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The Ridgway ReporterVOL. 2 No.4CODY, WYOMING, CHRISTMAS 1985
THE RIDGWAYREPORTER
ELK CREEK RANCHP.O. 1476
Cody, Wyoming 82414
Is not entered as second classmatter at any post office underthe Act of Congress of March.
1879
CHRISTMAS GREETINGS
AND RANCH NEWS
From Elk Creek Ranchand the Ridgway Family
FROM THE FAMILYChip, Lisa, Emily, Eli, and Abigail pulled up stakes this spring
and headed to Denver. "Go West, young family! Go West!"Their transport was not a Conestoga wagon but rather a coupleof large moving trucks and a new Suburban filled with all ofLisa'splants, two dogs, and one bewildered cat. Their route wasnot the Oregon Trail but rather Route 80. Still the frontier adven-ture is present. Chip is in charge of the Endocrine Unit at theUniversity of Colorado Medical School and Lisa is working for awhile as the head of Pediatric Endocrinology. (Talk about keep-ing it in the family!) Emily and Eli are anxious to tryout thatfamous western powder.
Debbie and Tina are also on the move as the college and post-college years take their toll on the Moore homestead. Tina is atthe University of Montana and was able to make the quick jauntsouth to the ranch as our top hand with the horses. Debbie had tofinish up several courses at the University of Washington duringthe summer but she managed to join Cliff and bring a specialfriend for the end-of-summer reunion in Sunlight. Cliff will miss
next summer, however, as he has been put in sale charge of cer-tifying a new Boeing passenger plane. Betsy will abandon himagain (Thank goodness for us!) and return for part of the summeras head wrangler and free spirit extraordinaire.
Pat spent a long, restful, and well-deserved summer in NovaScotia recovering from the trials of the past year. We are nowworking on her to return to the ranch for one of the upcomingfamily reunions. It will be great to get her back in Sunlight,however briefly.
Susan and Hap are truly daring the fates with child numberthree due sometime in early December. Every recent mother-of-three-or-more-children reacts in the same way, with the samewords, and with the same knowing tilt of the head: "That's threeunder four years of age, isn't it?" The headmaster of KimballUnion has expressed some concern over the future threat tohousing and classspace, and has even suggested some counsel-ing with the local chapter of family planning.
FROM THE RANCHEIk Creek Ranch was started in 1957with the idea that it wou Id
be run for five years and then be reconverted to a family sum-mer place. So much for long-range planning! That five years hasnow stretched to nearly thirty as the result of three or four majorfamily decisions. The last one came at the end of this summerwhen all the family reuned in Sunlight. In the midst of trimmingup the horses' feet, wiring the new cabin, draining the pipes,and all the other chores of closing up, we all managed to discussthe future of the Ranch. The question was whether or not Chipand Lisa and Betsy and Cliff would continue to approve theoperation of the Ranch as Dad had in the past. The upshot of allthose conversations was the decision in the corporation meeting
God bless thy yearThy coming in,Thy going out,Thy rest, thy traveling about.The rough, the smooth,The bright, and dread.God bless thy year!
to continue raiSing trail dust in Sunlight.One change in the Ranch operation may be of interest. Over
the past ten years we have built up the Trek Program to comple-ment the Ranch Program. We now have three separate treks, allof which teach the arts of wilderness travel and wilderness livingbut each of which has a special focus. The Beartooth Trek hasalways offered a great deal of fishing. The Shoshone WildernessStudy is also an accredited ecology course. We are now trying anew idea on the Absaroka Trek ending next summer's trip withfive or six days in the Tetons with the Exum Climbing Schooldeveloping rock climbing skills and climaxing with a majormountain ascent.
BEARTOOTH TREKTrekkers: Alex Dykema, Gordon Scott, Jenny Holl-
ingsworth, Goodwin Smith, Debby Ped-rick, Jeff Pierce, Sarah Russell, ChloeBreyer, and Will Pereira
Broadwater Lake: complaining about the packs.. Alex on the use of maps and compass ... we
couldn't start a fireBlack Canyon Lake: the huge boulder field ...
where to set up tents? .. Gordon "catching" a fishwith a stone
September Morn Lake: Jenny falls down themountain and has a swollen derriere ... Goodwinand Jeff whimp out on the swimming
Second Rock Lake: long day followed by a longbackrub session ... horror stories
Upper Cloverleafs: rain and more rain ...boulder fields covered in clouds ... sitting on eachother to stay warm
Queer Lake: the boulder field ... Chloe's fall... shock ... mountain goats scare Alex ... intocamp at 10:00
Queer Lake: Will arrives ... very small fishDesolation Lake: Will catches a golden troutAbove Mariane Lake: "fet" for dinner .
charades ... the boys' noises and the girls attack
Otter Lake: rain and an afternoon in the tentsCanyon Lake: strawberry pancakes bush-
whack time ... huge fishRock Island Lake: resupply!Rock Island Lake: wick-i-up!Aquarius Lake: bushwhack along Sedge Creek
.. religion, feminism, and politics for lunchFossil Lake: Alex finds Fred. What a wrangler!
