Photography Award
American Horse Publications announced the winners of the annual photography contest, and my image “Shipping Ridge” is a finalist! Once in a while, circumstances align to create the perfect photograph. This was one of those moments. Here’s how it went down… The Sun Ranch crew was gathering cattle for shipping last Fall. It was dawn, … Read more
Range War
Speaking of wildlife migrating out of Yellowstone, I saw the Park Service guys herding bison back into the Park last week. To free-range or not to free-range bison out of Yellowstone is one of the most controversial issues along Route 287. A smart blogger wouldn’t go near the topic. But, I gotta. It involves horses, … Read more
Elk Wrap
Yesterday, I came across a cow elk rolled up in barbed wire. She’d tangled herself in seven strands of a tumbled-down fence, and was confounded as a kitten in a ball of yarn. She was still alive, wide-eyed with panic. I stopped to help her get free. The Madison Valley is a primo elk migration … Read more
The Last Draft Standing
Picking up horses from winter pasture is normally my favorite day of spring. The remuda comes in caked in mud, their coats completely overgrown, with a distinctly equus look in their eye. They have lived in a wild state for the past six months, far from the domesticity of paddocks and corrals. I walk them … Read more
Canada’s “Cowboy Trail”
When Route 287 hits the Canadian border, it becomes “The Cowboy Trail”. It’s the road’s actual name, and there are signs for it everywhere. Driving along Canada’s equivalent of Route 287, I learned a couple things about ranch life in the great northern. 1) Cattle guards are called “Texas Gates”. I jokingly asked a waitress … Read more
