Wintertime Glamping at The Ranch
We’re switching gears to our winter glamping season. If you’ve fallen in love with luxury glamping like we have, you may picture gourmet picnics amidst wildflower meadows and bespoke tents within earshot of a babbling stream. Now, it’s time to update that image to include all the possibilities of glamping in the snow.
What makes winter glamping so enjoyable is that it’s not summer glamping disguised in wool and down. Instead, it’s comprised of an entirely different set of adventures and amenities. Following on the heels of winter features in Collective Quarterly and Architectural Digest, we wanted to attest to the reasons why winter glamping is fit for your wanderlust list. To take advantage, check out our winter special offers.
A Cozy Contrast
The contrast of the rugged outdoors and luxury accommodations is more pronounced when you’re glamping in December, January or February than any other time of year. You experience pioneer-like remoteness set amidst lavish Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star amenities. For example, you might find yourself getting a great fresh-air workout cross-country skiing over thousands of acres of ranchland before you step into the Granite Lodge to enjoy a gourmet Relais & Châteaux tasting menu in front of the fireplace and retire for a midnight dip in your cedar soaking tub under the stars.
A New Set of Adventures
In the summer, glampers can walk right outside their door to fly fish on a world-famous Blue Ribbon trout stream and ride to Piney Pond for a campfire-cooked breakfast. Winter glamping allows you to access 20+ miles of trails in cross country skis, snowshoes or hiking boots right from your front door. The Granite Lodge has a skating pond complete with lights, music and a warming shed. Other on-Ranch adventures include snowmobiling, sleigh rides, sledding, horseback riding and downhill skiing and snowboarding at Discovery Ski Area. Although we provide a suggested packing list to ensure you’re prepared the moment you step off the plane, we provide all the bulky, state-of-the-art gear and equipment required for these winter escapades.
If wellness is your goal, these adventures will melt away calories.
A Cold-Weather Comfort
Two of our canvas cabins, Trapper and Sweet Grass, are specially suited to winter glamping. They come equipped with in-floor heating, fireplaces or wood stoves and private soaking tubs. Other unique accommodations are available like the converted Historic Barn, where you can enjoy a clawfoot tub while looking out onto the whitewashed world. Many guests prefer the National Park-style Granite Lodge rooms or luxury private homes for bigger groups. All come equipped with one-of-a-kind textiles, luxury linens and cozy blankets to ensure you remain toasty warm.
Photo Courtesy of Collective Quarterly
The kitchen specializes in redefining winter comfort food. Dining experiences reflect the Northwest’s history of serving hearty meals straight from a pantry filled with root vegetables, wild-caught fish and ranched meats. Chef Josh Drage might serve sunchoke soup with apple ginger compote, followed by a braised Willow Springs leg of lamb with garbanzo beans, escarole, white harissa and foraged black trumpet mushrooms. Top off the meal with squash doughnuts, nutmeg ice cream and apple maple caramel.
Between meals, ask the bartender to mix you a s’mores hot chocolate or a Yule Mule.
A Fresh Start
It may be dramatic to say that you step into an entirely different world in Montana each winter, but with a dusting of snow, everything looks fresh, like the world’s been primed for you to illustrate. Unlike snow in a city that throws a wrench into your day, it’s exhilarating to sit by the fire while a snow squall blankets the valley. Snow only makes The Ranch more exciting.
Even when the snow starts to clear in late winter and the plants begin to poke back through the snow, the scenery is stunning. The best souvenir from any trip is a good story, and this season’s glampers will have a compendium of tales to tell.
For more information on winter travel to The Ranch, view our winter specials and our winter video. Follow us on Instagram to see winter glamping season as it unfolds.