John Wayne's classic, “The Cowboys” is probably my favorite western movie. It’s a story of boys becoming men. I know I've watched it 40 times or more.
When his ranch workers desert Wil Anderson, a Belgrade, Montana rancher, to join the gold rush and the
dreams of getting rich, he is forced to find recruits for his upcoming 400-mile long cattle drive to Belle Fourche, South Dakota. One of the coolest western actors that ever gleamed a Hollywood screen, Slim Pickens, who in the movie was Anse Peterson, suggested to Anderson at the saloon that he should consider the young kids that were at the local schoolhouse. He interviewed them, and with hesitation, hired them on to work his cattle-drive.
To keep from making the movie a spoiler, I'll stop there and only encourage you to watch this excellent movie. It is about growing up, fathering, and even when the going gets tough...completing the job!
So, when I first landed at the Bozeman Yellowstone airport a number of years ago, I noticed that it is
located in the heart of Belgrade. Today, being a little early for our flight, Liz and I decided to tour the small town and drive out into the ranchland. The town is classic Montana; a bar/saloon near the square.
The ranch land was beautiful. Along the way, in a one-mile stretch, we spotted three bird species. One was the American bald eagle, a majestic bird perched on a power pole. The other was an Osprey with a recent catch in his talons. The other was a falcon, sitting high on a tree. And if that wasn't enough, we spotted a large golden eagle take off with a fine sized snake in his grip! All beautiful flying birds of prey. Not too shabby for a side trip to the airport!
Well, Montana was fun this week, but tomorrow morning I’ll say, “We’re burning daylight.” If you don’t get this sentence, you haven’t seen the movie!
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