It is now day 7 and our last full day at the Goosewing Ranch. I must say this has been a very relaxing and fun experience. We met a lot of nice people, all with very interesting backgrounds. The staff here has truly made our time enjoyable and a place that I would highly recommend to anyone wanting to just get away from whatever rat race you have to deal with on a daily basis. Word to the wise - make reservations in advance.
For today's adventures Cindy and I went our separate ways. She decided to sign up for another 2-hour trail ride up and over Cowboy Butte. Her Wrangler on this trip was a Frenchman named Ramon. The group she was paired up with all had a wonderful time. Here are some of the pictures from that ride.
 |
| Take a ride with Dixie up Cowboy Butte in the Gros Ventre National Forest |
 |
| A view from Cowboy Butte looking due west towards Grand Tetons National Park |
 |
| These are Willows trees down through this valley and prime location for Moose |
I took the low road (if you consider 7,400 feet the low road) for my adventure and took some Fly Fishing lessons from the owner of the Goosewing Ranch. His name is Francois. By trade he was a pharmacist back in France. He purchased the Ranch 17 years ago after a vacation to the Jackson Hole area. He fell in love with the scenery, weather, and Cowboy way of life. He did not have a clue about the hospitality industry, but decided that the Pharmaceutical life was not his cup of tea so he jumped head first into purchasing a Hunting Lodge that was failing measurably at the time. Although I did not see what the Lodge and surrounding area looked like 17 years ago, I did have some discussions with him and what I gathered it must have been a dump. Francois certainly has remodeled it into a beautiful place.
Here are some pictures from inside the main lodge. The theme was obviously all about hunting and Francois liked that aspect of it, but he has certainly changed the outside image and activities to horseback riding and fly fishing.
Now back to the fly fishing. Francois was very knowledgeable regarding the native cutthroat trout that live and breed in the tributaries, like the Gros Ventre River, that feed into the Snake River. Fly fishing was a learned activity for him and one that he got really good at. Being a proprietor of a Ranch in Jackson Hole afforded him some unique opportunities to join many guided trips on the world renowned trophy trout waters of the Snake River. Anglers come from around the world specifically to the Jackson Hole area to fish for the elusive and fighting behaviors of the native cutthroats. Several tournaments are held every year for these fisherman in their attempt to catch 20-30 inch monsters.
Francois took a group of us out to the lawn beside the main lodge and showed us some proper fly casting techniques, which I learned a lot from. He also showed us some typical fly's that hatch throughout the season and how to identify them. The only thing that he could not do was actually take us down to the river to show us the best holes and techniques that he uses. Why? That would be called "guiding" and that was illegal on Gros Ventre River that flows through the National Forest. I did pick up on a few hints and took it upon myself to jump in the UTV and make my way down to the general area that seemed ripe for some good fishing. Here are a few pictures.
 |
| On my way to the River |
 |
| Better than any day at the office! |
 |
| Fish on!!! |
We finished off the evening with a brisket BBQ down by the river. The Goosewing staff already had a pit campfire going and the guests sat around on logs. Dinner was great with some Cowboy songs being sung and the sun setting over the Tetons. Life is good! While we were sitting around the campfire Cindy and I were presented a very nice bottle of wine in celebration of our 30th wedding anniversary. This was a classy gesture and appreciated by both of us. Here is a picture of the guitar/mandolin player and typical sunset.
