Lon Lon Ranch

Lon Lon Ranch is a small farm that appears in several Zelda games. The ranch belongs to Malon and her father, Talon, and is most famous for selling the nutritious Lon Lon Milk.

Ocarina of Time
In Ocarina of Time, Lon Lon Ranch is the home to Talon, Malon, Ingo, and Epona. It is located in the center of Hyrule and is owned by Talon. It is a small farm, with one house area and a barn to keep horses and cows safe. It also has a paddock that can exercise the horses daily. The ranch raises Cuccos, horses, and cows. They make a profit by selling off the famous Lon Lon Milk that the cows make to the people of Hyrule. An Empty Bottle can be won here as young Link from Talon after winning the Super Cucco Game.

When Link first visits the ranch as a child, Malon introduces him to Epona, a young horse. The farm girl goes on to teach Link "Epona's Song", and Link can play this melody to beckon Epona to him, but he cannot yet ride the horse. Seven years later, Link returns to the ranch to find that it has been taken over by Ingo with the help of Ganondorf and has been renamed to Ingo Ranch. As a result, Talon was kicked out of the ranch, and Malon is forced to obey Ingo's orders or else the horses will be mistreated.

For a fee of 10 Rupees, Link can ride the horses in the ranch, and for an additional fee of 50 rupees, he can race Ingo for the chance to keep the horse (namely, Epona, as she is the fastest). After losing, he will challenge Link again, this time wagering Epona. Upon being defeated yet again, he keeps his promises and hands over Epona to Link; however, he closes the gates of the ranch, prohibiting the young hero from ever leaving the ranch. Link easily jumps over the gate by using Epona, and when he returns to the ranch, he finds that it has returned to its normal state. After losing the horse he had set aside for Ganondorf, Ingo turns the ranch over to Malon, and becomes a much happier and much more humble person after the experience. Malon also informs Link that her father will be returning to the ranch soon, and thanks Link for all that he has done.

Link can speak to Malon to take part in a small obstacle course and test his skills by using Epona. The goal is to complete two laps around the racetrack in the fastest time possible while jumping the set fences without missing one. If Link beats the obstacle course record, Malon will reward him by delivering a cow to his house in Kokiri Forest.

Four Swords Adventures
In Four Swords Adventures, Lon Lon Ranch can be found in Near the Fields' The Field. Upon arriving to the field, Link encounters a girl named Malon standing all alone. She tells the young traveler that she was running errands, but just as she was about to head back to her home, it started raining; furthermore, the castle guards were moving all the cannons and even aimed their bows at her. Helpless, she asks the four Links if she can accompany them until she gets back to Lon Lon Ranch with her father, Talon. Unlike Ocarina of Time, the ranch has no cows or horses to be seen, and there are no buildings except for the house in which the two farm owners live.

As thanks for saving his daughter, Talon allows Link to use his horse to make his journey through the fields much easier. Link can grab one of the carrots that are encased in a crystal ball and throw it on the ground to make the horses magically appear, which the young hero will mount automatically.

The Minish Cap
In The Minish Cap, the ranch is not as big as in Ocarina of Time. Here lives Malon and her father, Talon, along with their cows. Later in the game, if Link helps Malon and Talon in finding their house key, he can go through the ranch to reach Lake Hylia. In the ranch, Link can fuse Kinstones with Elsie, one of the cows, if he is in Minish form. Link can also buy milk from Malon and Epona in Hyrule Town.

Theory
Even though Lon Lon Ranch isn't in Twilight Princess, it is speculated that Hyrule expanded over the years, and the ranch near Ordon Village may be Lon Lon Ranch. Evidence for Hyrule's expansion also explains the new Kakariko Village, the remnants of the Temple of Time, the supposed remnants of the original Hyrule Castle Town (if the people of Hyrule did move the capital to a new location), and the reason behind the castle looking like it's under construction when Link first visits it as a wolf. If this is true, nothing can really be said about Talon and Malon's descendants. Perhaps they sold the ranch, left the ranch, or are in the Ordon population. It should also be noted that Talo and Malo have similar names to the two. However, all of these ideas have never been proven and should be seen only as fan speculation and nothing more.

Trivia

 * Interestingly, everyone at the ranch in Ocarina of Time has a turn at running the place at various points, starting with Talon, followed by Ingo, and finally Malon.
 * Lon Lon Ranch is most likely to be named after Malon and Talon, the father-daughter owners of the ranch in Link's childhood in Ocarina of Time.
 * Although the sword can be used inside the house, the Cuccos which reside on the main floor cannot be hurt, thus the Cucco Revenge Squad cannot be summoned.
 * This is the only area in Ocarina of Time which is entirely optional.
 * If a glitch is performed at one of the large fences, Link can obtain Epona with out having to beat Ingo in the race.