GHOST RANCH, FALL, 2025

Here is a recap of my time at Ghost Ranch this fall.  I took a few pictures and thought I'd share some of what I get to see every day on the ranch.  

 

The southern border of the ranch is the Yellowstone River.  I have come to love and appreciate it more with every passing year.   It has a pulse, a vibe, a look, a manner that changes every single day of its existence.  The millions of acres that drain into the Yellowstone watershed are some of the most remote areas in the U.S.

To some, Montana holds a mystical, spiritual place in our souls. The scenery and the wildlife are etched in our memories. The possibility of shaping, improving, and protecting what Mother Nature has provided intrigues and drives us.  This picture shows the BNSF rails on the south side of the Yellowstone across from the Ghost!

Millions of dollars of coal are carried daily down these tracks to points east;  grain being shipped to the Far East headed west to maritime ports. 

The Ghost Ranch deer population is robust.  Last summer we counted over 100 fawns in a hay field at the same time.  That is rather amusing watching that many does and fawns trying to figure out who belongs to who by smell.

 

In September we found over 20 dead whitetail deer.  EHD, blue-tongue was the culprit.  Too many deer, ripe conditions for the virus and this is what happens.  Nature is cruel.  The smell of death was easy to detect.

This deer was doing well, suffering from some form of muscular disease.  She could walk and eat okay.   I am sure coyotes took her down at some point.  They eat too!

Mule deer aren't often found on Ghost Ranch.   This little muley buck was on the hunt, testosterone building in his blood!

The older I get, the more I find enjoyment in rockhounding along the river.  Petrified wood and agates are my main targets, but beauty is found everywhere.  My Dad enjoyed hunting agates in the Badlands of South Dakota.

In Montana, you get to see sunrises and sunsets that only the Creator can bring to light.  Photos, at least not mine, don't do them justice.  

There is a reason most ranchers run 10-ply tires in Montana.  Iron is often the culprit. Never anywhere without a spare is the mantra.

Often on a clear night, when the sun goes down, the lights come on!

The spectacular northern lights dance without charge. 

Dandy buck in the tall grass!

There's always one that is rather odd.

In summer velvet fighting deer flies and mosquitoes 24/7.

They heard something.  Deer live in the present.  There is no yesterday nor any tomorrow.   Their singular focus is to stay alive in the moment.

 Nice example of velvet eradication.

More velvet!  Amazing how fast bucks get velvet removed when it's time.

For some reason this youngster loved strutting around the yard.

11/11/2025   This beauty came to the Ghost Ranch a couple of hours before I put him in the freezer.   He spent the summer a mile or two away, coming down the river hunting does.   It took a nanosecond to decide to take him to the taxidermist.

This brute had been in a hell of a fight.  Notice the bloody mess by his ear.  These big bucks are nasty when a hot doe is involved.

We usually have or hear of bucks dying from locking up, unable to get free.  This year we heard of a couple of brutes who locked up and drowned in a pond close to the Ghost Ranch.

This year we had a young man come to the Ghost Ranch and harvest his first whitetail deer.   It is exciting to provide the opportunity to a young guy (and excitement for his father) to harvest a mature deer.

Cancer is a terrible disease and our great friend SIS has a large tumor in her back leg.  It is growing so fast she won't see spring.  Sad is an understatement.  You probably have experienced cancer in pets, loved ones or even family.  Why Lord, why?

I still do my part to keep our deer numbers down.  These girls eat good.

Pheasant numbers are thru the roof at Ghost Ranch.  We don't hunt them here, only watch them!  Thanks to the efforts of so many locals (myself included) killing raccoons all year round, the turkey and pheasant numbers are spectacular.

This buck spent all summer on the river a couple miles away.  The property owner had hoped to get him killed but this buck had other ideas and roamed off the property.   We last saw this picture of him on social media!  Oh well, who said life was fair?

The Merriam turkey population in the Yellowstone corridor is in good shape!

One of my sons had a good fall.   

It was the herd bull.  Lots of luck involved, but with 128 elk in the herd, he was the stud muffin.   

  

I went elk hunting  and thumped the first 6-point bull I saw.  Lying on a bench across the canyon, he slid off the cliff to take a dirt nap.

After Thanksgiving, the geese were flying, and we put a few in the freezer.

It is hard to give a Christmas goose to anyone in Montana!  Trust me.

As winter takes over, life is tough in Montana.  For humans, livestock, and wildlife.  Strength, toughness, attitude, luck, all play a part in making it through on a daily basis. Let's hope 2026 is the best ever! 

Let's hope bucks like this make it through the winter.   Look at his ears move.  Cautiously, he smelled a human for a nanosecond.

Winter is here now....... 

 All the best to you and yours in 2026!