Dave & Wendy Marshall and our neighbor Dillon Cornett work together to manage this small local family business.

We restored the Big Barn Lodge as our weekend vacation home and family vacation retreat.

We enjoyed flying into French Lick from our home in Lansing Michigan as a weekend retreat. Here in southern Indiana, we enjoy a slower pace of life, a beautiful countryside and our own private 9-hole-par-3 golf course. We think you too will find that things slow down here and that you will find it a unique place to share with family in our rustic Big Barn Lodge that we restored from a vintage family farmhouse and barn.

Our life and business ventures now include the lodge rental business- Where we rent out out a total of 3 lodges:

This property consists of: The Big Barn Lodge with vintage farmhouse, 'Blanche House.' The Big Barn Lodge is designed for larger groups and families. We host many weddings, parties and family reunions on the grounds.

Fitness Retreats: We also manage our fitness retreats here at the ranch when we are not renting the property for family reunions, group outings, corporate retreats, church groups or other events.

Elk Ridge Ranch is the perfect setting for a country themed wedding. At Elk Ridge Ranch we host many indoor and outdoor weddings in the Vineyards.

The entire family enjoys aviation and fitness sports. The owner and his son are both pilots. We hope to meet you soon!

Wendy Henry (Marshall) purchased this lodge in 2000

Why this property?

This property came available at auction and we started on the restoration of the 1890s barn & 1901 farm house. The property had been in the family since 1816, so it has some historical charm too!

We decided to build a vacation home on the family farm because it was less than a two hour flight from our primary home.

We loved the warmer weather in southern Indiana compared to where we lived in Michigan. We enjoy boating at Patoka Lake. We like to relax in the southern Indiana country surrounded by the Hoosier National Forest and close to the ambiance at historic French Lick Springs Resort and Casino. Living in a tourist town is like being on vacation all year long with Patoka Lake, PGA golf courses, tons of tourist attractions.

Here we get 3 cold months a year where our guests love to stay when they ski in Paoli, Indiana. We have mild spring weather. Warm summers and beautiful colors in the fall.

We like the wooded lay of the land as a great spot to put up high fence for our Elk and Buffalo. Raising our own grass fed organic meats is important to us.

We also wanted gentle rolling hills to build our personal, private golf course. Our golf course is a huge hit just because it is invitation only. It's available to renters of the Big Barn Lodge?blan and our Grand lodge at Elk Ridge Ranch.

Keep in mind....this is quite possibly the worst golf course in the USA! It is quite difficult and it is very beautiful as its fairways are lined with grapevines and lavender plants.

Here you can shoot Clay pigeons, handguns, have a bonfire, play golf, fish and make some noise if you want. In nearby French Lick, Indiana there are activities of all types to keep you amused.

We are deep in the woods of The Hoosier National Forest but just 15 minutes from a 5 star hotel and world class steak house. We feel our location is a perfect balance of remote ranch living and activities in town that compare to some of the finest attractions among resort towns.

Unique Benefits of our property?

We liked getting away from the hustle and bustle of the city and relaxing in the country as a change of pace. But we still like modern amenities, so we built our own 9-hole par 3 golf course on the property. For an extra activities fee, we can take you on a hay wagon ride or invite you to participate in one of our fitness classes. We have a full weight gym with cable weights, free weights and cardio equipment, so you can come back from vacation with a whole new physique.

The Big Barn Lodge is a rustic western post and beam building with wagon wheel chandeliers, a pool room, a full commercial kitchen and lots of space to hoot-n-holler like in the old west. It is large and comfortable. The kitchen is all commercial grade just like a restaurant with all appliances and stocked with all of the plates, pots and pans that you will need for a group of up to 50.

The covered deck is a great place to sit to enjoy the morning coffee a glass of wine in the evening. The pergola deck is also huge and it is a great place to sunbathe and enjoy a nice dinner on the deck.

Our infrared sauna seats 3 people.

If you are looking for something that is a bit more on the high end luxury end of country living, see our listing for the Grand Lodge VRBO 375028.