- What is the maximum number of guests allowed? Per the contract: The maximum number of guests we allow when renting the main house and bunkhouse is 31 people. After that it is required that the farmhouse is rented additionally for a maximum of 35 people. Kids under 2 years of age do not count towards this total. The owner must approve additional people before your stay in order to avoid any additional fees.
- What type of media can be played in the theater? DVD, Blu-ray, cable tv, and streaming services through apple tv (need to log in with your own information). There is also an HDMI cable.
- What type of fish are in the pond? Large mouth bass, bluegill & hybrid bluegill, yellow perch
- How deep is the pond? Zero depth entry to 12 feet deep at far end
- What are the local grocery stores?
- Okey's Market (15 minute drive): 213 West Amelia Street Cassville, WI
- Piggly Wiggly (30 minute drive): 158 N Washington St. Lancaster, WI
- The HyVee in Dubuque (400 South Locust) will deliver groceries if your order is >$300
- Place an order online at https://www.hy-vee.com/aisles-online
- Place the order as "Pickup" (NOT delivery)
- Call the store to then manually arrange a delivery: 563.583.6148
- What are the local golf courses? There are many golf courses in the area: Lancaster Country Club, Platteville Golf & Country Club, Birchwood Golf Club, LaComa Golf Club and Bunker Hill Golf Course
- What are the closest airports? The closest commercial airport is Madison, WI (1.5 hr drive). Second is Chicago O'Hare (3 hr drive). If flying private Platteville, WI (10 mins) or Dubuque, IA (40 mins). Depending on where you are coming from, Dubuque does have some smaller commercial flights, limited but worth checking.
- Can we access the Mississippi River by boat? There is a low bridge on Lynn Hollow Lane so a small trailer/boat will fit
- What are some other activities to do off-property?
- Sky Tours ZipLine in Dubuque, IA Nine gravity designed ziplines take you to the treetops of Iowa. Designed for guests ages 10+, weighing between 70 and 270 lbs. Call 563.484.4248 to book your spot.
- Cycling: Mountain biking and road biking are amazing in Wisconsin. Back roads are paved giving a smooth back roads experience. Ask us for routes if you want more details! https://www.plattevilletrails.org/trails and https://www.traveldubuque.com/articles/17-miles-of-mountain-biking-in-dubuque
- Effigy Mounds National Monument 200+ sacred Indian tribe mounds are preserved in this section of the upper Mississippi River Valley. You can learn about mound builders and walk short, accessible trails or steep hiking trails.
- Dubuque Farmers Market. The Farmers Market operates on Saturdays from May through the end of October, rain or shine. It is the oldest farmers market in Iowa dating from 1858 and features over 125 vendors.
- Tubing on Grant River. Grant River Tubin’ Co. - grtubin@tds.net 608.763.4021 The longer float is approximately 4-5 hours and the shorter float is approximately 2-3 hours
- Cruise the Mississippi on https://americanladycruises.com/ or any of these options on the Dubuque website: https://www.cityofdubuque.org/2266/Tour-Boats Dubuque is about a 30 minute drive from the property.
- Fishing guides: https://dubuquefishingguide.com/
- Vesperman Farms Ice Cream: https://www.vespermanfarms.com...
- Utv information:
- Back Road Adventures UTV Rental 608.778.4878 backroadadventures.square.site
- Larsen UTV Rentals. Rent a UTV or bring your own to enjoy the thrilling and scenic 600-acre private UTV park. There are hills to climb and mud pits to play in or you can enjoy a nice drive through the woods. 608.412.4087 https://www.larsenutvrentals.com/
- Also to make your own way in a UTV, find trails at this site: https://grantcounty.org/tourism/outdoor-activities/atv-trails/
- Ski resorts:
- Sundown Mtn resort in Dubuque, IA https://www.sundownmtn.com/
- Chestnut Mtn Resort in Galena, IL https://www.chestnutmtn.com/
- Are weddings allowed and what are the terms? ​​ Congratulations on your upcoming wedding and we're so happy that you want The Great River Ranch to be a small part of the celebration! It's such a unique, beautiful place to celebrate with your family and friends. We do allow weddings with the minimum nightly stay plus a venue fee. If you are interested please reach out to discuss in more detail.
- Cost: The total cost depends on the time of year because we require the nightly minimum plus we have a venue fee. The venue fee is $1500 for a wedding of 50 or less guests. For anything less than 100 guests we require a $3000 venue fee. From 101 - 150 is $5000 and we don't allow anything over 150.
- Bathrooms: Because we are on a septic system we also require that an outdoor bathroom(s) is rented for the day of the festivities so that there are no septic disasters
- Tent: We obviously can't guarantee good weather so we require that a tent be rented (put up and taken down during your stay). We currently don't have the indoor space to accommodate a wedding if the weather is not conducive.
- You must obtain a Special Events Insurance Policy including Liability for damage to the premises (might be listed as Damage to Rented Property or as Premises Liability.
- Pool and Houses: The pool needs to be locked and no one is allowed use of the pool or hot tub during the festivities. Those individuals staying at the ranch can use the pool and hot tub outside of the festivity hours. In addition, no one except those staying in the houses are allowed inside the houses.
- Parking: Lastly, we do not have parking available for more than 25 vehicles on the driveway area. We highly recommend engaging a shuttle service to bring guests to and from the ranch. Parking is not allowed off of the paved areas.
- We also offer full service wedding planning or variations of wedding planning to suit what you need.