The Puzzle of Dubois' Bighorn Sheep by Peter Eckhardt
The Shapeshifting Cave of Sinks Canyon
The Mystery of the Boulder Choke Canyon by Melanie Limpus
Three Tags at Twelve
A Sixth Grader's Remarkable Hunting Debut by Mandy Fabel
Driven by Quality
The Path to Wellness with Dr. Luke Bennett at Teton Therapy by Melanie Limpus
Smoke & Salt by Blaine
BBQ Mojo Pork with Aji Amarillo Sauce by Blaine Limpus
Frozen Frontier
The Story of Yellowstone's Winter Pioneers by Amy Grisak
Flight Paths of Fall
The Spectacle of Migration by Amy Grisak
PUBLISHER'S NOTE
The air has turned crisp and the light golden. Above the painted trees, the first dusting of snow sits on the mountains. Another Wyoming summer has slipped quietly into memory and with it, all those long, warm evenings that seemed to last forever. The shift to fall always feels a little bittersweet. It’s a reminder that nothing stays the same for long, and that change, even when it cools the air and shortens the days, brings its own kind of beauty.
This year has carried its fair share of challenges – for me, for Blaine – for all of us, I’m sure. Building our home has tested every ounce of patience and resourcefulness I have, from weather delays to the ever-increasing costs of, well, everything. Trying to publish a magazine in the middle of it all hasn’t made it any easier. There are days I feel like I’m juggling a dozen lives at once: hammering, editing, packing boxes, then retreating to our little patio just to breathe and watch the wind move through the trees. But like most things worth doing, the struggle is part of the story. Somehow, in all of that chaos, there’s also a lot of joy. When it’s finished, I know I’ll look back and remember more joy than stress.
There are these moments that make it all worth it – when a project comes together, when a piece in the magazine finally clicks, or when I get to wander outdoors and feel completely present. These moments, small or large, remind me why I started Adventures in the West in the first place: to slow down, notice the beauty around us and celebrate the people who make it all feel possible.
This fall/winter issue carries that same feeling of balance, persistence, and the beauty of discovery. You’ll meet a young hunter whose first season turned into something far greater than he imagined, venture underground into a mysterious cave that lies beneath Sinks Canyon, and travel through Yellowstone’s winter history of snow travel. You’ll also meet the Dubois locals that continue to protect and preserve native bighorn sheep, look to the skies as migrating birds mark the presence of fall, and get a taste of perhaps the most scrumptious pork that Blaine has cooked to date.
As I look toward the changing season, I’m reminded that growth often happens in the in-between: between projects, between pages, between one chapter and the next. Maybe that’s what this fall is about – taking a deep breath, finding calm in the transitions, and remembering that every piece, no matter how unfinished, is still part of something beautiful taking shape.
Here’s to the in-between – the messy, magical middle.
CONTRIBUTORS
MANDY FABEL
Writer
Mandy Fabel lives in Lander, Wyoming with her husband and two-year old son Stokes. Her wedding took place on top of Pingora Peak in the Wind River Mountains and just about every weekend in the winter you will find her riding her snowmobile somewhere in fresh snow. Along with being the Executive Director of Leadership Wyoming, Mandy and her husband Brian run a YouTube channel called Granola & Gasoline where they feature their adventures.
MELANIE FABRIZIUS
Graphic Design
Melanie grew up on a farm in Montana and is currently living in Billings. Her life-long love of art led her to a career as a freelance graphic designer. Melanie enjoys ATVing, camping, rockhounding and watching the sunset with her two dogs, Comanche Sue and Pistol Annie. Check out her designs at www.FancyMF.com.
AMY GRISAK
Writer / photog rapher
Amy Grisak is an award-winning freelance writer and the author of The Nature Guide to Glacier and Waterton Lakes National Parks. She is based out of Great Falls, Montana and loves sharing her decades of outdoor experience with her readers. Find more of her work at amygrisak.substack. com.
BLAINE LIMPUS
Writer
Originally from Indiana, Blaine moved out west to climb and enjoy living on mountain time. Climbing has been the obsession of his life and driving force for 13 years now. After meeting Mel, the two of them moved around the Rocky Mountains until settling in the best town, Lander, Wyoming. They climb, hike, camp with their cat, Poots, and enjoy the adventurous life the west has to offer.
HAYLEY WHEELER
Editor
Hayley Wheeler is a legal assistant in Cheyenne, Wyoming, where she spends her days drafting and editing legal documents. Raised in Lander, she took a brief hiatus from the mountain west to earn her Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature from Purdue University. When not professionally proofreading, you can find Hayley hiking or snowshoeing with her husband and dog, taking a pottery class, wrangling the cat, or reading a good sci-fi/fantasy novel.
