DOUBLE CHECK RANCH, ARIZONA SUN NATURAL BEEF

The Double Check Ranch is a 10,000-acre cattle ranch in Pinal County, Arizona. The lower reach of the San Pedro River runs through it eight miles upstream from the confluence with the Gila River. The management of the ranch is conducted with the active participation of anyone expressing interest in improving land health, and shares working activities with the public in order to stimulate an active involvement in land management. The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum has in recent years made an annual visit to the ranch a part of their outreach program; participants get hands-on experience using the cattle to break down eroded banks and erase unauthorized tracks and trails.

The management program is holistic in nature and scaled to watersheds and sub-watersheds; the goal of the ranch is to bring about long-term land improvement, defined as increased stability, productivity and permanence of the natural vegetation.