Why would we pay to go to a ranch in the states when we have our own farm with cattle and horses right here in Canada?  It is a strange idea to process, but the experience of herding cattle is much different than what we do here in Ontario and it was that which we wanted to get a taste of.  Most people didn’t know what a cattle drive was when we told them we are heading to Montana and Wyoming for a “cattle drive.”  It usually turned into dialogue about City Slickers and Billy Crystal birthing a calf.  Ironically, neither Allan nor I were afraid of that predicament if the occasion were to arise as we have both been present for the miracle of birth of many calves, lambs and kids!  After the umpteenth time people told us it would resemble City Slickers we decided it was time we rent this movie before we headed out on a wild adventure.  We looked for the movie everywhere and most movie stores said they did not carry it any longer.  Luckily, a friend found City Slickers 1 at the local library and rented it for Allan and I.  Yes, it was quite similar, minus the birth of Norman, no one pulled out a gun and no one died!    

Choosing which ranch to attend was not easy.  There are hundreds all over Montana, Wyoming, Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, etc.  Many did not offer cattle drives and we wanted that authentic experience as best as it could be provided to us.  All the ranches seemed beautiful in their own unique way, so I figured it was up to us to decide and create a good time.  Dryhead Ranch is located 35 miles north of the Montana-Wyoming border in the center of Dryhead Country. 

I was starting to think this trip was not going to happen.  The odds were not in our favour: it is an extremely busy time at work for Allan and I had some new teaching opportunities arise, but if we didn’t do it now we never would!  I mustered up the courage to just do it and not worry about work because work will (optimistically) always be there.  Of course, in the six years I have been with the school board I have barely taken a day off and when we finally decided to venture into the big world more work opportunities arose than I could imagine.  Permanent jobs are scarce in the teaching world, but I thought to myself time and fun are scarce too and we deserve this.   

We started our journey through Michigan and drove into Indiana, Illinois, Iowa and Nebraska on our way to the ranch.  We left ourselves a bit more time to get to the Wyoming/Montana border than we did to get home, so we took a longer route.  I was hoping to venture off Interstate 80 to pay a visit to Arlington, Iowa, where Bachelor Farmer Chris resides, but Allan was not for that idea.  However, it was no problem to detour into Des Moines to see a John Deere factory!  I tried my absolute best to take photos of each “Welcome to...” state signs, but I got really good at doing drive by photography.  “Quick, window down! Click. Click. Click.” Allan was not pulling over on the highway so “Welcome to Iowa” came and passed very fast.  This also happened with the old barns, water towers and abundance of wind mills that I was so attracted to.  Allan can only pull over so many times on the highway and I can only complain so much...

The farmland was plentiful and the old wooden barns so unique in comparison to our bank barns.  None of their barns have stone like ours, but various diagonal patterns of wood to the ground and beautiful little lofts on the top of each, that I am sure had a purpose when those barns were in their prime.  Unfortunately, many were deteriorating because crop land covered the majority of the states we drove through on the way there and cash crop farmers have little use for the small wooden landmarks, making them useless to the farmers but interesting to the eye for a passerby like myself.  I noticed all the landmarks and Allan noticed all the John Deere companies and the transport trucks on the interstate hauling John Deere parts.  “That’s the largest combine John Deere makes,” he says as he points to a passing transport.  Both of us noticed the way they work their land, to prevent erosion.  In some hilly areas they tier it and let grass grow in between to hold soil in place.  Also, they use strip cropping, which is usually used when a slope is too steep or too long, or otherwise, when a farmer does not have an alternative method of minimizing soil erosion.  It alternates strips of closely sown crops and follows the contours of the land, which in the end keeps farmland fertile much longer.  There were fields that also used the method of dry farming (still strip planting) to accumulate moisture in these dry areas.  We don’t have to strategically plant like this in Ontario, but the Prairies of Canada do this, as they are very similar to the Great Plains.  Allan was sure to tell me that they make John Deere side-hill combines for this strip planting!

We saw few cattle until we hit Nebraska and onward West, then the hillsides became speckled with Black Angus, Black Angus and more Black Angus.  There must be a market for Black Angus!      

As we left Nebraska and entered Wyoming we noticed a severe temperature change.  Yep, we hit a snow storm in May!  I didn’t think I would have to wear my oil slick until I got to the ranch, but I didn’t pack my winter coat.  This lasted a couple days and crossed over a few states.  Fortunately, we drove out of it once we headed for Cody, Wyoming – an international rodeo hotspot and setting to many of my country Harlequin romance novels!  I told Allan we must go and it was everything I expected of the west, but I already had my own cowboy with me! 

Luckily, Cody is close to Lovell where we met the ranch owners, 6 guests from Sweden and 1 from Switzerland who were wonderful to befriend over the week.  We toured their Wyoming farm then headed to their remote ranch in Montana, in the middle of the 32, 000 acres that they ranch.  The cattle drive started at the Wyoming ranch, where the cattle stay for the winter.  Each spring, they trail 800-1000 cattle from these winter pastures to the rich, native grasslands in Dryhead Country, where they will spend the summer months.  Approximately 200-250 cows are taken at a time (per week) and their calves are paired with them.  Our objective was to herd them 50 plus miles through canyons, mountains, creeks and fields to the Dryhead Ranch in Montana and we succeeded (only 1 person died and 42 calves were lost).  Joking.  We trailed them through Bad Pass Trail, the Pryor Mountain Mustang Reserve, down into Deadman Canyon and north up the trail home, with the scenic views of the Big Horn and Pryor Mountains in the background.  The food was plentiful and the ranch was simple, yet beautiful.  The sun and wind were just right and it only rained on us for twenty minutes on our last day, after we needled the calves and Ivomec’d the cows, then completed our task by doing one last ride and driving them to pasture where they would continue to graze until September.  One of the cowboys took us on a long route back to the ranch, where we rode through more creeks, canyons and foothills before doing our little victory gallop homeward bound.    