PETER ECKHARDT
Writer
Peter Eckhardt is a writer, naturalist, and adventurer whose work has taken him across the country. His work has appeared in Wyofile, The Salt Lake Tribune, SLUGMAG, and Adirondack Life, among others.
MELANIE LIMPUS
(406) 860-9636
EMAIL: publisher@ adventuresinthewest.com COPY
HAYLEY WHEELER
EMAIL: haywheele@gmail.com
MELANIE LIMPUS
(406) 860-9636
EMAIL: publisher@ adventuresinthewest.com DESIGN
MELANIE FABRIZIUS
EMAIL: ads@raisedinthewest.com ADDRESS
Adventures in the West
P.O. Box 1009 Lander, WY 82520
OUT & ABOUT
1. 3. 2. 6. 5.
5.
1. A much needed patio session with Poots.
2. Two hams at Kian and Kelsey's wedding.
3. Building break!
4. Went to the Lander 4th of July rodeo for the first time.
The siding that took all year.
6. Got my car back from the shop after 11 weeks!
Rams Lambs
•••The
Puzzle of Dubois' Bighorn Sheep•••
In a state known for its wildlife, the bighorn sheep is often overlooked. Neither as large as a bison nor fearsome as a grizzly, Rocky Mountain Bighorns are nonetheless the wildlife of choice for the town of Dubois.
“A lot of things are named after the ram. We have Ramshorn Street, which is the main road that runs through town, and the mascot at the high school is the Dubois Rams,” said Anna Miller, interim Director at the National Bighorn Sheep Center in Dubois. “They’re really amazing animals.”
Dubois loves sheep for a reason: the town borders the Whiskey Basin Wildlife Habitat Management Area, home to one of the world’s most famous bighorn herds. As far back as humans have been in the area, sheep have been important to them. Indigenous people used rams’ horns to create bows and drinking vessels. The sheep were also an important food source – so important that members of the Shoshone-Bannock who lived in the Dubois area were dubbed the “tukadeka,” which translates to “sheepeaters.”
Throughout the 18- and 1900s, bighorns were a staple of Dubois. While other sheep communities across the country struggled, the Whiskey Basin population was so prolific that it was used to bolster and restart other groups in states ranging from Wyoming and Idaho to New Mexico and South Dakota.
“From the early 50s up until 1995, we relocated almost 2,000 sheep out of this herd,” recounted Zachary Gregory, Dubois Wildlife Biologist for Wyoming’s Game and Fish Department. In the early 90s, something changed. “They were the world’s largest winter congregation of bighorn sheep,” Zach added, “[Now], no Wyoming sheep population is declining as much as Whiskey Mountain’s.”
To understand why the bighorn population crashed, it’s important to explore how Rocky Mountain bighorns relate to domestic sheep. The two have plenty of similarities: both are herbivorous, live in herds, and are referred to as rams, ewes, and lambs. Quality of forage, predation, and disease challenge both species, but wild
bighorns don’t have a rancher looking out for them. It’s the latter threat in particular that has hit the Whiskey Mountain herd hard.
In 1991, pneumonia rocketed through the herd. Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae is a form of sheep- and goat-specific pneumonia first introduced to wild North American populations through domestic herds. Though wild sheep have been battling settlerintroduced diseases since the 1500s, this particular variant devastated the Whiskey Mountain bighorns. The herd size at its peak in the twentieth century was estimated to be over 2,500 animals. Today, the herd hovers between 300-500 animals.
Bighorn populations of all varieties across the West have been declining since the 60s, but the Whiskey Mountain herd hasn’t responded to management attempts like many other populations have (the bighorn herd in the Jackson region suffered from the same outbreak of Mycoplasma, but bounced back closer to expected population models).
Since the population crash in the early 90s, the Wyoming Department of Game and Fish has worked with a variety of governmental organizations and non-profits like the National Bighorn Sheep Center, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Wyoming Wild Sheep Foundation to stabilize and restore the Whiskey Basin population.
“Science evolves, technology evolves, and we’ve tried everything [to manage the herd],” Zach related.
When the population first dipped, wildlife management first looked to the physical environment as a solution. Bighorn sheep occupy a winter range and a summer range. Seemingly counterintuitive, the steady winds of Wyoming’s alpine regions keep snow from burying vegetation as deeply as lower levels. Sheep
populations therefore travel typically from low-lying greenery in the warm seasons to higher in wind-swept mountain ranges in the colder months.
