabbits will if there aren’t any other options. Desert woodrats (aka packrats) and kangaroo rats love to eat creosote seeds, while over 20 species of bees visit the flowers for pollen or nectar. The flowers are a good snack for animals like the chuckwalla, desert iguana, and other herbivorous reptiles.

Creosote lives in the Mojave, Sonoran, and Chihuahuan deserts of North America and can be found in southeastern California, Arizona, southern Nevada and Utah, as well as New Mexico and Texas. In Mexico they can be found in the states of Chihuahua, Sonora, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, Zacatecas, Durango and San Luis Potosi. These plants grow in well-drained soils, and flat plains

All guests must be registered at the office, all new and returning guests will be starting to have to do background checks through the new system. 

Do NOT call the personal cell phone numbers of staff or mangment while the office is open that is 9am - 5pm daily. 

As we kick off October, Shangri-La Ranch is celebrating Site Clean-Up Month to keep our community clean, safe, and beautiful for everyone. While formal notices have been issued directly to sites requiring specific attention, we encourage all residents to take a moment this month to review their spaces. Please ensure shade structures have office approval and are unenclosed (no draped tarps), keep all open-air storage off the ground and in approved containers, and take trash directly to dumpsters immediately. Additionally, each site is limited to one RV, non-operational vehicles must be repaired or removed, and outer site clutter should be cleared away. Thank you for your continued cooperation in keeping our park looking its best—if you have any questions about site policies or approved containers, please don't hesitate to reach out to the office!

Theme Dances have been added into the new year so that you can start palnning your outfits to mathc the monthly themed dance.