The Last American Cowboy

There is a great new series on Animal Planet that you just don’t want to miss. The show is called “The Last American Cowboy” and it follows life on three working cattle ranches in Montana. You see up close the very tough, but rewarding reality of this traditional lifestyle. I just love the show.

It’s especially enjoyable because I have a connection to one of the featured ranches – the Galt ranch. The Galt Ranch is a neighbor ranch to my good friends the Voldseths who own the Voldseth Ranch and the Bonanza Creek Country Guest Ranch. Both of these ranches are located north east of Bozeman, around White Sulpher Springs.

I’ve met Bill and Jill Gault and was lucky enough to have Bill give me a personal helicopter tour of his beautiful ranch.

It’s also great to see Tanya Hill on the show. Tanya is the wife of Galt foreman, Tyson Hill, and is a wrangler for Bonanaza Creek in the summer guest season. Tanya’s just a great gal with a lot of talents. She speaks French fluently, has traveled the world, and is a heck of a hand and horsewoman. I always enjoy riding with Tanya.

Last American Cowboy is on Mondays at 10pmET. The show started on June 7th, but if you set your DVR, you should be able to catch the earlier episodes on reruns. You can find more about the show on the Animal Planet Website:

http://animal.discovery.com/tv/last-american-cowboy/

And make sure to check out my favorite Guest Ranch in the world – Bonanza Creek Country:

http://bonanzacreekcountry.com

Southwest Montana Stars in “Trail & Rider” Magazine

Last night I curled up with the latest copy of “The Trail Rider” magazine (May 2009) and was excited to come across an article on my neck of the woods – southwestern Montana.

“Postcard From Montana: Gem of the West” is a travel article about a horse trip the writers made to the the Pioneer Mountain Range of southwestern Montana. They really enjoyed this beautiful area which makes for such great riding.

It was so fun to read about the trails I know so well – the beauty and variety of the landscape, how untouched it all still is, how accessible and endless the trails are, the gorgeous mountain lakes that appear out of nowhere.  I’ve stumbled upon moose, herds of elk, endless deer, and even a bear or two in this country.

I especially enjoyed their warning that you need to be careful about trying to make a loop because you can easily get lost (oh, how I painfully know that!).

If you’re thinking about a horse trip where you can have endless miles of wonderful, unspoiled country to ride in, consider visiting us here in Beaverhead County in the southwest corner of Montana.