We are now in our third official guest week here at the 7D, and the summer season is truly under way. Family week was a blast, and as usual the Dominicks were a huge help to our staff. We completed numerous projects, including staining many of our cabins, refinishing the Rec Hall floor, and planting flowers all over the ranch. Our first official guest week was a huge success with the return of a family that has been staying with us for 8 wonderful seasons. They spanned four generations, from darling one year old babies to 88 year old great-grandparents, and we hope that they will continue to visit us for generations to come. They joined us for some terrific rides, a rollicking game of capture the flag, and even the kids joined in at the Wiki-Up for some detoxification and rejuvenation. We are fortunate enough this year to have the musical stylings of the “Cowboy Singer” Scott Bragonier , as well as our own staff member Sam Kesler, who frequently serenades us at the campfires. During our first week, while Scott entertained us with his cowboy tunes, a grizzly bear made an appearance off in the cattle fields, and guests and staff alike got to catch a glimpse of one of the area’s most impressive animals. Last week we had a wonderful group of guests from the Boston area and the midwest, and we had a fantastic time getting to know them all. Highlights of the week included an all day ride to Dead Indian Meadows and some country line and swing dancing led by our staff members Jenna Potter and Kyle Buck.
This week, we have a jam packed ranch filled entirely with returning guests who have been spending time at the 7D for years. Lawn games promise to be truly exciting this week as old friends, both the little kids and the “big kids” get to take out some of their aggression on the field. This week we are also heading into Cody to some of the best rodeos the United States has to offer, with Extreme Bull Riding on Thursday and the Cody Stampede Rodeo on Saturday night.
The pigs have finally made it up to the ranch, and they’re helping us to dispose of some of our leftovers and entertaining the kids. Peter Talpey, our self-proclaimed “goat whisperer”, continues to work his magic with our baby goats, Nanners and Hetfield, who are as cute as ever. So far we have managed to avoid flooding from the summer thaw, but diligent sandbagging from staff and family members has helped us to be as prepared as we can be should the need arise. Fingers crossed we won’t get there!
We are so excited to be in the beginning stages of what promises to be another amazing summer at the 7D.