Managing the habitat for the Whiskey Basin herd was no mean feat. The herd’s range includes more front-country areas like the eponymous Wildlife Management Area off Route 26 to the no-machines-allowed Fitzpatrick and Bridger Wilderness Areas. In addition to managing habitat treelines to promote bush and grass growth, Game and Fish distributed mineral supplements and began growing hay at the base of Torrey Valley to supplement winter sheep diet.
“[University of Wyoming researcher] Kevin Monteith found that the Jackson herd is much healthier going into winter and just better year-round with body condition compared to Whiskey Mountain,” explained Zach.
Not every tactic was found to be as effective. “They did a lot of coyote removals up there thinking it was going to help with the lamb survival, but predation is really not a big concern,” he continued.
The biggest breakthroughs came through radio collars, which track animal motion and emit a mortality signal when a bighorn stops moving. Game and Fish biologists began learning more about how populations interact and what was killing the sheep. For example, the team learned that young males may wander from herd to herd searching for mates and bring back disease with them. The team also learned that bighorns were more susceptible to disease-based die-offs when nearing habitat carrying capacities.
BRYAN SAGE ASSISTS CAMPER AVA TO GET THE PERFECT SHOT DURING ARCHERY
...our tagline is ‘inspire, educate, conserve,’ and by these kids coming to Camp Bighorn, we're hoping that it inspires them to go into the outdoors field whether that's tourism, wildlife conservation or biology–really any of those different fields.
— ANNA MILLER
Game and Fish began implementing science-based solutions to help sheep populations. “Some very creative folks in the department came up with a type 2 license in some herds that targets those younger rams that are foraying,” explained Zach. Ewe tags have also been issued in certain situations to prevent overpopulation and keep living sheep healthier.
As with any science, seeing the result of this kind of management will take time. That said, Zach is hopeful, “We've gotten several reports from folks this year who have been working in these mountains for 25 years that they've never seen this many lambs.”
Despite animal population decline, the National Bighorn Sheep Center in Dubois is still going strong. In addition to the six to seven thousand visitors per year at the Center itself, the group also runs Camp Bighorn in the summer. Located at the Whiskey Mountain Conservation Camp in Torrey Valley, Camp Bighorn educates kids from across the country on the importance of bighorn sheep.
“It's amazing watching these kids and seeing how excited they get about the outdoors,” related Anna. “Our tagline is ‘inspire, educate, conserve,’ and by these kids coming to Camp Bighorn, we're hoping that it inspires them to go into the outdoors field whether that's tourism, wildlife conservation or biology – really any of those different fields.”
For Zach, Anna, the town of Dubois, and the many visitors who come through the Torrey Valley, seeing wild bighorns is about more than just numbers.
“They represent a full, truly wild place to me. We need stewards of wildlife and the habitat that they live in,” Anna said. “The public land we have in the west is such a precious jewel we need to keep intact, and the country the sheep live in, the places they take you, I would never go to some of these places if it weren't for sheep.”
It’s a wild world out there. Carry a compass to help find your way!
VISITORS CAN LEARN ABOUT SHEEP AT THE BIGHORN OBSERVATION CENTER BY THE WHISKEY BASIN WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREA.
The Shapeshifting Cave of Sinks Canyon
The Mystery of the Boulder Choke Cave
On the surface, Sinks Canyon State Park unfolds like a natural amphitheater carved from ancient stone. The Popo Agie River rushes through its heart, tumbling over boulders in frothy cascades. Towering cliffs rise on either side, their faces changing color with the shifting light. Tall evergreen trees cling to the canyon walls, while aspen groves and wildflowers bring bursts of color to the valley floor.
Guiding visitors throughout this canyon are two experts who know it better than almost anyone: Skylar Sargent and Jessica Moore, the park’s only two full-time employees.
Skylar has been with Sinks Canyon State Park for six years, officially as the Maintenance Technician, though that title doesn’t come close to describing his role.
“I attended the law enforcement academy for the National Park Service, but I realized the direction that I was going was all wrong,” Skylar said. “I heavily enjoyed the parts where I got to get out and talk to people about the parks and the resources versus having to give people tickets.”
Over the years, he’s become the park’s go-to jack of all trades, leading school tours, writing interpretive programs, and ensuring the park’s safety for visitors.
BY SINKS CANYON STATE PARK
SKYLAR SARGENT
Jessica, the Park Superintendent, came on three years ago. Her career began with the National Park Service as a ranger, then shifted to 18 years at a zoo, where she eventually ran the education department. In 2021, she and her family left the small Washington town they loved as it grew into a city.
