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     [Silver Bow Club - brochure and Web copy]

Try to picture what life was like in Montana, before cars and highways and sprawl, when few places had recognized names, and the maps were dominated by vast empty spaces between sporadic towns and incomplete rivers. Think of a tiring journey, on foot, to a nameless creek a few days journey from the new-sprung town of Butte, Montana. What an honor, and responsibility, to christen a magnificent earthly feature with just the right name.

Now, every town and stream and mountain has a name that evokes something, be it serenity or fear, awe or history. Back then, trappers and explorers were often left to come up with such designations by default, and they took the simple yet effective approach - Rock Creek, Big Hole, Big Sky. Lacking the time and inclination for poetry, more often than not they generally went with the most obvious physical features.

But on a cloudy evening in 1864, prospectors Bud Barker, P. Allison, and Joe and Jim Ester stood above that secluded creek outside of Butte, and they realized it needed to be called... well, something. Because it was between four independent-minded fellows, the discussion quickly digressed into an argument. While the debate raged on, one of the finer displays of jaw-dropping natural beauty halted everyone mid-sentence. Their journal said it best:

"The clouds rolled from the sun, its bright glance fell on the waters sweeping in a graceful curve around the base of the mountains, burnishing them to brilliancy as they clasped the vale in a bow like silver."

The controversy was over and the creek had a name that still speaks of the beauty of that evening, and of the country it embodies. Silver Bow.

[Silver Bow Club - history]

So much of today's Montana has changed, like everywhere else I suppose, that more and more value is being placed on the proverbial 'good old days.' For Montana, those days were at their peak during the approach of the Turn of the Century, when the feeling was similar to that of a young man's outlook on life - excited, searching hard for independence, and seeing great potential for wealth. The Silver Bow Club was established in 1882 as a result of this exuberance, to provide the region's outstanding citizens with a focal point for their success.

W.A. Clark, a "copper king," helped ordain the club as the epicenter of Rocky Mountain culture and success. Mining magnates, millionaires, and men of distinction ruled the exclusive guest list. Industry contacts were made and business secrets traded along the copper-lined passageways and in the oaken luncheon rooms. Extravagant cotillions and receptions roared with famous guests that included Mark Twain, J.P. Morgan, and even President Taft.

Butte was in the midst of staggering growth, thanks to the huge veins of copper, zinc, gold, and silver that snaked through the underlying rock, and people were getting rich fast. Quiet battles for supremacy were waged in the billiard rooms of the club, and new alliances were formed just as quickly. Butte was suddenly on the financial map. And the dollar amounts in question weren't insignificant - two billion, by most estimates.

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But creature comforts were of utmost importance to the members of the Silver Bow Club. Only the finest Partagas and Coronas were smoked in the thick leather chairs, and gourmet chocolate-covered Brazil nuts were always available in the sterling parlor bowls after dinner. Relaxation was revered.

The Club buzzed and flourished until the stock market crash in 1929, when many of the members reluctantly stepped down. The times had changed, and the days of explosive profits were put to rest. The building was eventually sold to the Butte Miner's Union, and more recently restored and renovated to be used for quiet office space. You can still walk through the old building today, and hear the confident pop of fine leather boots on the worn marble stairs, same as in the glory days.

And though the grand ways of the Silver Bow Club lay dormant, they didn't die. The real spirit of the Club was in its members' attitudes. An appreciation for distinction, a fondness for like-minded people, and a love for what Montana gives to those who can see it. All of that still holds significance for many people. If anything, an escape to a place of quality and distinction is even more central to our lives, even more necessary. These guys had the right idea.

PHOTO CAPTIONS

Photo of people

Building photo- Prompted by the much-heralded new Montana Club Building in Helena, the members of the Silver Bow Club built a structure meant to "equal if not surpass" the rival organization's stately quarters. Marked by a dazzling gala ball on New Year's Eve, 1907, the impressive new building at 125 West Granite Street in Butte would serve as Club headquarters until 1940.

[Silver Bow Club - country]

Walk through the country of the Silver Bow Club and you'll sense it's not that different from when Bud Barker and his buddies watched in awe as that burnished silver bow formed around the mountains.

You don't have to close your eyes to daydream about that kind of wilderness and silence - it's still right here, where it's always been. This is the kind of place where, save for a few more cows maybe, you can still see an entire mountain untouched, and say to yourself, "Ah, now I see why they call it 'big sky'." There are certain smells, too, that only reveal their true essences in the widest and most open spaces of the West - sage, mint, and pine. The theory is that it takes an entire valley of sage, a lush riverbank of mint, and a mountainside of pine to really express pristine wilderness.

But married to the land are the surrounding communities - in this case, Wisdom, Twin Bridges, and Dillon, to name a few. Montana is at a unique point in its history; many things are better and easier than they were, but some of the best things in life that have disappeared elsewhere in this world still happen here every day. Now sleepy little towns bustle with surprising cultural events, golf courses, gourmet restaurants, and even the occasional latte stand. Modern services such as medical care and high-tech connections are part of life now. At the same time, traffic doesn't exist, crime is practically unheard of, and yes, people are still downright neighborly. When there are only 1.6 people every square mile in the county, you take the opportunity to stop and chat whenever you can.

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Two different ranches, each with an engaging personality, come together to form the land of the Silver Bow Club.

