ROUNDUP - THE GATHER

We went over to the Martinell Ranch near Dell and helped gather their cattle from the summer range last week.  We have been doing this for over 20 years and always have a great time.  This ranch has been in the same family since 1893 and what a great family it is.  We worked on this ranch for a number of years and have watched the children grow up and now have children of their own.  The summer range is located in the Centennial Valley between Monida, MT and Island Park, ID.  It takes two days to gather the cattle and drive them down to the "middle" cow camp called the Monte Kent.  The next day they are taken to corrals near by where the calves are weaned and shipped either to a feedlot or down to the ranch headquarters at Dell.

This is our new truck and our mobile cow camp on top of it.

This is the Monte Kent camp where we base out of for the gather, weaning, shipping, and moving the cows down to the "lower" cow camp 20 some miles west of this camp.

A pretty sunset the first night we were there.

Craig is one of the ranch cowboys enjoying the pretty sunset.

One of the horses taking a roll in the grass.

This is the view down into the Madison valley.

This is a veiw of the Centennial Valley with the Red Rock National Wildlife Refuge's lower lake in the top left.

The snow capped peaks in the background are near Big Sky, MT.

Cowboys and cowgirls giving their horses a drink during the gather.

Getting the cows bunched up.

Trailing the cows down to the Monte Kent so they can be worked the following day.

Doctoring a sick calf.

Having some coffee before a late lunch at the camp.

Counting through the gate at the Monte Kent.