“We were looking for a change… My husband is a school teacher, so we both started applying for jobs. We decided whoever got a job first was where we would go,” Jessica said. “He was offered a job with Lander Schools. After 18 years in the zoo industry, I was at a loss because we were moving to one of two states in the U.S. that doesn’t have a zoo.”
When Jessica and her family moved to Lander, she wasn’t sure what came next. That answer arrived on a drive through the canyon.
“I’m going to run this park one day,” she told her family. A year later, her words became reality.
Together, Jessica and Skylar oversee not only the trails, cliffs, and wildlife of Sinks Canyon, but also the underground chapter of the canyon – the mysterious Boulder Choke Cave – a place that feels like a secret artery of the Popo Agie River.
At first glance, it doesn’t look like much, just a jumble of boulders with a small, square opening about the size of a backpack. But slip through that 16-inch gap, crawl 20 feet past rock polished smooth by generations of adventurers, and the world opens up to a place that feels ancient, eerie, and alive all at once.
“The entrance is the tightest part of the cave. That’s the choke part,” Skylar said. “When you get to those boulders and you’re looking at
JESSICA MOORE
My favorite part of the cave is actually the amount that we don’t know exists and the amount that is likely underwater.
— SKYLAR SARGENT
the entrance, you can decide right then and there if this is something that you’re up for. If you make it past the entrance, the rest of the cave is a piece of cake.”
Inside, the cave runs horizontally for about an eighth of a mile, with one short four-foot rope-assisted slide. It’s small compared to other famous cave systems, but what it lacks in size, it makes up for in mystery.
“My favorite part of the cave is actually the amount that we don’t know exists and the amount that is likely underwater,” Skylar said. “The cave is just one main channel, but there are some side channels that are either too constricted to follow, go far enough that it’s uncomfortable to commit to, or just full of water.”
Above ground, Sinks Canyon tells its story in wide strokes. One moment the Popo Agie River roars through the canyon, and then, just like that, it disappears underground into the Sinks, a cavernous crack in the limestone. But here’s the enigma: it doesn’t resurface until a quarter mile downstream at the Rise, where it bursts back into daylight, clear and calm, teeming with enormous trout. Water samples prove the two are connected, but dye tests show the river takes hours to travel that short distance, winding through a maze of underground channels.
The Boulder Choke Cave is part of that puzzle. The cave is never quite the same place twice. Each spring, as snowmelt swells the Popo Agie River, the overflow channel surges with water and floods the cave entirely. When the torrent subsides,
Tours
Choke Cave
run September through April, when water levels are safe
They’re offered on Saturdays, cost $20 per person, and are open to anyone ages ten and up. The adventure lasts approximately two to three hours. Guests should be physically able to crawl and feel comfortable in confined, dark spaces. Dates are posted on the park’s social media, with reservations available online.
••• Tour dates••• facebook.com/ share/1FKd6CVg57
•••sign up here••• wyoparks.info/ Cavetour
it leaves behind more than just polished walls and quiet pools, it reshapes the very floor plan. Thick banks of silt are stirred up, shifted, and resettled, closing off familiar side passages and carving new routes in their place.
“Water comes through and redistributes all the silt throughout the cave. Every year I come in and do an initial survey of the cave to see what’s opened up and what’s closed off,” Skylar explained.
Every season, the cave rewrites its own map. Those floods leave behind sandbanks and quiet pools where strange life lingers. It’s a reminder that caves are not static or still; they are living systems, shaped by water, stone, and time. To step into the Boulder Choke Cave is to step into that ongoing story, where every visit is an act of discovery.
“We do have fish that live in the standing pools, plenty of insects, and signs of packrats towards the entrance. We used to have a bat – one bat. His name was Toby. He was a western small-footed myotis that looked like a furry little chicken nugget,” Skylar laughed.
Jessica has her own favorite detail.
“My favorite feature in the cave is the snottites. They’re just so weird and unique,” she said.
Snottites hang from the cave ceiling like tiny stalactites, though they are not made of minerals at all – but from bacteria waste, forming fragile white tendrils that drip like glass.
“I like them because you may not even notice them at first, or you might think that it’s just water dripping from the ceiling, but it’s actually a really unique process that only happens in this very specific environment,” Jess added.
Boulder Choke Cave is more than just an underground river channel – it’s a time capsule of an ancient ocean. Roughly 375 million years ago, this area of Wyoming was covered with water, and marine life flourished. Along parts of the cave walls and ceiling are little squiggles and tunnels: coral reefs built by colonies of tiny polyps that secreted calcium to form protective skeletons. When the reef died and fossilized, silica seeped into the limestone and filled the spaces the polyps once lived in, preserving their tunnels as delicate patterns.
