The Arterburn Family
Mountain Sky is known for its tradition of exceptional service delivered by folks who are sincere, warm and friendly and for the unlimited opportunities to explore the mountains, canyons and streams of a magnificent Montana Ranch.
Kelly and I have a great passion for all of the recreational opportunities that this area has to offer and we are at our best when we can share this enthusiasm with the folks who come to visit and experience a vacation at Mountain Sky. We have two young children and are delighted for them to grow up on a ranch in the Paradise Valley. We can see the wonder reflected in their faces as they experience the fresh air and welcoming environment, explore the ranch, and participate in all the fun & games provided by the kids program.
One of the most compelling things at Mountain Sky is the bond our staff has created with all of the guests throughout the years. Our staff is genuine, sincere, and all agree that nothing is more gratifying than the memories we create with our guests.
We look forward to meeting you, sharing experiences and providing you the ultimate family vacation with something for everyone.
Warm Regards,
The Arterburn Family
| Stagecoach
In 1929, Murphy welcomed his first guests at the railhead in Emigrant for their stay at Ox Yoke Ranch. It was not unusual to see private rail cars parked for two and three months in Emigrant throughout the summer. Guests came from Chicago, Minnesota, New York and Florida to enjoy the same spectacular riding, hiking, fishing and warm Western hospitality enjoyed by today's Mountain Sky guests.
Charlie Murphy's son, Jim, grew up on the ranch and attended classes in the rustic schoolhouse at the base of Big Creek Road. He was destined to be part of one of the first great love stories to blossom on ranch grounds. Jim met his future wife, Gayle, during her family's summer stays as guests at the ranch. Jim and Gayle married and became owners of the property when Charlie Murphy passed away. They moved into historic Homestead House, filling its rooms with a romance that can still be felt in this rustic treasure today, and continued to run guest operations in the warm tradition of Murphy hospitality.
Through successive ownerships, the ranch officially was named Mountain Sky in 1979. Today, guests at Mountain Sky Guest Ranch share in the wonder of the "pretty little canyon" discovered by Nelson Story at the turn of the century. The romance between the land and its guests continues, warming cabins, lodge and countryside with the same Western-style friendships and conversation celebrated here since 1929.
| Historic Ranch
In 1863, Ohio native Nelson Story settled with his wife, Ellen, in Montana in a log house at Alder Gulch. Three years later, in 1866, he drove 1,000 head of cattle up from Ft. Worth, Texas on the Lonesome Dove Trail to help feed starving Montana mining town residents isolated by harsh weather. He came through Paradise Valley and, beset by an early winter, he camped in a "pretty little canyon" offering protection from the elements – the present-day site of Mountain Sky Guest Ranch.
Through the early 1900s, the site served as a base camp for sheepherders and cowboys. In the late 1920s, Charles Murphy purchased the Paradise Valley site and founded Ox Yoke Ranch, a 50,000-acre working cattle ranch.
| Historic Great Room
Working with Northern Pacific Railroad officials in Chicago, Murphy began construction on present-day Mountain Sky's main lodge. While the dining room and sitting rooms have since been renovated, and amenities have been added, much of today's historic Mountain Sky main lodge remains structurally unchanged since the 1920s. Murphy also relocated a rustic house on the property, inhabited by earlier homesteaders, the Lewis family, from the upper pasture to a new location closer to the main lodge. Murphy used the log home as his year-round residence and office for the ranch. This home now serves as Mountain Sky's gift shop and reading room.
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RELATED VACATIONS
In addition to dude & guest ranches, browse related adventure travel and active vacations such as cattle drives & working ranches, horse pack trips & trail rides, horseback riding stables, and wagon train vacations.
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