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Sarah Grigg

WRITER + PRODUCER
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A sample of my journalistic, fiction, narrative nonfiction and screenwriting work.

Montana's Smith River is one of the most iconic waterways in the Lower 48 United States.  Photo :  Jim Klug Outdoor Photography

Montana's Smith River is one of the most iconic waterways in the Lower 48 United States. Photo: Jim Klug Outdoor Photography

Mining Proposal on the Smith

Sarah Grigg April 16, 2014

Publication: Field and Stream
Date: April 2014

Montana's Smith River is perhaps one of the most iconic waterways in the Lower 48. Offering 60 miles of limited river access, permits to float this pristine stretch of water are limited to an annual lottery system. Recent mine exploration permitting on Sheep Creek, the most critical trout spawning tributary, was recently challenged by several Montana environmental groups. Read my post for Field and Stream's Fieldnotes here.

Tags Field and Stream, Smith River, Montana, Mining, Copper Mine
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Grandmother Susan, my you roam Penn’s Woods with all your favorites forever. 🕊#pennsylvania #quaker #grandmother #forestgypsies
“You hear people say the era of the cowboy is dead. That’s a bunch of crap. . Nicholas Evans met me at a Mountain Sky Guest Ranch clinic in the 1990s and spent a lot of time with me when he was crafting the character of Tom Booker. I probably didn’t take him terribly seriously at that point in time. He watched me at clinics. The next thing I know, Tom Booker is a character. . Whisperer—that term came out of nowhere. Now, there are all kinds of whisperers, dog, cat, ghost. It was a word from the Celts, a metaphysical description. They always gotta ask me about the whisperer in interviews. But I understand that people from the city, maybe that’s the only word they have to identify with what I do. That’s their way of defining me, which is fine. I probably wouldn’t have used that word. I don’t really have a label for myself . . . maybe ‘horseman,’ but then again, I’ve known some really good horsemen, so I’m probably not there yet either. But I wouldn’t mind being one. I generally steer away from slogans. . Some people think of being kind of quiet and gentle with the horses infers weakness. That’s not true at all. Some think that it infers victimhood because you’re so passive and gentle and trying to get along. Well, that’s not me. . There’s a logical way of going about things, finding a way to work with a horse that he can understand you, that he can like what he does for a living. It’s there for anybody to understand. I think people are getting a little more civilized in the way they work with horses. But there’s plenty of cavemen out there still. I’ll always have something to do because of those guys. I think there will always be horses that need me.”—Buck Brannaman, The Horse Whisperer 📸: @arnicaspringlifestyle #naturalhorsemanship #buckbrannaman #equine #horse #ranchlife #americanwest #montana #horsemanship
Rodeos began as entertainment on ranches, and at the Ox Yoke, as a way to delight guests. Local cowboys showed up to test and show off skills in roping, wrestling and riding. Charlie Murphy and others saw the potential to produce these ranch shows at a larger scale. . In October of 1923, Charlie oversaw all the bucking horse stock at the Madison Square Garden Rodeo in New York City on the behalf of Richard Ringling, founder of the Ringling Brothers circus who ranched in White Sulphur Springs, MT. Murphy’s stint at the Madison Square Garden Rodeo surely exposed him to a level of theatrics unseen in the West since Buffalo Bill’s days. In 1925, Charlie co-founded the Livingston Roundup. . The Roundup was one of eight Class A rodeos in the nation. A purse of more than $3,000, ($43,333.03 in today’s dollars) was divided between competitors in bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, bull riding, steer wrestling, team roping, tie down roping, and barrel racing. The Livingston Roundup Association was established in 1929 to fund advertising the rodeo. . Just about every Ox Yoke horse was used for the Roundup. Guests helped trail the herd to Livingston, an affair which took two full days of riding. Guests also rode in the rodeo parade. Livingston photographer John C. Haberstroh, a friend of the Murphy family, captured some of the best images of the Roundup. The rodeo continues today, representing a Park County tradition of 94 years. . Rodeo parade photos by John C Haberstroh. Images from Murphy Family Collection. #rodeo #roundup #ranchlife #montana #cowboy #americanwest #americana #saddlebronc
One of the distinguishing features of dude ranching was the critical role that women played. The success of most dude ranches relied on the partnership of a husband-wife team. Dude ranchers and their families lived on-site and hosted guests in their homes. Women acted as hostess and entertainer to guests, managed the main compound, cooked, cleaned and when cars became commonplace, ran shuttles to the train depot, bus stop and grocery store. On the Ox Yoke, Charlie and Peg Murphy’s partnership was essential to launching the dude operation. Charlie dealt with the railroad, the rodeo, the marketing and the stock. Peg oversaw reservations, the kitchen and the Ox Yoke compound staff. They were succeeded by their son Jim Murphy and his wife Gayle, who similarly filled critical roles. . A few high school or college-aged young men were hired as wranglers each season. A few cabin girls hired from local communities looked after cabins and the main lodge, as well as waited tables for dinner and helped with any other tasks. Most ranch and camp cooks were women, such as Agnes Vink, who remained with the Ox Yoke for 16 years and served lunch and dinner six days a week for five months straight. Women were not commonly employed as wranglers until the 1970s and even more so in the 80s. Images courtesy of Murphy Family Collection #internationalwomensday #duderanch #guestranch #ranchlife #cowgirls #women #montana