That same silica often re-crystallized in the limestone’s pores, creating dense nodules of chert. Chert is a hard, glassy rock that comes in various colors. Over time, layers of crystals built up into nodular formations, sometimes taking on shapes that mimic natural features like pools, molten rock, or even bone.
“There's chert all throughout the canyon. On the surface you'll see different colors. This is from various minerals oxidizing from within,” Skylar said. “Irons make red, manganese is blue and green. With the cave being so far down, all of that is filtered out which leaves tans and yellows.”
Step inside, and the Boulder Choke Cave feels like a secret window into Wyoming’s wild past: an ancient ocean bed turned canyon, a river that disappears and reappears, a hidden ecosystem clinging to life in the dark.
The cave is not simply a hollow space in the rock; it’s a living chapter in the story of the canyon and a reminder that landscapes are never static. They breathe, they shift, and they invite us to witness their transformations.
For Jessica, the Boulder Choke Cave is only part of the magic. The canyon itself, above and below ground, shifts with every season.
“There is so much more here that people aren’t aware of, both above and below the surface,” Jess said. “Things to see at different times of the day, different times of the year. It’s such a special place. Take the opportunity to just be here and soak it all in.”
No matter the season, whether painted in autumn gold, cloaked in winter snow, or alive with spring runoff, Sinks Canyon feels both timeless and ever-changing – a place where water, stone, and light are always at work shaping something new.
595 Main Street | Lander | WY
Theo Racine’s first exposure to firearms came under the careful watch of his dad, shooting a .22 rifle and a .410 shotgun when he was seven years old. Repetition and mastery came in the form of a pellet gun that he would shoot at a shoebox in their barn for hours at a time. As he got older, he became more comfortable with target practice while participating in a weekly trap club competition in his local community of Cheyenne.
Hunting has been part of Theo’s life since before he was born. When his mom, Kristi Racines, was five months pregnant, she was out trying to fill her bison tag. After several days of scouting in the Jackson area alongside her husband Torey and friend Roger, Kristi finally caught a break by tracking a herd of bison two miles along the Gros Venture River. She took a shot with a 280 Ackley Improved and the little boy she was carrying got his first taste of the adrenaline rush of big game hunting. Fast forward four months and Theo made his arrival into this world in a hurry, already counting down the days for his own big game hunting experience.
Kristi and her husband Torey met in Laramie. They each grew up with exposure to hunting, and it proved to be an activity they loved doing together as a couple. When their daughter, Addie, and later Theo, joined their family, the trips just required a little more planning and a little more gear. Torey recalls an antelope hunt of Kristi’s where he packed Addie in a Kelty backpack, while Kristi remembers another hunt where she was pushing both kids back to the truck in a double stroller while Torey dragged the antelope.
Theo cites some of his earliest memories of hunting with his parents outside of Laramie and Wheatland and fishing at a family homestead cabin north of Lysite.
“I really like being outdoors, but I just remember thinking that gutting an animal was kind of gross,” shared Theo.
His dad remembers a slightly different perspective of those days, “It felt like a hunt could only last 45 minutes before the kids got too hungry to stay quiet.”
When it came to taking Hunter’s Safety, Theo’s mom made a rule that he couldn’t take the course until he could read well enough to pass the test on his own. This proved to be effective motivation for acquiring advanced reading skills, and he received his badge at nine years old.
Around this time, Theo’s sister Addie harvested her first antelope at the age of twelve. Because Wyoming law requires youth to be 12 years old to hunt, Theo was devastated by the idea of waiting three more years for his turn.
“I remember being jealous of kids in Texas who could start hunting at the age of nine,” Theo said.
By his 12th birthday, he was more than ready for his first big game hunting season. Finally, when the day arrived, he set out with his dad early in the morning on the first Saturday of rifle season for antelope. All of the anticipation was met with a few false starts.
The first area Theo and his dad checked had only a doe and fawn. The second area held promise until they discovered the buck they glassed in the distance was being pursued by another hunter. Finally, in late afternoon they spotted another buck a half mile up a hillside.
“It was a very exciting hunt,” recounted Theo. “We had to stalk for about 30 minutes and then lay quietly for about 10 minutes before I could get a shot I felt comfortable with.”
When that shot emerged, Theo fired his Ruger American 308 with confidence, landing a perfect 180-yard shot to the vitals. Theo helped quick-quarter the antelope the same way he had seen his parents do dozens of times. “This time it wasn’t so gross because it was mine.”
