Dryhead Ranch | Wyoming

Like most ranches, the Dryhead offers a weekly programme of riding and ranch activities on a full board basis.

There are two choices for lodging, the first of which are five cabins with private facilities. These western style buildings offer comfort for the weary cowboy guest. On the wall there are ranch pictures from days gone by and the porch is a good place to unwind from a great day’s riding and moving cattle.

Alternatively you could stay in one of the seven comfortable bunkhouse rooms and step back into the cowboy days on a real working ranch. They have blended old and new in a western way by leaving the old log look and mixing it with hot water, heat, and electricity. The rooms have double or twin double beds to accommodate familes or groups.

All accommodation is at the ranch, Dryhead do not offer an overnight camping option as part of their programme. The main Lodge building is also the dining area and there are comfy sofa on which you can relax after a busy day. The Lodge also has Wi-Fi.

As the ranch runs over Federal Native Land, no alcohol is permitted on the property.

Given the terrain over which The Dryhead operates and the cattle and horse activities that they offer, the better the rider you are, the more you will enjoy the experience. You will find you are riding in both Wyoming and Montana depending on the activity and date, the property is spread across both States.

Intermediate to advanced riders tend to choose this ranch as the nature of horse and cattle work means you will have to ride at all speeds and you may find yourself out for up to 8 hours a day, possibly more if the weather has made the operation difficult.

Spring begins in the middle of April.  Calves are being born and in a couple of weeks is the start of the cattle drives to Montana and the horses need to be in place at the ranch to give guests something to ride. The weather is springtime in Montana.  Layers and quite often winter coats and gloves and hats and chaps are the best choice instead of cowboy hats and lighter clothes. It takes three days to trail the horses to the ranch then there will be two more days checking pastures and fences and preparing the gates to hold cows in the coming weeks.

April and May begin the spring cattle drives. Each drive moved 200-250 mother cows and calves. This takes four days. Each night has a designated corral or pasture for the cows to stay in where they are fed and watered. Each guest rides several horses during the week. Horses are fed in the corral each night and some are changed out each day. Cowboy horses are changed each day. There is no camping during the cattle drives. Guests are transported back to the ranch each night for a warm meal and comfortable sleeping accommodations.

After cattle drives that bring cows to the ranch in May the calves are gathered up and branded. Each week of cows and calves are turned out into summer pastures and kept separate from the cows and calves that are still needing to be branded. Each week you will ride through these branded calves checking for sickness. Cowboys will rope and doctor any calves that are sick all season long.

June starts with the gathering of the 30+ head of mares who bring with them newly born colts. The wild flowers and chokecherry blossoms are amazing and spring is at its best. One of the most popular weeks happens when the mares are divided into mare bands and stallions are added. It’s great to see the stallion command and move his mare band out the gate and make them go to their corner of the ranch where they will spend the summer months.

July & August – Those wonderful days of summer slowly change the schedule to early morning rides and hot days. The young horses come into the corral each evening to begin the training sessions that fill each evening until dark. Cattle are looked for and returned to the grazing pastures and neighboring strays are taken home. All day rides are needed as they check for cattle to be doctored and fences that need a little attention and salt blocks put out for mineral deficient cows. Days in summer are unpredictable and could be spent looking for colts that are needed at the ranch or heifers that are up the mountain in the wrong pasture or checking on mare bands tucked away in the canyon. All rides are up or down in rocky, sage brush infested terrain that always offers riding challenges. The sure footedness of your horse will win your trust and admiration on the first day. Your skill in riding will be challenged and tested each day and your level of skill will remarkably improve by the end of the week

The fall weaning weeks are part of the late September and early October weaning weeks. Four different groups of two hundred cows with their calves are gathered and brought to the ranch headquarters. The calves are weaned and hauled to Wyoming. These are full days of riding large pastures and trailing an amazing long line of cows to the ranch headquarters. These long days allow you to experience the full process of how ranches gather and handle large numbers of cattle and how the cow business works. This is a beautiful time to be at the ranch. Early crisp mornings, warm and cool days to ride high mountain country and arriving at the ranch sometimes just before or after dark. This is the perfect chance to bond with your great cow horse and learn the partnership in a good days work in Montana’s big sky country.

Staying at Dryhead Ranch is about the riding and so there are no other activities.

Horse Round-Ups and Drives

April, May & October

Cattle Drives and Weaning Weeks

April, Sep & October

Ranch Weeks

May to August

Autumn Cattle Gathering Weeks 

Aug & September