.. the ranger's visit ... SNOW!Fossil Lake: Debbie gets cold and goes wackoUpper Skytop Lake: Alex and Will sacrifice a
grasshopper ... everyone goes wacko ... Alexwins the blubbering contest, lips down
Lower Aero Lake: Alex, Will, and Jeff catch19-inch cutthroats
Big Moose Lake: Solos!Widewater Lake: Gordon's birthday ... tree-
bashingFarley Lake: a successful bushwhackLower Cloverleaf Lakes: racing a storm into camp
.. snow and hail"No-Name" Lake: met the backpackers headed
up and into the storm working on the skitsIsland Lake: the vans showers at the ranch
... Cody and civililzation!
THE SUMMER OF 7985 .Bo caught "red-hooved" breaking and entering the oat bin
· winter blizzards in Damnation Basin (we were even snowed out of "Thumper") and theBeartooths ("Walking in a Winter Wonderland")
· the dreaded disease strikes again ... and again ... and again: "boofing it" throughYellowstone and the Grand Tetons (will that ecosystem ever recover?), Mary B.'s midnightbomb run over Jessica, long nights perched on the throne, and the ranch's overtaxed septicsystem
· Hap's bushwhack down Dead Indian Creek out of Damnation Basin: How many slippedpacks? How many missed turns? How many creek crossings?
· that oh-so quotable Brett: "Three Little Pigs" . . "Baby Cakes" . . "It's raining. It'spour-ing. Honey, my love life is boring me to death"
· Elliot's pre·afternoon ride raindances . love that enthusiasm!· Alex's unabridged version of "Charlie the Moth": It all started under an overpass on the
Tri-State Tollway iust east of O'Hare Airport when a big 01' Mac truck, running hot and heavy at70 mph made a hood ornament out of Charlie's mother.
· "1Dream of Jeanie With the Light Brown Hair" ... well. ."1 Dream of Phoebe with theLong Back Rubs"
"/'m a Rock Jock and I'm Okay, climb all night and sleep all day"· Will and Alex's very own forensic union or the endless debate between the "racist" reac-
tionary and the "effete" intellectualThach's TRUCK:will the story, and the expenses, never end?
· Jessica's "E.T." imitation ("Ouch") and animal calls. We understand she has been hiredby Mutual of Omaha's "Wild Kingdom" to work as a second.
· Jeff Lipson's "Mr. T" imitations· Seton, "The Walrus," and John, "The Rock Jock," in their main event, sumo wrestling
bouts
Spats and Traveler. . debuting on the barrels
· Pat: ''I'm havin' fun like I never have had 'cause nobody knows I'm a panelling lad"· Thach's "Bert and I" stories: "Give 'er a thwack, Bert." "Thwack." "Give 'er another
thwack, Bert." "Thwack. . thwack. . thwack."· Rockin' Robin and the Lords of the New Church· Kahlua and Flaxy's strange relationships. . and Thach's tarnished macho image· Suzette's "special counseling" during Denny's last weeks. . or the varied applications of
kung fu· Leggo, Duke, and Kahlua: four-legged graffiti· Goodwin's pre-Halloween haunting on the prairie overnight· Matt with Chelsea, Bo, and Bob on the packtrip: "Whoa, Chelsea!" "Move, Bo!" "Ex-
pletive deleted, Bob!"· Sam cha-cha-ing Jimminy through the barrels· THELOGS. BOY'S WORK CREW, LET'SMOVE IT! ... THELOGS· Alice and ''I'm not Your Maid," a new hit single with that Nashville sound· Susan C. driving the International: Susan looking for Kyle's booster seat and Hop's new
crop of gray hair· On the first day of Elk Creek Becky said to us, "Don't warry 'bout the runs!"· On the second day of Elk Creek Annie said to us, "Turn out the lights!"· On the third day of Elk Creek Tina said to us, "How I hate this canteen bell!"· On the fourth day of Elk Creek Pot said to us, "BOY'S WORK CREW,TEN MINUTES!"· On the fifth day of Elk Creek Alice said to us, ''I'M NOT YOUR MAID!"· On the sixth day of Elk Creek Thach said to us, "And we were swanging."· On the seventh day of Elk Creek we saw Brooks tear up "memory lone."· On the eighth day of Elk Creek Betsy said to us, "Storm, Storm is graining (again)."· On the ninth day of Elk Creek Susan said to us, "Sandwich orders, please!"· On the tenth day of Elk Creek we heard Hop soy, "BRETT, WHAT DID YOU SAY TO MY
WIFE?"