If his smile is any indication, Theo was definitely hooked by his first hunting experience. Returning to sixth grade, he not-sopatiently awaited the next day he could get out. The stars aligned because his school had a fall break that aligned with opening day for elk.
Theo didn’t even weigh 100 pounds, so watching him pack out the front quarters of the bull elk was pretty impressive.
— TOREY RACINE, THEO'S DAD
At first light, Theo and his dad climbed 800 feet in elevation to chase the bugles of a five-point bull. He got a shot at 280 yards and dropped his second big game of the season.
“The elk was so much work to pack out. We had to make three separate trips to carry it all,” Theo said with exhaustion still in his voice.
His dad added, “Theo didn’t even weigh 100 pounds, so watching him pack out the front quarters of the bull elk was pretty impressive.”
They drove home on Sunday and Theo went back to school on Monday. Their early successes had freed up the next weekend, so the pair decided to pick up a general deer tag. They headed north to the family cabin. They hiked a canyon area and accidentally spooked a small group of mule deer away. Frustrated, but not defeated, they continued on more cautiously.
It paid off when they spotted three bucks leisurely feeding in a sage prairie. They waited for an hour while the deer moved closer. Theo ranged one buck at 300 yards, a distance he and his dad had deemed appropriate from hours of practice. From a solid prone rest, Theo took a full breath, exhaled half and squeezed the trigger on another perfect shot. By then he knew the drill: take a picture for mom, quarter the animal, pack it out, and sleep the whole car ride home.
An antelope, an elk, and a deer. All in three weeks as a 12-yearold. Theo’s first hunting season will be with him for the rest of his life.
“I’m so lucky to have this opportunity to hunt. And every time we pull some of the meat out of the freezer, it feels good,” Theo said proudly.
Torey continued, “I don’t think our kids have any idea how fortunate they are here in Wyoming. Some avid hunters won’t do in their lifetime what Theo did at 12-years old on a couple of weekend adventures. I am proud of him, and grateful for the memories we get to create together.”
➸ Practice shooting your gun a lot.
➸ Go with your parents, others or watch videos so you know what to expect.
➸ Train your legs with running or biking to get strong
➸ Pack a lot of snacks, my favorite are Goldfish and Z bars
➸ Just keep walking, even when you get tired.
Theo’s advice for Young Hunters: Theo’s Favorite Game Meat Recipe:
1. Prepare fresh antelope backstrap or thaw from the freezer
2. Brush with olive oil and season only with salt and pepper.
3. Grill until medium-rare
4. Enjoy!
Driven by Quality
For Dr. Luke Bennett, PT, DPT, Director of Quality at Teton Therapy, movement has always been a driving force. From his collegiate soccer days in upstate New York to the mountain trails of Wyoming, he blends his athleticism, professional expertise, and a love for the outdoors into a mission centered on helping others move, recover, and thrive.
Luke joined Teton Therapy during the height of COVID-19 as a traveling physical therapist and quickly became an essential part of the team’s mission to provide exceptional, individualized care.
“Teton Therapy has a unique group of passionate and driven providers with a strong connection to this community,” he said. “We do everything possible to foster support and recovery.”
The Path to Wellness with Dr. Luke Bennett at Teton Therapy
At Teton Therapy, patients receive personalized care tailored to their goals, whether recovering from surgery, overcoming injury, or improving mobility and strength. With a full range of physical, occupational, and hand therapy services, the three clinics
help people in Riverton, Lander, and Cheyenne get back to doing what they love.
Luke’s experience in athletics shaped much of his approach to therapy. Playing soccer at Nazareth College in Rochester, he understood the physical and mental toll of injuries and the determination required to overcome them.
“Heavily participating in athletics and being fascinated by human performance is what initially drove me to the profession,” he said. “I know firsthand what is required to compete at a high level, and I realize how devastating injuries can be.”
That background in sports gave Luke a foundation for understanding not just injury recovery, but human potential. That same curiosity about performance and resilience continues to motivate him today.
“My role is to help athletes overcome setbacks, retrain skilled movement patterns, and optimize their performance,” Luke explained. “I’m passionate about helping others and improving their quality of life.”
DR. LUKE BENNETT
For Luke, moving to Wyoming wasn’t just a new setting, it was the lifestyle he didn’t realize he had been seeking.
“The year-round outdoor recreation and public land in Wyoming is truly special and something I was so unconsciously seeking,” he said. “It was the catalyst to move from family and friends in pursuit of a different way of life.”
