Horseback Riding

The Frontiersman Ride

Seasoned riders with a nose for adventure thirst for trails no one else has ridden. Which is why Paws Up Montana created a ride that challenges horse and rider alike—the all-day Frontiersman Ride. Led by our equestrian in chief, Jackie Kecskes, or her head wrangler, this exhilarating ride takes you deep into Montana’s Big Sky Country. The scent of sage and Ponderosa pine beckon you well off the horseshoe-beaten path, where game trails open up to panoramic views that have changed little in hundreds of years. There are plenty of opportunities to lope (canter), climb rocky trails, and cross crystal-clear creeks. By the time you dismount, you’ll know why this ride stands head and shoulders above the rest.

Horse and Mustang Rescue at Paws Up

While most adoption news comes with the pitter-patter of little feet, ours is accompanied by the thunderous sound of galloping hooves. In the spring of 2018, we brought home five mustang rescues through the Bureau of Land Management’s Wild Horse and Burro Program. We’ve opened our ranch—and our hearts—to these majestic creatures, because we share the BLM’s commitment to horse rescue and to protecting and preserving mustangs as living symbols of the West’s pioneering spirit and as beautiful creatures worthy of our care.

Few things embody the wild, independent spirit of the American West quite like the mustang. These hardy animals were first brought to the Americas by the Spanish. The word “mustang” comes from mesteño, meaning running wild. Today, nearly 70,000 wild horses roam public lands. While they are protected by the Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burro Act of 1971, the BLM is tasked with protecting public lands and controlling the population through roundups for relocation and adoption. Of course, not many can take in one wild horse, let alone five, but Equestrian Manager Jackie Kecskes hitched up the trailer and drove to Utah, bringing back the first four in March, with the fifth arriving in April.