Wide Open Spaces

Head to big sky country and you'll find many ranches alive and well. But for one ranch in Montana and Wyoming, keeping that ranch thriving meant a blend of new education - and letting some of the outsiders, in!

They're ridin' and ropin' at Padlock Ranch a half million acre cattle spread that's sprawls across the hills of Wyoming and the wide open spaces of Montana. Padlock will graze more than ten thousand head of cattle a year. And that's a draw to tourists who vacation here for a slice of "home on the range" that you won't find on a dude ranch.

The Palmer family left their city life behind in Denver, to saddle up and spend some time on horseback. Today's cowboy chore? Moving 200 cows and their calves to the corral. Running a ranch means regular vaccinations to keep the stock healthy.

Emily Palmer, a tourist explains, "I just really like the experience of feeling like all the pressure and stress of home kind of leaves you when you come here. So, I kind of have a new perspective on things."

Brain Palmer, another visitor says, "There are no trains or airplanes or cars or traffic. It feels like time stopped here and it's great."

When Wayne Fahsholtz of Padlock Ranch was asked, we're on the grounds of one of this country's largest cattle companies. Why tourism? He responded, "A couple reasons. One is that we want to tell agriculture's story. We want to let people begin to understand where their food comes from. And the second reason is purely economic. We want to create another source of income."

The ranchers here say making that "connection" with consumers has become a critical element in reaching out to those who know little about farming or ranching. Les Nunn of Padlock Ranch explains, "We can teach them about our culture, gives them the chance to experience it and understand what it is, this, to us, is a way of life and we just want people to be able to experience that."

When asked, what does it give someone when they come out here and experience this type of life? Karen Searle of Padlock ranch answers, "A lot of what we do with our working ranch vacations is education. If you can go somewhere and connect or reconnect, you learn something about yourself!"

Padlock is banking that yearning for learning will trigger the interest of more visitors. Visitors who leave Padlock better understanding what ranchers face on the range. Wayne says, "Well, I think all ranchers have an untold story of caring about the animals that they care for. And there's lots of times they spent in blizzards and other things taking care of a single calf. Today the public is really interested in that."

After a hard days work – it's time to kick back. But there's no bare bones bunkhouse here. Visitors relax at the upscale wolf mountain lodge. It's up with the sun tomorrow as the golden glow fades tonight.

Jackie Palmer a visitor says, "I was reminiscing back when I was a kid. And I remember feeling completely free. And that's what land and having nobody around, does. It frees you."

Les Nunn says, "It's a great experience for them. Something I hope they can take home. We know they will, we know they'll have memories that will last for a long time."

Footsteps of the Past
Cattle can be found in many parts of Wyoming today, but travel back in time and dinosaurs once roamed the landscape here. Dozens of different dinosaurs called Wyoming home in the Jurassic period dating back more than 100 million years.