The O2 Ranch is one of the largest ranches in Texas, spanning approximately 272,000 acres across Brewster and Presidio counties in the Trans-Pecos region. Named for a brand first registered in 1888, the O2 has been part of the Lykes Bros. Inc. family since 1941. Situated in the high Chihuahuan Desert at elevations between 3,400 and 5,500 feet, the landscape features broad flats, rolling hills, mesas, and canyons—filled with diverse biology, geology, and archaeology. Today, the ranch offers unique opportunities for hunting and cattle grazing.
The O2 brand traces its origins to E.L. Gage, who operated one of the largest cattle operations in the Trans-Pecos region during the late 1880s. Gage registered the O2 brand in 1888. Three years later, attorney and cattleman William Turney purchased the brand and began assembling the land that would become the O2 Ranch. By the 1930s, Turney had consolidated virtually the entire property as it exists today.
Lykes Bros. Inc. purchased the O2 Ranch in 1941 and operated its own cattle program until 1965, when the Company transitioned to leasing the property for grazing and hunting.
In its native condition, the O2 was largely grasslands. In 1998, Lykes Bros. Inc. withdrew the ranch from grazing to begin a long-term restoration program aimed at returning the land to its native state. Working in partnership with Sul Ross State University, the Borderlands Research Institute, and the Rio Grande Joint Venture, this ongoing effort focuses on restoring native vegetation—essential for erosion control, sustainable wildlife populations, and the eventual reintroduction of limited grazing.
In 2011, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department honored Lykes Bros. Inc. as the Lone Star Land Steward for the Trans-Pecos Ecoregion, recognizing our “dedicated stewardship of the land through excellence in wildlife habitat management.”
Today, the O2 Ranch is leased for hunting and grazing, continuing a tradition of productive land use balanced with careful stewardship.
