This mysterious Oregon forest awakens hope in a local writer.
Essays
Posted inArticles
Ranch Diaries: Early spring grass brings unexpected challenges
Roping a sick calf on a green colt.
Posted inArticles
Rants from the Hill: Will the real fake John Muir please stand up?
Searching for authentic identity in Chautauqua season.
Posted inApril 27, 2015: Lost frontier
Can our own ingenuity upend natural laws?
Reflections on the health of my heart and the making of Hoover Dam.
Posted inArticles
Ranch Diaries: Building community in the middle of nowhere
Cattle branding brings together far-flung neighbors in the midst of the “Big Quiet.”
Posted inApril 10, 2015: Strangers in a Strange Land
A German’s shattered romance with the West
An essayist asks whether the West is the most misunderstood region in the U.S.
Posted inApril 10, 2015: Strangers in a Strange Land
Children in Alaska’s wild country
As parents, we watch our kids walk into vast new worlds — like it or not.
Posted inApril 10, 2015: Strangers in a Strange Land
Raccoonboy’s guide to urban wilds
When in doubt, climb; fences are made for hopping.
Posted inApril 10, 2015: Strangers in a Strange Land
Readers’ foreign travel tales
Winners of the High Country News essay contest for our annual travel issue.
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Ranch Diaries: Tiny living, 23 miles from town
After a chicken coop, a tipi and no electricity, this four-season camper is our most modern home yet.
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Rants from the Hill: Scaling Lone Tree
Learning to see a one-tree forest in the Great Basin Desert.
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Lifties and ski patrol go head to head in Telluride
It’s a Telluride tradition: the annual St. Patrick’s Day lifties versus ski patrol softball game. To understand the magnitude of this yearly matchup, it’s important to understand the social dynamic of these two groups in any ski town. Ski patrol is full of alpha males and females, talented and aggressive skiers—in general only skiers—who have […]
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Ranch Diaries: Ways to reduce the inevitable risks
On cattle futures, planning for potential drought, and grazing cows to encourage forage growth.
Posted inMarch 16, 2015: Wild Ride
A giant resort overshadows a tiny Colorado town
A teacher’s perspective of big changes to a small town.
Posted inArticles
Ranch Diaries: Purchasing cattle, writing the business plan
How and when we expect to see returns on our investment.
Posted inMarch 2, 2015: Unite and Conquer
Balancing the pulls of domesticity and wilderness
How I take inspiration, and cautionary advice, from Ed Abbey’s family misadventures.
Posted inArticles
Ranch Diaries: Why we manage our cattle horseback
Rough terrain and big country make horses an ideal way to manage for gentle cattle.
Posted inArticles
Ranch Diaries: A New Mexico cattle company is born
How we decided to start our own business on the Mescalero Apache Reservation.
Posted inFebruary 16, 2015: Chainsaw Diplomacy
Chainsaw diplomacy
In southern Utah’s Escalante watershed, a river restoration group tries to cut through old cultural barriers.