The West I Love





The guy singing and playing also happens to be Idaho's

Governor, Butch Otter.



Who needs a bat and ball!



I don't know why, but it always amazes me when we run into people who, regardless of their walk in life, still embody the spirit of the American West. Down-to-earth, genuine, practical, conservative, friendly, and neighborly, with an independent streak. They look you in the eye while giving you a firm handshake. They've got an honest smile, a twinkle in the eye, a sense of humor-- and an unapologetic appetite for beef!
 
We've just spent three wonderful days over the hill on a ranch in Idaho, with a group of people that embodied that very spirit. Some were genuine cowboys. Some were in other occupations, but were weekend cowboys, or just plain cowboys at heart. But every last one of them had a passion for our western lands and cowboy heritage.

 We went over to do a pitchfork fondue. But in addition to our pot setup, we loaded our horses and got in on everything from the practice roping, the main roping, and the conservation tour, to the open range branding on a little bunch of Longhorn/Corrientes.

I took my camera of course. Now I've got about a thousand photos to sort. We also closed on our new place just before we left, so the next couple of weeks are going to be crazy. There's a lot of finish work to be done before we can move. Please be patient if you are in the photos. I'll skim the top so I can at least post some highlights on Flickr, and link a slideshow from this blog.

Thank you Tyler family for your warm and generous western hospitality. We had a hoot!



Karl and Donna



Conservation Enhancement Tour