“You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.”  This was the case with my favourite horse Carlos.  He was a stallion who was recently gelded and he was stubborn, but amazing to ride.  I guess he just wasn’t thirsty.  I would not be thirsty either after five days of riding over thousands of acres in the sunshine. 

I must say my favourite part of this journey is evenly tied three ways:  First, Allan and I were able to jog far ahead on our horses one day and herd up all the cow/calf pairs who are owned by other ranchers.  If we do not do this ahead of time, when the Dryhead Ranch cattle come through, then they all “moo” and speak cow-lingo to each other and a herd of 250 becomes 400.  You would think this is a good thing to come out with more cattle than you started with, but all the cows are branded.  We drove them into a valley and held them near water and foliage, where we knew they would stay for a few hours, as water is scarce in these areas and their run for joy when they see it is quite a sight.  Everything was just perfect that day – we both were given new, fantastic horses, the sun was shining just right, and the freedom of running up and down the mountains on horseback was a feeling I have not felt before.  Second, the dogs.  Anyone who knows me knows I love dogs more than I love Allan.  Each cowboy had 3-5 working dogs with them that were incredible to watch.  I quickly realized which ones I was allowed to cuddle and which ones I should not touch.  Some of them are strictly business!  Third, the kids.  One of the cowboys had four beautiful children that lived a life that I want every child here at home to live.  They were full of courage, imagination and energy and I was so fond of their little cowboy boots, hats and ropes and their attempts at copying their father.  They didn’t play video games, but rather rode their ponies, chased the cows, jumped in the creek and thoroughly enjoyed talking to the adults (not on a cell phone, but via actual oral communication!).  Their carefree approach to life is something I strive for everyday, because I strongly believe that simple is better and it was inspiring to see it in action and remind me of its importance. 

 We were glad that no one died on our ranch adventure, unlike City Slickers where guns were ablazin’ and old men were croakin’.  I almost pulled out my pistol once and it wasn’t even on the cattle drive.  I was very disappointed when I asked for a tea and was handed a clear cup with cold tea.  I immediately realized my mistake and said “Oh sorry, I am from Canada and I mean a tea, like a hot tea.”  I feel as though I continued to use the fact that I was from Canada as a disability anytime I ordered a tea.    

With Willie Nelson in the background, “on the road again...” we continued our journey in the direction of home.  Since rodeos do not start until June 1st in Cody, Wyoming, we were able to travel north and catch the Miles City Bucking Horse Sale and Rodeo event in Montana on our way home.  It was neat to watch and visit various vendors.  The small town camaraderie really rubbed off on me as it is the lifestyle I love most.  They hold a Miles City street dance on the weekend of the event and it fit perfectly into our schedule.  The road was closed and various bands set up along the Main Street, where we two stepped and enjoyed a beer with thousands of other country lovin’ fans! 

6322 kilometres later (3951 miles), too many nights sleeping in the car and a few aches and pains, I can now say I have travelled through Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan and successfully completed a cattle drive where no cattle or wannabe cowboys were lost! (it happens...).  It was nice to come home and Birch, Bruce and Brisk soon forgave us of the scent of a dozen other doggies on all of our clothing.  I hope my next U.S.A adventure can be with my best girlfriends, where we can road trip to Tennessee or Texas, but babies and men may need to be left behind, so I may be waiting until the cow jumps over the moon!  

I made the mistake of putting “Livestock is definitely an acceptable choice of wedding gift” on our wedding invitations last year.  We had friends and family tell us they were bringing a goat or a lamb and a few chickens, but we scoffed it off to no big deal.  Little did we know we would have four jolly piglets arrive just days before our wedding.  Fortunately, it was days before rather than the day of the wedding!  We created a temporary pig-proof home for them in the cow barn and hoped they would not escape.   I was obviously freaking out, as Allan spent half a day making this temporary piggy pen when we should have been placing flower pots, vacuuming the barn and doing many last minutes touches around the property.  Nevertheless, I was extremely appreciative of the unique and boisterous gift. 

We did have a couple friends in the bank barn the evening of the wedding, who were vigorously trying to catch a piggy to release in the wedding barn.  To no avail those piggies were fast and our friends in suits and dresses could not keep up.  I am glad the mischief was brought to a halt by my dad who was security for the evening (haha), as the poor piggy that would have eventually got caught would have been a little uneasy in a barn of hoppin’ country tunes.  Additionally, he would be unhappy to know that pulled pork was on the menu that evening...

We knew little about pigs, but figured if we fed them garden scraps and mash they would grow just fine and grow they did!  They thoroughly enjoyed the leftover pumpkins that I used all over the property to decorate for the wedding.  Furthermore, they were ecstatic when I decided to feed them the 16 leftover apple pies that my mother forgot to put out on the dessert table along with the other delicious sweets.  Who knew apple pie would be such a hit? 

Since the wedding, we have built them their own home in the barn that they remain safe and sound in.  We have raised them well and recently brought one to be butchered and sold.  He was purchased by a man Allan works with and was packaged to sell at a local farmer’s market.  He was huge!  He grew double the size of the others, but the others were all eating lots of food and growing well too.  His total weight hanging was 286 lbs so he was well over 300 alive.  Oink!

Turns out it wasn't a mistake at all!  I love those piggies in the barn and on the table!