dude | düd | n. 1. A derogatory term that arose around Yellowstone National Park in the 1880s to describe someone from the East, implying a “tenderfoot.” . 2. Per early Wyoming dude rancher Howard Eaton, someone, usually a person not resident in the country, who hired someone else to guide him or cook for him, or who paid money to stay on a ranch. . 3. Per the Dude Rancher’s Association in 1926, a broad, nonderogatory term for someone who lived somewhere else—usually in the Midwest or East—who came West and paid for riding, lodging, meals and other services. Images courtesy of Murphy Family Collection. #dude #duderanch #guestranch #tourism #montana #ranchlife #horse #cowboy #familybusiness #westernwear
From Chapter 4 - The Dude Ranch Years. The Story and Murphy families built the Ox Yoke dude ranch in Paradise Valley in 1929, before the crash that escalated the Great Depression. The Storys held the purse strings, as well as the railroad connections and ties to guests in coastal cities. The Murphys were stagecoach guides in Yellowstone and knew how to show visitors a good time. The ranch sat just off the Park Branch line of the Northern Pacific Railway and “dudes” from across the country arrived to horseback ride, square dance, fly fish and see the West. ⛰ Most dude operations in the region at that time were outfitted with outhouses, lanterns, candles and common bathtubs. The Storys and Murphys wanted their guests to have all the “mod cons” (i.e. modern conveniences) in a rustic setting. That meant hot running water and electricity in each cabin. They built a hydroelectric plant with a Pelton turbine on Big Creek to electrify the ranch. If the dining room lights flickered, one knew fish were stuck in the turbine. A large boiler was fed wood all summer long to produce hot water. The rule was if you walked by the boiler, you had to throw in a stick to keep it going. ⛰ By 1933, the Storys were done with dudes and the ranch. The Murphys stayed on and played host to many, including friends from across the state like Crow Chief Plenty Coups, Montie Montana and Max Big Man. The Murphys sold the Ox Yoke in 1977. Three generations of the family lived there across the decades. For our research, Sean Murphy very graciously excavated from his family’s barn the original Ox Yoke sign and his father Jim’s saddle. It was the first time either had seen the light of day since 1977. #duderanch #guestranch #ranchlife #montana #history #familybusiness #hospitality #railroad #americanwest Images courtesy of: Murphy Family Collection
🕊 #corettascottking #nonviolence #mlk #atlanta
A quick jaunt to the Canadian Rockies. A reminder that the only thing that is writing is writing. My Last Chance in Last Chance, Idaho. A book about a ranch that took us near and far. Saying “I do” to the best man I know. Hanging out with Vikings. Tully on tour. Chasing the ghosts of Nat Turner and my grandmother. Lady Anglers doing their thang. Thanks, 2018. #newyear #2018 #canada #writing #bachelorette #book #wedding #iceland #uplandhunting #natturner #ladyangler
Happy holidays from these wildlings of the north!🌲#mountains #conifers #brittanysofinstagram #spiritanimal #wildlings 📸: @orangephotographie
Educating children held high importance for Paradise Valley ranchers. According to Park County Historian Jerry Brekke, “At the peak of the homestead years, Paradise Valley had 22 school districts; Park County, over 70. A teacher taught grades 1-8 for an $80 per month salary, lived with a board member’s family, and typically paid $20/month board and room. Most were single women (married teachers need not apply) and the length of their tenure often depended on how many bachelor homesteaders lived in the district.” . From 1906 to 1953, the no-frills, one-room Dailey School (also called the Big Creek School) provided learning space for ranch kids. Depending on the local populace, the school’s annual enrollment fluctuated from one to twelve children. Students took turns arriving to school early to start a fire in the wood stove. They got to school by foot or horseback. In the early days, the classroom offered young minds plain wooden benches that seated two to three children and left splinters in their seats. A table with a hand bell sitting atop served as a teacher’s station. Three wooden planks, planed, painted black and nailed to the wall, acted as a cracked blackboard. One student’s most generous description of the arrangement was that, “It was a good place to break chalk.” 📚 🍎 📝 #education #school #ranchlife #montana #books #learning #teacher #americanwest #history 📸 of school: @arnicaspringlifestyle

© Sarah Grigg, 2016. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from the author/owner is strictly prohibited.