Diamond City Gets A Lift

The gift shop is currently hovering 6 feet off the ground.

A view of the front support from inside the gift shop.

Temporarily closed for business :)

General Manager Yancey, admiring the crew's handy-work.

Year after year, our gift shop grew more and more popular, thanks to Tawnya's efforts.  She dedicated tons of time to tracking down the perfect items to fill the floor space, to decorate the walls and to fill the shelves and drawers.  Hats hung from the rafters, toys overflowed from the corner, and a trip into the back storage room to resupply the showroom was a journey into a veritable jungle of hanging clothes.   Our jewelry space was packed top to bottom with turquoise and silver, beautiful necklaces and earrings and designer purses.  Last season, it seemed we had reached the limits of the current space, but our guests and staff clamored for more.  

The building has a top floor, but it has gone unused over the years due to accessibility issues.  After considering our options, we decided to make that space usable again by adding an interior staircase and strengthening the foundations.  This would effectively double the space in the building, and the entire ground floor would become available as retail space.  As with all construction done on the ranch, it was of the upmost importance that we preserve this historical building as much as possible, so our only option was to lift the entire building off the ground!

The crew first inserted long steel beams to create a network that criss-crossed through the windows and doors.  These were propped up by carefully stacked towers of 4x4 cuts of wood.  Next, the crew utilized four powerful jacks to slowly lift the building off of its foundations, lifting first with the two in front of the building, and then with the two in back.  This was incredibly tricky, as we wanted to preserve the existing fireplace and chimney without having to take it down and build it back up again.  In the end, after a long day of work, the crew hoisted the building 6 feet off of its old foundations, with the chimney standing unharmed.

Returning guests and staff will be delighted to find a revitalized gift shop next season, offering a little more room to move around amongst the western treasures we've placed there.

Why, you ask, didn't we go the cheap and easy route and tear the whole thing down?

The preservation of the historical elements of this ranch has always been a priority.  Many of our guest cabins and our lodge date back to 1929, and were carefully remodeled in order to preserve that look and feel, while adding all the comforts and details that have earned this ranch Montana's only 4 diamond AAA rating.  History as rich as ours shouldn't be carelessly tossed away.  To brush up on that history, click HERE.

Diamond City, as the building has long been dubbed, was an old homesteading home of the Lewis family, and was moved down from our upper pasture to its present location by the lodge by then-owner Charles Murphy, back in the 1920's.  He used the log home as his year-round residence and office for the ranch.

November News

Greetings Friends! We hope that your Halloween featured more treats than tricks, and that your Thanksgiving day left you happily comatose from mashed potato and stuffing overload. And now for the latest and greatest in Mountain Sky goings-on:

The Challenge Dairy "A Taste of the West" Sweepstakes!

Challenge Dairy is responsible for Challenge Butter, the largest selling brand in the West. This purveyor of fine dairy products is holding a sweepstakes to give vacation-goers a "taste of the West" as fine as their butter: A 7 day, 6 night getaway for 4 at Mountain Sky! Check out their blog for the sweepstakes details, as well as information on their products. It's an incredible opportunity, folks.

"Bionic" Brad Moyel Ready to Take on the World

Our happy-go-lucky yoga instructor and hiking guide is going to have some additional pep in his step, thanks to two successful hip-replacement surgeries. The first procedure was done in early November, and the second was successfully completed yesterday. Staff met up with Brad and his daughter Lotus for pizza prior to surgery #2, and he was giddy about the improvements he was already feeling at that point. He's resting up at Bozeman Deaconess Hospital for the next few days, and we wish him a speedy recovery.

Brad's yoga classes are extremely popular at Mountain Sky, and his hikes are always well attended, thanks in large part to his cheery disposition, infectious (and mischievous) grin, accommodating and reassuring approach to instruction, and his extensive knowledge of the land. We can't wait to see the zeal with which he tackles life post-surgery. He'll tear up the ski hill this winter, and then tear up the trails (and yoga mats) this spring :)

Mountain Lion Sighting... on Stacy and RC's Porch?!?

At 6:30am, Brooke Draves was on her way to her daily workout at the pool fitness facility when she turned the corner by Stacy and RC's front porch. It was pretty dark out, but she heard that she had startled something big, and stood still as her eyes adjusted. It was hard to make out, but she saw a mountain lion leap over the railing and flee down the short hill, its long tail trailing behind it. The bowl of dry food left out for Twitch (the ranch cat) may have been the source of the big cat's curiosity.

Because the ranch is virtually empty (our staff shrinks from 70 to 7, and only a few of those staffers actually stay the night up here), and because winter conditions tend to drive wildlife from higher elevations, the ranch becomes the ideal spot for deer, elk, moose, bighorn sheep, and the occasional bear to come foraging for food. Mountain lions are extremely elusive, and work hard to avoid contact with humans, so Brooke felt fortunate to be one of the few to have spotted one this season.

