Join us for the vacation adventure of a lifetime. With
the release of movies such as City Slickers and Lonesome Dove the appeal
of the West, horses, herds of cattle, and western life-styles has suddenly
become quite popular. While many travelers are satisfied with illusory
depictions of life in the West in the form of 'dude' ranches with their
swimming pools and plodding trail rides, we provide the adventurous
traveler the opportunity to experience the real West on a Working
cattle ranch.
The Flynn Ranch of Townsend, Montana is just such a working ranch,
steeped in the tradition of the old West yet progressive and innovative so
to remain economically viable in the fast-paced times of computers and FAX
machines. The ranch has roots extending far into the past, settled by
Jefferson and Anthony Sharp in 1873. Anthony's stepson Claude Flynn then
started cutting grass hay with horse drawn mowers, baling it with a
stationary baler and hauling it with wagons to the railroad for transport.
Electricity reached the ranch in 1940 which led to refrigeration replacing
the 'icebox'. As the ranch has evolved over the years with the passing of
generations and the additions of property and improvements, it has in
essence become bigger than the sum of its parts. Those of us following in
the footsteps of the pioneers have truly large boots to fill.
Flynn Ranch vacations are unique. Your hosts will be sons
of the pioneers, fourth or fifth generation Montanans who will guide and
instruct you on every aspect of operating, living on, and enjoying a 700
cow, 15,000 acre cattle ranch. This is not a tourist mill. The maximum
number of guests booked is four per week. You will receive personalized
instruction of everything from saddling and caring for your own horse to
keeping your rod tip up when playing a rainbow trout in fast water.
You will take part in such activities as calf branding(May), herding cattle, fixing barbed-wire fences, irrigation, hauling salt blocks, and putting up hay. Every day is different and every day will be completely unlike anything you will ever do in your normal workday world. Plan to put in long hours, typically 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.; however there will always be time for fly fishing lessons, photographic opportunities, wildlife viewing, and a myriad of other activities that occur during the course of a ranch day's work.
