Frank and Ginger King have left the homestead but they’re still farming in retirement at a home in Klamath Falls., Ore. Members of the King family were all horseback in 1963. Family members include, from left, Holly, Frank with David on his lap, Ginger and Laurie. - King family collection Those were the days Homesteaders look back on their years on Tulelake ranch Lee Juillerat Freelance Writer Capital Press September 22, 2006 KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. - When Frank King drove through the Tulelake Basin in 1948, he never expected he'd make a second trip to far Northern California. When Ginger King and her mother first visited the basin, her mother's main concern was whether or not her daughter would have indoor plumbing. Frank found reason to make a second Tulelake trip and has never really left. And although their early years provided challenges, Ginger soon felt right at home. They didn't always live like royalty, but the Kings, who married in 1952, look back at those years with a sense of humor. Their life has been filled with family, friends and ranching. Frank's first Tulelake experience had been brief and forgettable. He and his father had made a visit as part of a fishing trip after he was released from the Navy. They traveled to Klamath Falls and went south to Alturas, Calif. "When we went through Tulelake it was raining and windy and miserable and I said, 'By God, who'd ever want to live in this country?' " Much to his surprise, Frank King did. And from their retirement place near Klamath Falls, Frank and Ginger look back on years of farming and ranching. Frank spent two years in the Navy during the waning years of World War II. He put his name in the 1949 drawing for Tulelake Basin homesteads and, to his surprise, was selected. "I picked a homestead that had some hillside because I was a livestock person," he said. When he was selected, Frank was studying at the University of California, Davis. He learned his name had been picked while in a biochemistry lab when he was called out of class and told by a Sacramento Bee reporter. After winning the homestead, he took a year off from school while he lived at the property. He was able to lease his property, buy another 500 acres, move a former barracks from the Tule Lake Detention Center and make a start in farming and livestock. He earned a degree in general agriculture in 1951 and a year later married Ginger. The two were introduced by mutual friends. "I didn't know what a homestead was," she said. "My mom and I came up. What she really wanted to know was did we have indoor plumbing." As the ranch developed, the Kings had upwards of 400 mother cows - "There's something about cow-calves," Ginger said. "Those old mother cows, oh man, do they know their babies. They start bawling and that calf comes running. And there's nothing newer than a brand-new calf." A self-proclaimed "city girl," Ginger had a sharp learning curve, and some unusual instructions. "Frank said, 'Think like a cow,' and I thought, 'Well, how does a cow think?' I was fortunate to have a wise old horse." Along with managing their cattle ranch, Frank spent 22 years working and managing the Ore Cal Feed Lot in Malin, Ore. The feed lot took 3,000 to 4,000 yearling cattle weighing 600 to 800 pounds and fed them 90 to 150 days on high concentrate feed until being sent off as "fat cattle" for slaughter and butchering. As the industry changed, the feed lot took 400-pound calves and fed them until they were 600 to 700 pounds and sold to larger feed lots. Frank and Ginger turned over most of the ranch responsibilities to their son, Dave, in the 1990s, and moved to Klamath Falls in 2000. They've been involved in the annual Relay for Life cancer benefit since 2001. Instead of riding the open range, Frank spends his time growing corn, tomatoes and pumpkins. "The homestead was a great experience," he said, with an approving nod from Ginger. "I remember seeing a lynx out the back door. The coyotes out the front door. Lots of horses, being outside, being in the big country." The family was also highly involved in the Tulelake-Butte Valley Fair, with Frank serving as a fair board director for 17 years. Jointly, Frank and Ginger were leaders of a 4-H horse club. He helped get the horse arena built, and created the always-popular greased pig contest. With one exception, they have faithfully attended the annual parade. They were at this year's parade, but not on the sidewalk. Instead, Frank and Ginger were this year's grand marshals. "I was just floored. I thought it was quite an honor," Ginger said of being asked. "I have quite a lot of pride in the fair," Frank echoes. "It is such a great place to see your friends and neighbors," Ginger said of the fair, which she believes helps promote and appreciate ranch and farm life. "We were always involved with the fair. I think it's the best little fair on the West Coast ... It's a great place to spend the weekend." The Kings involvement with the fair has happened at many levels. They and their three children - Dave, who lives in nearby Malin; Holly, of Clovis, Calif.; and Laurie Piepenbrink, who lives in Texas - have been group leaders, exhibitors and people who flat-out enjoy the fair, and appreciate what it represents. Frank is glad he had reason to make a second Tulelake Basin visit, and Ginger is tickled her mother approved - and proud that she learned to think like a cow.