Nearly six years later, that pursuit has paid off. Fishing, backpacking, backcountry skiing, and shed hunting fill his spare time, but hunting remains his greatest passion.
“I can confidently say that it has been the best six years of my life,” he said. “I love being a part of this community and feel so fortunate to have such wild places right in our backyard. As my career progresses, I’m especially passionate about helping mountain athletes navigate their own set of unique challenges.”
Luke sees a direct connection between hunting and his work in physical therapy. Both require endurance, adaptability, and the willingness to face challenges head-on.
“There’s nothing like packing far into the mountains and reaching the point of physical exhaustion while navigating harsh environments to pursue one singular goal,” he said. “Each adventure builds mental toughness and proves what your body is capable of – incredible highs and countless failures; the pain of success during a heavy pack out; a fleeting sense of satisfaction that morphs into meticulous planning for the future. That’s what drives me, and I’m obsessed with it all.”
Through that same drive, Luke connects deeply with Wyoming’s outdoor community and the athletes he helps every day. In July 2024, he was promoted to Director of Quality for all of Teton Therapy, overseeing clinical standards and ensuring consistent, high-level care across all locations.
“Quality means practicing at the highest standard to provide the best possible care,” he said. “The medical field is constantly evolving and improving, and being able to provide appropriate resources, guidance, and knowledge to all of our providers allows them to continuously grow alongside their profession.”
Even outside the clinic, Luke continues to challenge himself. He recently returned from a 20-day hunting trip in remote Alaska with Jason West, PT and Clinic Director of Teton Therapy’s Lander location.
“Constant rain, bugs, thick vegetation, and rugged peaks all lived up to expectation,” he reflected. “Sitting on a high ridge, watching the clouds lift, and trying to wrap your mind around such an immense and beautiful landscape is something I will never forget. It was every bit the adventure I was hoping for.”
Whether coaching patients through rehabilitation or navigating Wyoming’s rugged terrain, Dr. Luke Bennett exemplifies human performance. His dedication to quality care and his deep connection to the outdoors make him a guiding force at Teton Therapy – helping every patient reach their peak potential.
BBQ MOJO PORK with AJI AMARILLO SAUCE
“And we back, and we back!” It has been a crazy summer for the Limpus household as we have spent every free moment focused on our house build. It has been all consuming, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel, so here we are, ready for a new recipe and wonderful issue.
As we move into fall, I know what's on everyone’s minds: sportsball parties and big cookouts with friends. So naturally, I had to do a pork recipe with a little live fire twist. It took me a little while to figure out which direction we were heading. My mind has been in a million places and, honestly, food has been one of the last things I’ve been concerned with. Sometimes being uninspired brings you back to the root of what makes you happy. For me, that meant just throwing everything to the wind
and enjoying the creativity of cooking by taking a singular ingredient and building from there.
This entire recipe was built around an obsession of a little ol’ pepper that comes to us from Peru: the Aji Amarillo. It's such a wonderful yellow pepper that is slightly warmer than a jalapeno with a very tropical fruit profile. This little fella is pure magic, folks, and what else is magic? Pork, my friends, pork! So I decided to take some of my favorite flavors that marry with pork and combine it with this fun, fiery pepper. From there I paired it all with these gorgeous farmer’s market peaches that we all are buying as fast as toilet paper during covid (that’s right, I know you got ‘em… I’ve seen y’all in line!).
ingredients
Protein:
Pork loin (ideally big enough to be mistaken for a back strap, because who doesn’t like huge chunks of meat?)
Brine/ Marinade:
2 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp black peppercorns
4 garlic cloves (crushed)
2 bay leaves
Handful of thyme sprigs
2 Cara Cara oranges (sliced)
2 limes (sliced)
2 cups ice water
Rub:
1 tbsp oregano
2 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp salt
1/2 tbsp cumin
Sauce:
1/4 cup Aji Amarillo paste (can find on Amazon)
Juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup honey
1/2 tsp cumin
1 big garlic clove (roughly chopped)
1 bunch of cilantro
1 shallot (roughly chopped)
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Peaches:
Sliced peaches
8 oz crème fraîche
1 tsp allspice
Handful of mint leaves (chiffonade)
2 tbsp raspberry preserves (Son Harvest Seasons out of Riverton has the best in the west! Thank you, Peil family!)
directions
1. Brine:
☛ Combine all the ingredients minus the ice water in a large pot on the stove over high heat. You don’t need to bring to a full boil, but give a few stirs until the salt is fully dissolved.
☛ Dump the hot liquid into a large pan (or anything big enough to hold that monster loin.)
