Scoping out the Landscape

One essential characteristic of my nature is that of an explorer.  Back home I would explore the Olympic National Park and the Cascades 6-8 times a years.  I always valued exploring new territory I had never seen and finding remote areas that are less traveled by others.  Here in Montana this passion for exploration has had free expression to lead us around the land, looking for new places we have never been to before.

One of these places is the Heritage Homestead Ranch property.  This property is an 1800 acre parcel seated among the Greycliff Mountains in the city of Greycliff.  Part of this property is in a valley created by the Greycliffs with a natural spring and a river running through it.  The other part of this property is on an elevated plateau referred to as “The Flats.”  These flats are about one hundred feet above the valley and have picturesque views of the Yellowstone River Valley and the snow capped mountains of the Crazy Mountains and the Bear Tooth Mountains.

View of the Yellowstone River from the flats:

Mel and I on the Greycliffs:

Exploration of the 1800 acre parcel requires special equipment:

Just don’t let the boys get behind the wheel:

And lots of hiking:

Back down in the valley, our kids played with the animals on the ranch:

And exploration often leads to unexpected discoveries:

And climbing around in a new construction ranch house:

Back in town our exploration continued with a trip to the river:

View of the Crazy Mountains on a sunny day:

Exploration and fun always seem to go together (Caleb in the green helmet):

Riding bikes with the mountains as a backdrop:

And when the weather brings us inside it’s time to play ping-pong:

When a family of 12 invites a family of 6 (our family) over for dinner, here is what the kitchen looks like:

Inviting our friends to visit our house:

 So our first few days of exploration have proven fruitfully productive.  Every exploration leads to the discovery of new things.  We are excited to learn what these new things are as we value every moment we are given in this remarkable community.