Black Forest Trading Post & The Deer Park — Local services in Ulysses Township

The most disrespectful and rude store owners I have ever encountered. We will never be back. I would give 10 negative stars review if I could.

My family has had a cabin 10 minutes from the deer park for 40 years. We all visit the deer park regularly. Today (after a fun weekend together with our extended family) my husband and our four children visited the store. I wanted to share my own fond memories of this store with my children. My kids all found a little prize and my 6 year old daughter had a hard time deciding what she wanted but finally decided on a stuffed animal. She put the bunny on the counter (a bit harder than normal) but completely not intentional and the rude older man informed me that she is out of control and that we have to take her out of the store. The stuffy did not hit anyone or knock anything over. I looked at him and said “excuse me?” Me and my husband were dumbfounded. He said that our daughter was out of control and she had to be taken out of the store. I said that she is not out of control and I do not need anyone to tell me how to raise my children. His response was “apparently you do”. I told him we will never be back and that he is completely ridiculous and rude and took my children out of the building as I was concerned for their safety. My husband stayed and paid and the sweet women said she is gonna “step in where she is not suppose to and told the man he is completely out of line and being rude”. She then put extra prizes in my children’s bag and my husband told the man that he will lose his business if he treats his customers this way. My brother warned us before we went that the new owners are horrible people and watch you like hawks. They tell you not to “pick their grass” which is honestly laughable. We will never be back and neither will my 40+ extended family members. I hope this man loses his business and someone can return it to its original condition. It was always the most warm and welcoming place but not anymore. I have never in my 9 years of being a parent had someone be so disrespectful to me and my children....

Me, my wife, and my son came up here from Virginia. Our experience here was a very positive one. The store owners were very friendly and I had a nice chat with them. My son enjoyed feeding the deer and the backend of the property looks very reminiscent of a mystical grove. We did not hang out in this area for long since we could not delineate property lines but this area and the property in general is well maintained and nicely decorated with large cuts of tree trunks. There is a Birch tree on the side that looks almost anthropogenic if you look at it from the front. All this said, I would best describe this place as being somewhat mystical and the overall vibe here is very good.

I disagree with comments mentioning that this is not a kid friendly place. There is a sand pit for kids to play in and sift out their bags of hidden rocks that are sold in the store for a very reasonable price. There are many well-fed and curious deer for kids to feed and there are plenty of items for sale in the store that are for kids to enjoy. There are also items for sale if you are into game and maybe fishing (cannot remember if I saw fishing materials for sale) including ammunition.

I agree with most of the positive feedback I have read within these reviews and I personally believe most of the negative feedback is unsubstantiated. For me personally, a good experience with any business is not a one-sided matter and anyone that comes here will walk away with a positive experience. With that being said, we will be back again the next time we visit the dark skies again and thank you.

*The photos attached are grainy. My phone camera's lense...

Aug.2025 Update: 4 to 5 stars. Our family was visiting again this year. Had a amazing time feeding the deer and gem mining. Then a child was winning back and forth across the store. Parents kept promising everyone that they would remove it if it didn't stop. Nope 10-15 min of this. Finally they picked toys and the upset one tossed it across the counter, lucky it didn't knock anything over and stopped just before it hit the cashier. A guy said what we were thinking, take kid outside til it's done with it's fit. Mother flipped out and was offended about her lack parenting skills. Anyway dad paid for toys and left. We went to pay. They said sorry and they were sure a bad review would follow. We were like no way, they never took the kid out making everyone else have to deal with it too, and kid threw the toy. Today we checked and pow crazy lady did post a fibby review. They can be unhappy but don't exaggerate the story for your benefit. Makes us wonder what really are the stories about these low reviews. If our family misbehave, it reflects on us, not the businesses we are visiting. People need to learn this. YOU are responsible for YOUR family's BEHAVIOR; No one else.

OLD*Great place. Love the deer 🦌 The new owners are real nice and the extended hours until 7pm are amazing. They are working on store with bikes and archery; I can't wait to see it when it's all...