Hardy’s Reindeer Ranch is a Christmas card brought to life. With its festive attractions, real-life reindeer and merchandise galore, it is no wonder that attending the ranch has become a family tradition for many.
Married couple Julie and Mark Hardy are the ones behind the magic of the ranch. The idea formed when marketer Julie married Christmas tree farm owner Mark and wanted to turn the place into a unique attraction. The Hardys flew to Alaska, where they purchased the state’s unique breed of deer and brought them back to the farm.
Along with a gift shop, café, playground and pedal race carts, the ranch provides tours of the reindeer field. The tours are one of the central attractions of the ranch, especially during the holiday season. During these tours, guests observe the reindeer from inside a small wooden pen. A guide hands out oats for guests to feed the reindeer while sharing facts about the breed.
Thirty years after the ranch’s opening, Julie Hardy has had time to reflect on what makes customers keep coming back.
“The reindeer are the magic that make this place happen,” Julie Hardy said. “People also love the ambiance because it’s like a Hallmark card.”
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She also believes that visitors find magic in the cozy, country-inspired atmosphere. Her favorite part of the job is witnessing generations of people visiting the farm, alongside new generations of reindeer.
Visitor Nancy Bailey is familiar with this phenomenon. Bailey, who had been to the ranch before, came with her daughter, granddaughter and great-grandchildren Friday. She said she feels a sense of nostalgia when she goes to the Reindeer Ranch. In particular, the vintage decor in the gift shop reminds her of her childhood home in the 1950s. Bailey also admires the ranch’s ethical methods of caring for the animals.
“So many times you see these animals put in little fences or they don’t have enough area, so they do a good job here,” Bailey said.
The store’s friendly staff is a selling point for her as well, and she thinks it’s a great attraction for kids.
“It’s a unique opportunity that you don’t see in many places,” Bailey said.
Bailey’s daughter, Chris Davis, came from Bourbonnais, Illinois, to visit the farm for the second time. She described the environment as “very friendly, very outdoorsy and very Christmas-y.”
During a season when the air is so cold it hurts to breathe, and the sky becomes pitch black at 4 p.m., hope and magic are in high demand. Luckily, Hardy’s Reindeer Ranch is glowing with more magic than Rudolph’s nose.
