Meet Me in Montana

If you prefer a bit of actual winter in wintertime, the Ranch at Rock Creek offers cool comforts — and audacious adventures.

The Ranch at Rock Creek (8)

Those who’ve never had the opportunity to visit a luxury ranch-style resort might imagine the experience to be a bit like that of Billy Crystal in City Slickers — fancy people in an environment somewhat foreign to them, stumbling into zany misadventures, toggling between pure delight and unbridled terror.


Warming up in the lodgeWarming up in the lodge

And those people would be right, sort of. At least about the zany misadventures. Western Montana’s Ranch at Rock Creek outside Philipsburg — where accommodations range from large leather-and-old-wood-bedecked homes with multiple bedrooms to rustic-chic hotel-style guestrooms and rugged “glamping” cabins with canvas roofs — is nothing if not a smorgasbord of fabulous adventures, most of them orchestrated by a large staff of guides.

After a breakfast of cheese grits, sautéed kale, poached eggs and stacks of thick-cut bacon, near a blazing hearth in the lodge dining room, and amid the strains of an ardently county playlist that highlights Loretta Lynn’s “You Ain’t Woman Enough to Take My Man,” guests head out into 6,600 acres of ranchlands. The snowcapped mountains and fields are all swirled with switchbacks, crisscrossed with jackleg fences, and bisected by elegantly winding rivers and roaring creeks.

Ice skating on the propertyIce skating on the property

The choices of activities are many. Besides some yearlong staples such as shooting ranges of various sorts, archery, fly-fishing, demanding hikes (watch out for the grumpy mama moose who thinks she owns the place) and quirkier options like a photography class, a ropes course and even paintball, there are winter-only choices to thrill. Those include ice fishing, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and, best of all, horseback riding through snowy meadows, with the faintly herbal smell of juniper and sagebrush — and maybe just a hint of gunpowder — cutting the very cold, very clean air. Oh, and there’s snowga, which, of course, is yoga in the snow; long johns are recommended.

Cocktails in the saloonCocktails in the saloon

But the most memorable misadventures might be the unplanned ones, like watching Flint the mascot Black Lab fight with shiny river rocks, which he collects and barks at vigorously for purposes known only to him. Or dancing with strangers to live bluegrass at the weekend barn dance. Or ogling the handsome New Yorkers on a bachelor-party trip who’ve partially stripped to sing “Rock Me Mama Like a Wagon Wheel” at karaoke in the saloon after too many whiskey shots with pickle-juice chasers, a.k.a. picklebacks. City slickers, indeed.

Food+Travel
Introducing Dina Owner of Eyelashes by Dina

STEP INTO A world of luxury with Dina, the visionary owner of Eyelashes by Dina, nestled in the prestigious Saint James Place. Embrace the artistry of bespoke lash extensions, meticulously tailored to meet your every desire. With a decade of industry expertise, Dina elevates the lash game to an unparalleled level of sophistication. Discover a serene and elegant oasis, where every lash experience is a masterpiece. Indulge in the refinement of luxury, only at Eyelashes by Dina.

Keep Reading Show less

Lady Stephanie Kimbrell, Cory McGee, and Butler Studio artists, Ani Kushyan, Alissa Goretsky and Elizabeth Hanje (photo by Michelle Watson)

ALL OF THE top performing arts organizations in Houston have now officially opened their 2024-2015 seasons, now that Houston Grand Opera has bowed with a stirring performance of Verdi’s Il trovatore at The Wortham followed by a lavish al fresco dinner in a tent on the plaza out front.The Houston Ballet and the Houston Symphony held their own grand opening night festivities earlier in the fall.

Keep Reading Show less
Art+Culture

Photo by Lynn Lane

HOUSTON GRAND OPERA’S second fall repertoire production is Gioachino Rossini’s Cinderella. The colorful, commedia dell'arte-inspired production opens Friday, Oct. 25, and stars Grammy Award-winning mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard — a breathtaking brunette beauty, even when doused in soot — in bel canto role of Angelina, known to her mean step-sisters as “Cenerentola.”

Keep Reading Show less
Art + Entertainment