Anni!""s "Army" playing Elk Creek's back nine "Oh, say can you see.
SUNLIGHT SAVAGES-~aron Albright
Wayland, MA. 01778
Chloe Breyer
Cambridge, MA. 02138
Victor Bradney
Lincoln, MA. 01773
Elizabeth Brown
Watertown, MA. 02172
Matthew Brown
Watertown, MA. 02172
Mary Buckley
Los Gatos, CA 95030
Nina Cabot
Westwood, MA. 02090
Sandy Collier
Bar Harbor, ME. 04609
Ashley Edgar
Wayne, PA. 19087
Ian Edgar
Wayne, PA. 19087
Chris Goldsmith
New York, N.Y. 10128
Denny Goodrich.
Manchester, MA. 01944
Katy Judd
Hull's Cove, ME. 04644
Marianne Kenney
Cody, WY. 82414
Ted Ladd
Dover, MA. 02030
Paul Leaver.
Boston, MA. 02108
Josh Levinson.
Orlando,FL. 32804
Jeff Lipson
Los Angeles, CA. 90049
Brett Marden.
New Boston, N. H. 03070
Debbie Pedrick
Norwalk, CT. 06854
Elliott Perkins
Westwood, MA. 02090
DIRECTORY FOR 1985Jorie Peters
Wellesley, MA 02157
Jeff Pierce
Cumberland Center, ME. 04021
Jenny Reynolds
Westwood, MA. 02090
Elizabeth Rosan.
Brooklyn, N.Y. 11219
Duncan Roy
Boston, MA. 02108
Christina Ruggieri
New York, N.Y. 10021
Sarah Russell
Lincoln, MA. 01773
Gordon Scott
Cambridge, MA. 02138
John Sheffield
Newport Beach, CA. 92660
Goodwin Smith
Charlestown, S.c. 29401
Tom Spang
Manchester, MA. 01944
Robin Stopford.
London, NW 18413, England
Jessica Thompson
Medfield, MA. 02052
Lindsay Thompson
New York, N.Y. 10021
Melanie Truman.
Boca Raton, FL. 33432
Ben Tucker
Wayland, MA. 01778
Shawn von Schreiber
New York, N.Y. 10025
Phoebe Welch
Greenwich, CT. 06870
Shandy Welch
Wayland, MA. 01778
Eliza Williamson
Warren, ME. 04864
Seton Wood
Swampscott, MA. 01907
.............-..
THE RESTOF US
Suzette Coffi n
Franconia, N. H. 03580
Cliff, Betsy, Debby & Tina Moore.
Seattle, WA. 98166
Will Pereira
Libertytown, MD. 21762
Susan Crimmins
Katonah, N.Y. 10536
Pat Delaney
Lansing, MI. 48912
Alice Ponce
Swan Lake, MT. 59911
Chip, Lisa, Emily, Eli & Abby Ridgway.
Evergreen, CO. 80439
Hap, Susan, Kyle, Melissa +? Ridgway
Meriden, N.H. 03770
Pat Ridgway
Tucson, AZ. 85704
Sam DeVore
Tucson, AZ. 85718
Alex Dykema
Cambridge, MA. 02138
Brooks Emeny
New London, N. H. 03257
Jennie Hollingsworth
Dover, MA. 02030
Becky Lay
Boston, MA. 02116
Thach Winslow
Essex, MA. 01929
Annie Woodard
Andover, N.H. 03216
TEWA SONGOh, our Mother the Earth; oh, our Father the Sky.Your children are we and with tired backsWe bring you the gifts that you love.Then weave for us a garment of brightness;May the warp be the white light of morning,May the weft be the red light of evening,May the fringes be the falling rain,May the border be the standing rainbow.Thus weave for us a garment of brightnessThat we may walk fittingly where birds sing,That we may walk fittingly where the grass is green.Oh, our Mother the Earth; oh, our Father the Sky.
The staff standing in front of one 1985 project: new digs for our cook and guests in 1986 and on.