Ranch Week, Part 2

Before I get into what you're all dying to know about - cows - here are a few pictures of the ranch.


My lodge room was cozy and peaceful.

Every morning I woke up to this beautiful view.

The first few days I worked on horsemanship. For me this meant learning the correct way to ask my horse to move. Eden, one of the wranglers, was our excellent instructor. Lessons took place both indoors and out.

On Wednesday we combined the lesson with a trail ride. The views from the top were spectacular.

You can just glimpse the snowy peaks of the Cabinet Wilderness in the distance.

After three days, Rocket got a break - meet Roanie, another very patient horse.

Before mounting up, I snapped a selfie. He was not impressed.

On Thursday I had my first experience with cows. We tried our hand at sorting: two people slowly make their way into the middle of the herd and gently encourage one cow to move out of the bunch. All the other riders form a wall around the herd, to prevent them from following. It's important to be able to sort quickly and quietly - for instance, if a sickly cow needs doctoring. It is much harder than it looks. The steers are so sensitive to the horses - they react to the slightest movement. All it takes is a look at the hip or eye and the cow will move.

It was also amazing to watch the horses. Roanie is VERY serious about cows. As soon as we got into the corral, his attitude changed. He was the boss of those cows, and let them know it.

One of the exercises we practiced in horsemanship was leg yielding, or asking the horse to step sideways. I've never been very good at this. Opening and closing a gate while mounted is a fundamental farm skill, and leg yielding is key to getting your horse positioned correctly next to the gate. One of my goals for the week was to learn the leg yield.

In cow sorting, you often have to step sideways to fill a hole in the wall of horses that is containing the herd. This is probably more down to Roanie than me, but he was yielding over like a professional when we were part of the wall. I was so proud. One of the best things this week was seeing the practical applications of skills like leg yielding. When I began riding, I was taught how to do these things, but not why. 

We spent an enjoyable afternoon with the cattle. With a little persistence - I'm looking at you, Blue 33 - we were all able to successfully sort out a cow.

Steers greeting the new arrivals

Pushing the steers into the corral

Erin and Becky (blue shirts) corner their cow

Abbey (black hat) escorts the steer out of the corral

Eenie meenie minie mo...

Out you go

Working with the cows was a fun challenge - so fun, in fact, that everyone signed up for cow work on Friday.

That's it for Part 2. I will leave you with some beautiful scenes from around the ranch.

   

Ranch Week, part 1

Sunday found me a few hours west of Kalispell, at McGinnis Meadows Cattle and Guest Ranch. Many people have asked me how I found McGinnis Meadows, so here is the story in a nutshell:

In February I bought a horse and realized I had no idea how to train him. I had seen Buck, and felt a connection with that style of horsemanship. The folks at McGinnis Meadows teach the Brannaman style of horsemanship, and all of the horses are trained in it. What better way to get hands-on practical experience that I can hopefully use with Sport? Plus I've always wanted to visit Montana. Win-win!

Sport.

The ranch is nestled in a long valley carpeted in lush hay meadow. Deer roam the hay fields, ground squirrels chirp and scurry across the lawns, barn cats recline like leopards along the fences, and birds keep an eye on it all from above. Cell phones do not work here. It is truly a natural paradise.

A day at the ranch goes like this: breakfast around 7:30, saddling the horses at 8:30, off on an activity from 9-ish till lunchtime. Lunch is either back at the ranch or out on the mountain if you're having a long day. Afternoon activity from 1:30 to about 4, then dinner at 6:30. You may spend your days learning horsemanship, riding a trail, working with cows - or doing nothing at all! It's your vacation!

My horse for the beginning of the week was Rocket.

I spent the first morning learning how to communicate with him. In the afternoon, we went on a trail ride. It was hot, the flies were awful, and I had so much fun!

                  

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After 3 hours, a few of us were tired out, and got a ride back home. The rest of the group rode for another hour!

Rocket enjoys some well-earned grain

A bird with a beakfull of spilled grain

Rocket was very patient with me, and taught me a lot. I was very lucky to get to know him.

Kalispell

In order to acclimate to the elevation, I spent a few days in Kalispell, a town of 20,000 in Montana's northwest corner. Kalispell is the gateway to Glacier National Park; as the plane descended, those peaks were on magnificent display, still dusted with snow even in late June.

Kalispell, founded in 1891, is a typical western railroad town. The streets are straight and square, lined with many fine examples of Craftsman style homes.

The downtown shopping district is small enough to be easily walkable, but large enough for two or three days of exploration. The climate is dry and the weather is changeable. In just two and a half days I needed my coat, scarf and gloves as well as shorts and sandals. When I was shivering, the lush gardens and cherry trees heavy with fruit were welcome reminders that it's summer. The streets are lined with flowering trees that filled the air with a heavy perfume. I have no idea what kind of tree, but the white flowers looked and smelled like privet.

Good food was easy to find in Kalispell. My dinner at Hops was top-rate: delicious burger, the most enormous fries I've ever seen, and a great local IPA to wash it all down.

Wheat Montana, a bakery-café, was another stand-out - the grilled cheddar and provolone on freshly baked sourdough bread was the perfect lunch after a chilly morning of window-shopping.

After lunch, a sudden rainstorm sent me running for cover, and I found it at the Hockaday Museum. This small museum occupies the former Carnegie Library building, and features art of northwest Montana. Some of the paintings on display are quite large - it was surprising to see such magnificent landscapes hanging in a small space. I felt like I was in the landscape, not just looking at a painting on a wall.

One of the fun parts of travel is seeing how everyday life differs from life at home. In Kalispell, every other car is a truck. And I mean full-size 4-wheel drives and duallys, not little Ford Rangers. For a town of 20,000, there are a disproportionate number of casinos and tattoo shops. Every building I walked into was stuffy - no need for air conditioning when winter lasts more than half the year. And people live for the outdoors. Everyone hikes, bikes, fishes, skis, rides horses, and when they aren't out there doing one of those things they're talking about it.

Two thumbs up for the Hampton Inn. Pleasant staff, nicely appointed room, and a quiet but convenient location.

Montana

If you're American, I'd bet that at some point in your life you've dreamed of being a cowboy. This is especially true for those of us who grew up watching Bonanza and Gunsmoke every day after school. I've seen The Searchers and The Sons of Katie Elder so many times I've just about got them memorized. I'm far enough along in life that a career change to wrangler is a bit, um, impractical. But horses and wide open spaces are still full of romance for me. So last month I traveled to McGinnis Meadows Cattle & Guest Ranch in Montana to find out if those cowboy fantasies ever could have come true.