Comfort
There are eight spacious ensuite guest rooms, each with a natural-gas fireplace foor the cool evenings. There are rooms of varying sizes with king, queen or twin beds. A single room is available on a first come, first served basis.
There is no pool but a large jacuzzi is open to all guests.
Everyone eats together with the family and enjoys great home ranch cooking!
Meals
Meals on the ranch are always hearty and consist of fresh and local vegetables and meat: beef, pork, chicken etc. Dessert is usually tarts or cakes. For lunch you will have fajitas, lasagna, hotdogs and potatoes or if you are out for a long ride, you will have a picnic lunch carried in your saddlebags.
Fresh fruit is available to you all day and the bread is all home made.
Water, beer on tap and wine are available at evening meals. All other alcoholic drinks are not included in the price of your trip.
Climate
The climate in Helena is typically continental, with hot summers and cold winters.
May and June are mild, with temperatures around 20-25°C during the day and 0-5°C on the coldest nights. The most rainfall is likely to fall in spring. The weather can go through all seasons in a week so you should be prepared to pack a little of everything.
July and August are the hottest months with temperatures sometimes reaching 30°C. The evenings are often around 10-15°C. It is rather dry and sunny weather but thunderstorms should not be ruled out.
Between September and October, the temperature gets progressively cooler to around 15-20°C with cold evenings and nights. There can be some pretty cold spells and snow is a possibility.
Some years the fall and winter may be bright and crisp and other years the snow may start to fall from October.
The weather in winter is impossible to accurately predict. It can range from very cold to quite temperate, and it can go from one to the other in 24 hours very easily.
Tips
Tipping is an institution in the United States. In all restaurants - except certain snack bars with self-service -, it is expected that you leave around a 0 - 12% tip. Certain tourist hotspots will also add a service charge.
It's also considered 'good manners' to leave a $1 to 2 supplementary tip to taxi drivers.
Regarding tips made to the team at the ranch, we recommend giving these to Patty or Zach who will then share it out amongst the rest of the team. A 15% tip is expected.
Packing list
Head
- Equus Journeys strongly recommend that you wear a riding helmet and that you take your own to ensure a correct fit.
- Sunhat for when not riding
- Sunglasses - with a cord attached so they don't fly off when riding
- Buff or bandana
Upper body
- Long sleeved shirts provide protection from the sun
- T-shirts
- Fleece, jumper or jacket - the evenings can be cold
- Waterproof jacket - the rains can be difficult to foresee and it's better to be prepared.
- Casual clothes for the evening
Legs
- Lightweight, comfortable riding trousers or jodhpurs - we recommend riding in them at home before taking them on holiday to ensure they don't rub
- Shorts
- Casual clothes for the evening
Hands and Feet
- Comfortable riding boots. We recommend short boots with half chaps but you may wish to take long chaps to protect against thorns. We don't recommend taking your favourite long leather boots in case they get damaged
- Sandals, flip-flops or trainers
- Gloves - your hands are particularly exposed to the sun whilst riding
Nightwear
Other useful items
- Swimsuit - for plunge pools
- Camera and high capacity memory card. Spare battery
- Bumbag for carrying your camera and small items whilst riding
- Mosquito repellent
- Insect bite relief cream
- Chapstick
Our Recommendations
- We recommend travelling in your riding boots and carrying your hat and some riding clothes in your hand luggage - then if your luggage goes astray you are still able to ride!
- Carry a copy of your passport and insurance details with you.
- Backpacks cannot be worn whilst riding. We recommend a small bumbag or a coat with pockets so that you can carry small items with you during the day (camera, sunscreen, lipbalm etc)
