B Bar Gazette – October 2025
| Issue #29 October 2025 |
| Wood smoke drifts from the yurt’s stove, softening the morning chill as we gather in a circle where everyone has equal space and opportunity to share. Outside, smoke lingers in the high branches of leafless aspens. Fresh white peaks stand stark against a dusty purple sky. Winter is close, but it will wait for another day. When the afternoon sun crests, we’ll peel off our layers and let the natural warmth do its work. Thirteen quarter horses graze their well-earned breakfast in the 3T pasture while the dirt in the Skully corrals lies lumpy and frozen. No horses will be saddled today–the last of our 737 summering cattle were trucked to Big Timber last week. |
| On his way to guide for hunting season, I caught Cayden for a quick chat. He shared that nearly every animal that arrived in the spring was accounted for. That relief was well earned. Just a couple of weeks ago, Cayden was on horseback near Highway 191 while Mark flew overhead in a Cessna searching for a number of bovines that had wandered miles from home. The good news: every one of them was found healthy. The yearlings that came in June averaged an impressive 2.4 pounds of daily weight gain. |
| The yurt warming up on a fall morning. |
| Across Skully Creek, beyond the freshly mulched garden beds tended by Claire, Brandon and Wyatt have turned their work in the retreat operation into a friendly competition–each trying to outdo the other. When work feels like play, everyone wins. Our guests feel it too, especially when Chef Jason brings his own creative flair to the table, crafting meals that are as colorful as they are flavorful. Tonight’s dinner? B Bar beef ribeye. We’re lucky to have such dedicated stewards of the ranch’s mission–people who want to stay through winter and bridge the season into next summer. This year’s seasonal roles are turning into long-term commitments, reflecting our shared goals of learning, care, and continuity. |
| Chef Jason serving our organic beef ribeye. |
| On Wednesday, we hosted Bear Awareness Gardiner, a local nonprofit working to reduce human-bear conflicts across the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Evan Stout and other local professionals are passionate about teaching communities on the expanding range of grizzlies and how to coexist with them–through awareness, preparation, and bear-resistant infrastructure. Their passion for coexistence is inspiring, and we’re grateful to support their work. Learn More About Evan Stout This event came on the heels of a Cowboy State Daily article about B Bar Ranch. While the story began with our multigenerational history and daily operations, the focus quickly shifted to grizzly bears–an ever-present part of life in Tom Miner Basin. Living and working here means navigating that relationship with respect and care. What the article didn’t capture is how nuanced that coexistence is, especially as more people visit our valley to see bears. It’s a privilege to witness these animals in the wild, but it’s also a responsibility. If you come to Tom Miner to view bears, please keep these reminders in mind: Drive safely. This is a community where both people and wildlife live. Keep your distance. Give animals space, especially when they are near the road. Respect private property. A fence is not a boundary between you and the bear. No tailgating. Please don’t grill, fly drones, smoke, or picnic. These are wild lands, and small actions have real consequences. |
| We’re always learning how to be better stewards of this changing landscape–one that now includes more people, more bears, and more responsibility. As we walked to our cars that night, continuing meaningful conversations in the dark, I was reminded how fortunate I am not to be alone in this work. The advice shared helped me channel my disappointment about the recent article into something more constructive–a deeper commitment to understanding our relationship with grizzly bears. The whole, after all, is always greater than the sum of its parts. Warmly, Jackson |
| Our B Bar Family Maryanne Mott - General Manager and Owner Jason Guevara - Head Chef Annie Statham - Assistant Guest Ranch Manager Jackson Stewart - Marketing and Sales Manager Amy Berndt - Ranch Administrator Kenney Berndt - Maintenance Foreman Troy Lerwill - Maintenance Technician Mark Rose - Land & Livestock Manager Naomi McCormack - Horticulture Lead Claire Beimel - Horticulture Wyatt Reed - Guest Services Brandon Schmidt - Guest Services El Stone - Bookkeeper Mary Malley - Tom Miner Office Assistant Mihail Kennedy - Production Manager Shea Kennedy - Cattle & Grazing Coordinator Randy Mesce - Maintenance Technician Kristian Mesce - Big Timber Office Assistant Esme Wessel - Big Timber Ranch Hand |