Cattle drives offer a real treat for anyone looking for an authentic taste of western cowboy culture. And where better to experience the excitement of cattle drives than at Montana guest ranch Bonanza Creek, an adult-oriented working cattle ranch that is steeped in history. And it is this history which helps makes cattle drives at Bonanza Creek so special and authentic.
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YOU round up the cattle at Bonanza Creek
The Montana ranch has been in the Voldseth family for five generations, but it was first homesteaded by buffalo hunters who were trailing sheep from Idaho and narrowly missed the Indian massacres. The Montana guest ranch first came to the Voldseth family in 1877 when Martin Grande emigrated from Norway to the United States and settled in Montana. Take a cattle drive vacation at the Montana guest ranch and you can even ride out to an isolated old homestead that the modern world still hasn’t reached, where you’ll experience a real sense of what living in the diverse Montana country more than 100 years ago was really like.
Now owned by June and David Voldseth, Bonanza Creek land spans both the beautiful Castle Mountains and the legendary Crazy Mountains, making for a wide range of terrain and vistas on which to ride and, more importantly, embark on exciting cattle drives. Cattle drives and trail rides at the Montana guest ranch take guests through diverse, dramatic, and expansive landscapes – from large valleys and open country, to steep peaks and to rushing rivers, to heavily timbered mountain sides.
But what makes cattle drives at Bonanza Creek particularly special is that YOU, the guest, move the herds of cattle, not the ranch crew! Instead of simply being an onlooker, you’ll actually play an important role in the cattle drives and experience real working ranch life as it has been for hundreds of years.
To hone your cattle skills before riding out on real cattle drives, enjoy team penning in the arena. Not only a fun horseback sport, team penning evolved from the common ranch work of separating cattle into pens for branding, doctoring, or transport – meaning you’ll be learning essential cowboy skills. Once you’re a cinch at reading cattle, you’ll be able to put your new-found skills into practice on the ranch’s cattle drives.
When you’re not embarking on authentic cattle drives at the ranch, why not take a relaxing early morning breakfast ride though the picturesque woods beside the bubbling Bonanza creek? On arrival at a stream-side campfire, tuck into a hearty breakfast that the ranch’s cook and his team will have waiting for you, before climbing aboard your mount once more to finish the wonderful morning ride.
And when all those cattle drives have gotten you saddle sore, rest those aching muscles with a soothing soak in Bonanza Creek’s rustic hot tub where hot mineral water flows up from the ground. If you can’t wait to get back home from a ride or cattle drive to take to the water, advanced riders can cool of in the natural waters of the lake and swim with their horse on a hot day.
If you’re looking for authentic cattle drives, riding through diverse and dramatic Montana cowboy country, and to experience the real history of a working cattle ranch, Bonanza Creek ticks all the boxes.
For more information on cattle drives and working ranch vacations at Bonanza Creek, visit Top50Ranches.com