Wendell and Lydia Starke
Curtis, Amber, Brady and
Josey Gay
In memory of
Spencer O. Moore
Jim Moore
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Pristine Springs Angus is located near Jerome, Idaho in the basin of the beautiful Snake River Canyon. The canyon walls
are 550 feet tall, providing a natural barrier for containing our livestock. The two private roads that lead down to
the property were carved out of these walls. The ranch consists of 460 acres of pasture in the canyon and an additional
1200 acres of range ground where the cattle run from spring through fall.
About one mile upstream from Pristine Springs is the historic I.B. Perrine Bridge, named for the original owner of the
ranch property, as well as the Blue Lakes Country Club property. Ira Perrine came to the Snake River canyon from
Indiana in 1883. The only way to get his supplies and livestock down onto the property was to lower them in on ropes
and pulleys. He began raising a small herd of dairy cattle, using the many spring fed pools on the property as his
water source. These same springs, as well as the Blue Lakes, are still our sole source of water today.
About one mile upstream from the Perrine Bridge is a newer landmark, the site where Evel Kneivel attempted to jump
across the Snake River Canyon on his rocket-powered motorcycle in 1974. This bit of popculture history helps many
people locate our ranch.
Our herd of angus share their home with a multitude of wildlife, including mule deer, ducks, geese, pelicans, seagulls,
quail, rabbits, coyotes, and porcupine. We also share the property with Pristine Springs Aquaculture, our partner in
the Pristine Springs organization. Pristine Springs Aquaculture raises rainbow trout and tilapia, helping Idaho reach
its ranking of #1 in the nation for farmed rainbow trout production. The tilapia, a warm water fish, are raised in a
mixture of the spring water and water from an artesian, geothermal hot well found on the property. The fish waste is
collected, vacuumed up with suction pumps, and sprinkled on the pastures. This process helps meet the stringent EPA
requirements for clean water standards, as well as fertilize the pastures for the cattle.
Wendell and Lydia Starke own Pristine Springs Angus. They are originally from Seale, Alabama, where Wendell raised his
first bull, a jersey, as part of his FFA project in 1956. The bull, Royal George Von Blossom, was bought by Auburn
University and used in some of their early tests in the artificial insemination program there. It took 35 years, but
Wendell got back into the business in 1991 when he bought the first few heads of our herd.
Curtis Gay and his wife, Amber, took on the job of managing the cattle and the property full time when they moved down
there in March, 1991. They live on the ranch with their daughters, Brady and Josey, and enjoy the secluded nature of
the ranch. Amber takes care of the bookkeeping for the company. Curtis is definitely a hands-on manager. He can be
found in the office, but also in the pastures preparing the donor cows for flushing and embryo transfers, synchronizing
the recipients for transfers, repairing fences, watering, feeding, and anything else that the daily life on a cattle
ranch requires. He has helped create the present day landscape of the Pristine Springs ranch by designing and carving
out new pastures from the once dry land in the canyon. His abilities as a mechanic, carpenter, and all around "fix-it
man" have helped keep our expenses down and the standards here on the ranch high.
We count on Dr. Pat Richards of Bliss, Idaho for the flushing and embryo transfer work done on the ranch. His expertise
has helped us build a cow herd with top genetics from foundation donors and breed leading AI sires.
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