last american cowboy

[papavillars]

Just finished watching the documentary The last american cowboy. Sure is nice country in Montana. The show followed three families, the least amount of acerage was 25,000 acres and the largest was 100,000 acres.

 

[TexasBred]

Just finished watching the documentary The last american cowboy. Sure is nice country in Montana. The show followed three families, the least amount of acerage was 25,000 acres and the largest was 100,000 acres.

With spreads like that I can assure you I wasn't in any of the scenes.

 

[MO_cows]

I always wondered how their ancestors could have acquired so much land. You could only homestead 160 acres; 320 with a tree claim. Or is it not deeded land but grazing permits on public land?

 

[alacattleman]

I always wondered how their ancestors could have acquired so much land. You could only homestead 160 acres; 320 with a tree claim. Or is it not deeded land but grazing permits on public land?

my guess the stronger ranchers kept buying out the weaker over periods of years as they drug up

 

[Dave]

My daughter works on a ranch in Montana. The guy she works for told me that round #2 of homesteads they allowed a person to homestead 640 acres in that area. In round #1 they figured out that a family couldn't make it on 160 acres there. Over the years they have slowly bought out the ones who couldn't make it. He figures 30 cows per section (640 ac) for the grazing season. That is a little over 21 acres per pair. 500 pairs would take 10,500 acres. There certainly are grazing permits on government land in Montana. There is more of that in western Montana. But not like in Idaho, Nevada, or parts of Utah or Oregon where the majority of the land is owned by the governement and grazing permits are the only way to survive.

 

[TexasBred]

My daughter works on a ranch in Montana. The guy she works for told me that round #2 of homesteads they allowed a person to homestead 640 acres in that area. In round #1 they figured out that a family couldn't make it on 160 acres there. Over the years they have slowly bought out the ones who couldn't make it. He figures 30 cows per section (640 ac) for the grazing season. That is a little over 21 acres per pair. 500 pairs would take 10,500 acres. There certainly are grazing permits on government land in Montana. There is more of that in western Montana. But not like in Idaho, Nevada, or parts of Utah or Oregon where the majority of the land is owned by the governement and grazing permits are the only way to survive.

So you can literally have a 50,000 acre spread and not own an acre of it...just use it. :?:

 

[dun]

My daughter works on a ranch in Montana. The guy she works for told me that round #2 of homesteads they allowed a person to homestead 640 acres in that area. In round #1 they figured out that a family couldn't make it on 160 acres there. Over the years they have slowly bought out the ones who couldn't make it. He figures 30 cows per section (640 ac) for the grazing season. That is a little over 21 acres per pair. 500 pairs would take 10,500 acres. There certainly are grazing permits on government land in Montana. There is more of that in western Montana. But not like in Idaho, Nevada, or parts of Utah or Oregon where the majority of the land is owned by the governement and grazing permits are the only way to survive.

So you can literally have a 50,000 acre spread and not own an acre of it...just use it. :?:

You can use it but it comes with strings attached if it's a grazing alotment.

 

[Ryder]

I guess land you own is what they call deeded land and the other is government land?

 

[alacattleman]

I guess land you own is what they call deeded land and the other is government land?

its all goverment land , :cowboy:

 

[Dave]

The grazing allotments come with a lot of strings attached. They aren't cheap or free. Lots of them are particularly good grazing either. I know of one ranch in northern Nevada that runs 700 mother cows. Their BLM lease is over 300,000 acres. That is a lot of rock and sand between blades of grass.

 

[bigbull338]

ive been watching that show as well.an i hope they keep filming it.i like the lone cowboy.his dad doesnt give him an inch of slack.an i think he would fire him in a heartbeat if the ranch started going backwards.

 

[dun]

The grazing allotments come with a lot of strings attached. They aren't cheap or free. Lots of them are particularly good grazing either. I know of one ranch in northern Nevada that runs 700 mother cows. Their BLM lease is over 300,000 acres. That is a lot of rock and sand between blades of grass.

Where we were you could only run the cows for about 3 months of the year (winter) and it still took at least 300 acres per pair

 

[3waycross]

ive been watching that show as well.an i hope they keep filming it.i like the lone cowboy.his dad doesnt give him an inch of slack.an i think he would fire him in a heartbeat if the ranch started going backwards.

Yep and then the grouchy ole fat bast--d could do it all himself. I watchd that whole thing and never did figure out what he did. Earl Stucky was 80 and still working his own place All the old man Hughes ever did was drop by threaten and bytch.

 

[bigbull338]

yeah stucky was raising the devil because he couldnt get out there an work.then old hughes never would listen to his sons ideas.

 

[Tegerian]

Just started watching this show and it's not too bad, looks like they had a rough winter.

 

[TexasBred]

Just started watching this show and it's not too bad, looks like they had a rough winter.

I did laugh at the guy trying to get the young bull away from the heifers while he was riding the 4 wheeler..the so-called "bull" looked like something that should be in the rodeo being bulldogged.

The young man doing it all on his own with just his old man on his a$$ all the time needs to send the old man back to the house and tell him to sit in front of the fireplace and stay out of the way.

 

[Tegerian]

Yup, also the young kid from Connecticut working the Galt ranch was pretty good as well, hard worker but I'm not sure I'd want someone that accident prone working for me. Didn't see the old man on the Hughes section but this was my first time watching, seemed he had enought to do without his dad riding him as well.

 

[Isomade]

I really enjoyed the series. Hope they have a new season soon.

 

[showing71]

I only caught a few episodes, but thought they were interesting. Does anyone know if they're coming out with a DVD series of it?

 

[Tegerian]

Watched some more and I have to say I like old man Stucky the best so far, he is a tough old fella and still working at what he loves.