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is just around the corner, and we refuse to miss out. Getting festive with some pumpkin carving... Mountain Sky style.

Condé Nast Traveler visits Mountain Sky!

We are honored to be featured in the most recent issue of the prestigious Condé Nast Traveler! In this issue we were featured for two of ten days in their "Ten Perfect Days in Wyoming and Montana."  Keep reading to find out what they had to say about their adventure as they stopped by Mountain Sky Guest Ranch during their travels!

 Iconic Itinerary:  Big Sky Country.  "10 Perfect Days in Wyoming and Montana"

...In the days of Lewis and Clark, bison herds numbered in the millions and human settlements were few and far between. A century later, the wilderness that once lurked just across the Mississippi River had been tamed, and the frontier had shifted all the way to the Pacific Ocean. Those who'd stayed east during the great migration, but wanted to play rough-and-ready pioneer, booked some time at working cattle or sheep ranches that took in paying guests. And even today, no trip to Montana would be complete without a few nights at a dude ranch. You'll be staying at one of the cushiest yet still authentic options, the 8,000-acre Mountain Sky Guest Ranch (800–548–3392; doubles, $600–$670, all– inclusive), which even has a barbed wire collection.  Visitors aren't expected to herd any of the black Angus cattle raised here, but you can still ride horses all day long and enjoy a soak in the hot tub afterword... 

...It's just over an hour from Bozeman to the ranch, so you can spend the morning at the Museum of the Rockies (406–994–2251; museumoftherockies.org) and still be at Mountain Sky in time for lunch. The museum has a superb collection of North American dinosaur fossils, including the largest T. rex skull in the world.

East of Bozeman, Highway 89 takes you through Paradise Valley. The Yellowstone River carves a verdant stripe down the center of the golden-yellow valley, with cottonwoods lapping up its moisture on either bank. You should arrive at Mountain Sky Guest Ranch by 12:30 p.m., when the lunch buffet is served (expect average banquet hall-style food). Mountain Sky feels like the pinnacle of pioneer living: quiet and remote, but with all the comforts of home and none of the distractions. Don't bother turning on your cell phone or looking for a television (although there is Internet access in the lounge). Horse rides go out every morning and afternoon, with guests divided into beginner, intermediate, and advanced groups; the most experienced riders are even allowed to gallop. Reconvene in the bar with your fellow dudes for hors d'oeuvres at 6 p.m. and have dinner at 6:30. Before you head to your cabin for the night, check the sign-up sheet for tomorrow's activities. If the breakfast ride/hike to the historic Vink Ranch is on the list, don't miss it.

Should you find yourself headed to the Vink Ranch this morning, expect to travel several miles on foot or hoof past the rock-strewn Big Creek and through high golden grass to this neighboring ranch, where you'll be rewarded with cowboy coffee and a hearty breakfast cooked over an open fire. (Feeling sluggish? You can always opt for the van service.) Another great option is the morning yoga class, suitable for all levels, which is staged next to a crackling fire. The rest of the day is yours to fill with horseback rides and other ranch activities. Not equine inclined? There are also morning and afternoon hiking trips, white-water rafting on the Yellowstone River, fly-fishing instruction several times a week, tennis courts, and a pool. Or you can just grab a book and kick up your heels on the porch of your Lincoln Log-style cabin, many of which date back to 1929, when the ranch first started taking guests. Close your eyes and listen to the neigh of a horse, the stomping of hooves in the corral, the deep clang of the lunch bell. That peak you see in the distance is Emigrant, and it rises to almost 11,000 feet; try to get a seat with a view of the mountain at dinner, when the sky blushes violet, perhaps illuminating a dusting of snow on the summit. A scene such as this makes you realize what drove people to leave everything behind and venture west to a bountiful land they'd once thought existed only in the realm of dreams..."   Condé Nast Traveler, November 2009.

view the article in it's entirety at:  http://www.concierge.com/cntraveler/articles/501833

Thanks Annie!

Many thanks to naturalist Annie Sisk and everyone at Wild Things Unlimited, who provided excellent on-the-trail training to our hiking guides this spring. We enjoyed passing our knowledge of flowers, birds and other wildlife on to our guests throughout the season!

Going Green

To minimize our environmental impact, we are proud to announce our new amenities line: Green from Natura.

The packaging is made of corn based PSM (Plastarch Material), reducing demand for petroleum based plastics, and the coordinating packaging is made of natural recycled paper cartons printed with soy based inks. The vegetable based soaps are cruelty free, containing no animal fat or by-products.

Thank you for your support in our efforts to reduce global waste and create a cleaner environment!