Where's Waldo

I know, I know, I haven't been good about writing! It is really busy right now! We only have 1 1/2 months before crew comes in and we get ready to open on June 1st! It is way too exciting and there are so many fun things going on. However, the ranch just got a FOOT of snow today and it's still snowing.

Meanwhile, NOT back at the ranch, Sarah (previous wrangler, current "cabin mate", incredible fence mender, terrific friend and now traveling companion) and I, and my infamous Jack Russell TERROR called "Francois Pierre" or "Spud" as my husband loves to call him (!) are traveling around warm, sunny New Mexico for a few days. We took a road trip to help her move some things, and it's been fantastic. We put over 1600 miles in the car in just two days. It's a great 71 degrees down here. I'm not sure we'll head back to Montana tomorrow with all that snow! So here's how my little 13 year old puppy likes to travel in the car (but of course I can't seem to figure out how to lay these pictures out properly...Sarah, where are you?????)

So we head back north tomorrow and should be home by Wednesday. Do you think the snow will melt by then?

debi

Spring Time in The Rockies

This is Sis

This is Lilly

Ha! Here are some photos of Jeremy working our fillies the other day. They are both turning three this spring. Nice weather, huh? The very exciting news is that these two gals have just learned how to ride. It only took him an hour apiece to work them and be able to ride them. Amazing what a talent can do, isn't it? Now if I can just learn to stay on somebody's back-that would be amazing :-)

Hope the rest of the country is enjoying the new flowers popping up! See you soon,

Debi

The Weather In Montana

Since everybody asks us "what's the weather like out there?" I thought I would pass along a quick shot of the ranch today. The temperature has been running in the 20's during the day and down to single digits at night, and there's quite a bit of snow! JT and Dave are working on the shop, putting in a new laundry room, a small apartment for Debi and JT, and a gift shop. More on that later. Enjoy the picture! brrrrr

Love Lane Photos

Since I couldn't figure out how to successfully put all these pictures together, here are some photos of Love Lane as well!

Back In The Saddle Again!

Wow! I think I finally caught up with my paperwork (except, of course, filing my taxes!). I'm ready to rock and roll. But first, I promised Alan I would write a little about where the horses stay. It's three locations: the Covered Wagon Ranch during our season, which is June through September,then on to winter pasture at Raspberry Butte Ranch, in Big Timber, and, for a select few, some stay at our home in Bozeman. Even though Satin, Oprah, Nina, Rebel, Alfie, Blue and Lido work as dude horses in the summer, we winter them at our home. They were personal horses before Jerry and I bought the ranch.

Raspberry Butte Ranch is where JT and I will eventually live, but it's hard to give up our home in Bozeman at the moment. Besides, with real estate where it is, who would buy it anyway? In 2005 we built an indoor riding arena, which allows the horses to be worked during the winter. We usually have Jeremy work the younger horses or those that could use a little more "saddle time" as they get started. Once the season is over, Jeremy and Darlene live in the ranch house that's on the property, and JT and I keep a small apartment in the arena, as we travel back and forth from Bozeman. Our home in Bozeman is about an hour from the CWR. Raspberry Butte Ranch in 1 and 1/2 hours from Bozeman to the north east, and is 2 and 1/2 hours from CWR.

When the horses are at the Covered Wagon Ranch, we have limited corral space. You may or may not know this, but we don't own the land down the canyon. The Covered Wagon is on leased land from the Forest Service, and it only sits on 18 acres. For those horses that are not being worked that week, we put them up on the 2000 acre grazing permit we have with the Forest Service, which starts up the hill behind the ranch. That's why we wrangle them up the mountain on Saturday night and bring the ones we need back down on Monday morning.

So, that's how we keep our horses. Make sense, Alan?? :-)