When I think of the Big Hole place, the canyon is what jumps to mind. At one point a few million years ago, a glacier-fed Big Hole River cut through stone and earth to reside at the bottom of what's now called Maidenrock Canyon, violently creating some of the prettiest scenery in the state. The ranch lies smack in the middle on over 3 miles of river, right where it should be. Behind a line of sheltering cottonwoods, hay meadows spread out across the property to provide the perfect setting for the lodge and handful of homes. As the meadows become steep, the mountains begin. Amazingly, of the 1,800 acres, the vast majority will never be changed ever again by human hands. The herd of elk that call the upper ridgeline their home will always be free to come and go, and the same is true for the bears, deer, eagles, coyotes, and other critters that live here in the wild.

The same evening light that bedazzles the Big Hole below also brushes the upper meadows far above. From the back of a chestnut horse, or on your own two boot-footed feet, you'll survey nothing man-made. The Big Hole ranch is vertical solitude and river bliss all at once.

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Sounds. That's what will first get your attention at the Beaverhead Ranch. Most of the sounds that envelop any human visitor emanate from untold numbers of birds. Ducks gabble, red-winged blackbirds buzz, meadowlarks sing with improbably loud voices, and pheasants search for mates with their throaty two-beat call. But everything hides in a verdant asylum - green grasses, green willows, and clear-green water. In the springs and summers, it's easy to get the feeling that everything is clambering to grow, before winter catches up, as life wells up all around at breakneck speed.

Where the Big Hole Ranch is vertical, the Beaverhead Ranch is horizontal, at least on the property itself. Four mountain ranges provide calendar-art backdrops for the Beaverhead River and a latticework of spring creeks and sloughs. Down here it's 1800 acres worth of whitetails, hawks, brown trout, and birds. Located where a historic ranch complex used to sit, a small rugged lodge was built to accommodate a handful of anglers, hunters, bird watchers, and anyone who appreciates a big slice of nature.

Two distinct ranches. A few miles apart by blue highway, and a world away from a busy life. Singular escapes from society's bells, beeps, and buzzers. Both offering you real peace with an extra bit of class. From the mullioned windows of the old Silver Bow Club, those first members would surely smile approvingly at these newfangled motivations, knowing that they aren't really so new after all.

[Silver Bow Club - outdoors]

At the Silver Bow Club, the outdoors is impossible to separate from ranch life even if you wanted to. Of course, not that you would. Nobody chooses between, say, fishing and hiking. It's choosing between fishing and hiking and skiing and horseback riding and hunting and birding and rafting and golfing and fishing (again) and just relaxing. And what's more amazing, it's not just fishing, it's fishing on one of the most inspiring wild trout rivers in the entire world. It's not just horseback riding, it's endless acreage of stupendous scenery. It's not just relaxing, it's sitting in your hot tub, on your deck, on your ranch. It's arguably the very best the outdoors has to offer.

The Big Hole River is the home water of the Big Hole Ranch. It's a river that will author memories of big fish caught and missed, first fish, and flat-out incredible days. It's like stepping into some big-budget movie about fishing perfection, complete with every special effect out there. It's what a trout stream should look like. It's getting to know the 3.2 miles of riffles and runs that frame the ranch, and the private spring creeks, better than the streets of your own hometown.

There are other options that make the non-angler fall in love with the Big Hole just as headlong. Rafting, tubing, and canoeing are a blast, and even reading a book streamside can easily turn into an obsession here. Its tumultuous currents somehow produce the perfect silence.

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Horses are a big part of life in Montana, and a big part of Silver Bow Club's Big Hole Ranch. There's terrain that just shouldn't be seen from anywhere but from the back of a stout horse. The great majority of the land has been reserved for long views, thanks in part to 500,000 vacant acres of the Beaverhead National Forest that border up against the ranch. For seclusion in the extreme, there's the option of the Club's rustic Alpine Lodge high above the home ranch, where a few friends can get an insider's view of the natural world.

Down on the Beaverhead Ranch, fishing and bird hunting are the heart and soul of the place. The shortest days can seem long. At first light, it's ducks from one of many built-in blinds. Then bugger-eating browns on 5+ private miles of the Beaverhead or on one of four private spring creeks. Finally, it's pheasants just as the sun's done for the day. Before starting it all again tomorrow, it's time to rest up back at the plenty-comfortable lodge, adjacent to the historic barn that houses the dog kennels, and trade stories over a few after-dinner refreshments. Not a bad day.

Browns and rainbows just one last cast away. Waterfowl and upland birds battling for attention from an indecisive hunter. Overflowing checklists in a bird watcher's pocket. And an old-fashioned peace and quiet, because that's part of life here too. When, at last light, you do finally drag yourself back toward home through these eco-wonders, you'll realize that these places haven't changed in a long time.

[Silver Bow Club - conclusion]

High up at the edge of the ranch, there's a tiny spring, and a big slab of a rock. You may not know it, but it's there. You may not know how much time you'd spend up there, if you could. Sometimes it takes a certain distance to see things clearly, and to finally catch what's really important. That's what the Silver Bow Club means to most of us.

Sure, for you, maybe it's not seen from that big rock. Maybe it's standing waist-deep in the river, or watching your kids play in real wilderness, or just knowing that you can get out when you need to. Whatever your medium, the Silver Bow Club is where we go to reacquire perspective - through family, fishing, or just the return to the sense of authenticity that was inseparable from life here years ago.

I wish my grandfather or his father before him had found this place for me and my family. The deeper the roots anchoring you to land like this, the better, I say. But still, the beauty of it is that the history is here, and the history is being created, all at the same time.

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