The Entrepreneurial Spirit of the O.T.O. Ranch
This summer I was able to take a trip out west, this time to experience the Pop Up Ranch at the O.T.O. — Montana’s first dude ranch. I was so inspired by the entrepreneurial spirit of the O.T.O. and how it’s being brought back, after many years of being dormant.
I hiked here last year and discovered a group tearing down from the first summer back at the ranch in over 80 years. I ended up interviewing one of the owners for the Rural Revival podcast (listen here) and got invited to come back for a stay this summer! What an unforgettable experience!
Founded by local entrepreneur Dick Randall in 1898, the historic O.T.O. Dude Ranch opened near Gardiner, Montana — just outside of Yellowstone’s north entrance — as Montana’s first dude ranch. Since the beginning, an entrepreneurial spirit has fueled every part of the experience here.
It all started when Randall was working as a stagecoach driver for tourists in Yellowstone National Park. The tourists were interested in hunting the area, and as someone who knew the area well, Dick began to see the business potential of outfitting hunting adventures for wealthy easterners and European aristocrats.
He soon began working as a guide, and in 1898 Dick and his wife Dora purchased the land that now makes up the O.T.O. Ranch, offering guided trips in the surrounding wilderness. As word got out, the business continued to grow for the Randalls, and they expanded their services and offerings to maximize the potential of the ranch. Randall was a visionary and ahead of his time in establishing guiding services and guest ranch experiences, paving the way for others to do the same.
In 1912, to accommodate the growing number of guests at the O.T.O., the grand lodge and cabins were gradually added, providing the ultimate western experience for guests. This marked the start of the dude ranching business. From 1912-1934, guests escaped the pressures of modern life for a stay on the ranch while enjoying good food, horseback riding, ranch work, and music in the evenings, gathering friendships and memories that lasted a lifetime.
During its heyday, Dick Randall promoted the O.T.O. Ranch heavily, traveling in the winter to eastern states and attracting guests to this new outdoor vacation experience. The Randalls drew guests to the rustic western experience until retiring in 1934, with the ranch officially closing its doors in 1939. Ownership of the ranch changed hands several times until it was eventually acquired by the U.S. Forest Service from the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation to preserve and manage it in the 1990s.
The ranch has remained relatively vacant since 1939, until recently. Over the past two years, True Ranch Collection has worked in partnership with the Custer Gallatin National Forest to help restore the ranch and bring it back to its former glory days.
These past two summers True Ranch Collection has brought in a pop-up ranch, allowing guests to return to the ranch for the first time in over 80 years. In doing so, they have re-ignited that original entrepreneurial spirit of the O.T.O. Guests have the opportunity to unplug and stay in the same historic cabins, eat meals and socialize at the same lodge, and ride along the same mountain trails as guests once did over a century ago. And to help the preservation efforts continue, all the proceeds are donated to continuing preservation and restoration efforts.
The pop-up ranch experience is an all-inclusive stay that includes lodging, morning coffee service to your cabin, three hearty meals a day, daily horse rides through the Montana wilderness, white water rafting on the Yellowstone River, a hot springs day pass, Yellowstone National Park tours, various ranch activities, and evening entertainment and campfires — much like you would have experienced back when the Randalls were running the ranch.
One defining characteristic of the ranch that continues to live on through the pop-up ranch experience is the special bond shared by the guests, where new friendships and connections that begin at the O.T.O. are known to last a lifetime. It’s a tradition Dick and Dora Randall were proud of, and one they would be honored to know still carries on today.
Are you ready to put a dream trip to a dude ranch on your bucket list? My friend Joni Nash and I were lucky to get in on the last guest stay of the summer at the O.T.O. before it was packed up and hauled out... but stay tuned because it hopes to return next year.
Even though the O.T.O. is now closed for the season, you can enjoy other guest ranch experiences with True Ranch Collection at Circle Bar Guest Ranch, Kay El Bar Guest Ranch, Rancho de la Osa Guest Ranch, Tombstone Monument Ranch, and White Stallion Ranch.
This story is featured on episode 140 of the Rural Revival podcast.