☛ Combine the ice water into the brine to drop the temperature to a level that will allow you to submerge the pork. We don’t want the liquid hot enough to start cooking the pork.
☛ Give the pork a nice little massage, wrap it up, and put that baby to rest in the fridge for 24 hours. (I’m a big fan of 24 hours, because it’ll help break down the muscle tissues, infuse more flavor, and keep the protein juicy during the cook. Pork loin is quite lean so it’ll need all the help it can get to not dry out.)
Songs to cook by
ODESZA: Say My Name
Mr. Green: What Can I Say
Pretty Lights: Finally Moving
RJD2: Ghostwriter
Little People: Moon
Marian Hill: Down
Dusty Brown: This City Is Killing Me
2. Prep the Pork
:
☛ The morning of the grill, wake that happy loin up from its long citrus nap, and wipe off all the peppercorns, etc.
☛ Mix the spice rub in a bowl, then sprinkle the goods all over the pork. Massage every nook and cranny getting the pork completely covered.
☛ Put her back into the fridge until it’s time to cook.
3. Sauce:
☛ Take this time to enjoy a cold beer or a nice glass of wine – you deserve it.
☛ Or build the sauce. Dump the Aji Amarillo paste, lime juice, honey, cumin, garlic, cilantro, shallot, and olive oil into a food processor or blender and push play. Done. Now you have this magical, beautiful yellow sauce that is sweet, spicy, and bursting with notes of mangoes. People will think you’re a flippin’ wizard who just spent hours to develop that depth of flavor.
4. Peaches & Creme:
☛ Slice the peaches, then dust with some allspice in a bowl and set aside.
☛ In another bowl, dump all the crème fraîche in. With a spoon, take a heaping amount of raspberry preserve and gently plop it on top of the crème.
☛ Slowly and delicately swirl in the preserves. It will give a beautiful, almost tie-dye look to your crème.
☛ Set both bowls in the fridge until you are ready to serve. Easy peasy!
5. Fire & Grill:
☛ Get that fire roaring. (Usually, I burn at least a full bundle of wood to give me ample coals to shovel under the grate.)
☛ Keep a flame going off to the side so you can keep stoking the fire with more wood. The more white-hot coals you get, the happier you’ll be.
☛ When you have enough hot coals and a piping hot grate, bust that pork out and slap her down over the hottest part of your grate. (Don’t wander off – live fire requires a little more attention, but it’s nothing to be afraid of.)
☛ Once you have built a nice caramelization, flip the loin and caramelize the other side.
☛ Slide it over to a spot on the grate that is warm but not piping hot. (Shuffle the coals around if you have to. If you hold your hand over the grate, it should feel hot but not unbearable.)
☛ Cook the pork to your preference (I like closer to medium, around 140 degrees where it might have a subtle hue of pink but cooked fully through.) Let the pork rest while you gather everything else.
6. Finish & Serve:
☛ Put the peaches in your fanciest serving bowl (like that sweet white bowl we scored from our friend Steven Snell.)
☛ Gently dollop the crème fraîche mixture on top.
☛ Sprinkle the chiffonade mint and serve.
☛ Slice the pork, drizzle that magical Aji sauce all over the place, and serve. Have a pint, enjoy the fire, and eat your hearts out!
Frontier Frozen
The Story of Yellowstone’s Winter Pioneers
Yellowstone is a magical place in the winter, but in its very early days as a national park, it was mostly bereft of human visitation. It wasn’t until after WWII that visitation increased enough to consider winter adventures as a separate season, beckoning hearty souls to experience “Wonderland” when everything is frozen and covered in a white blanket of snow.
With temperatures capable of plummeting to -40 degrees and snow amounts ranging between 50 to 600 inches, a winter trip to Yellowstone took careful planning. There was no official road until around 1882, and most of the lodging was ill-equipped for the cold and closed for the season.
The one exception was G.L. Henderson’s National Hotel (later named the Cottage Hotel) in Mammoth, which opened on Christmas Day in 1885. Visitors at this time explored the thermal features in the Mammoth area and soaked in the healing water of hot springs piped into the facility.
In 1886, the federal government sent the U.S. Army to apprehend poachers and protect the park’s vulnerable resources. These soldiers, many from Arizona, had no experience skiing let alone dealing with the harsh winter conditions, but they became proficient on the Nordic-style skis. They covered many miles traveling to backcountry cabins and patrolling the snow-covered landscape for nefarious characters, such as the notorious Ed Howell, whose apprehension led to the push to save what was left of the nation’s bison herds.
On January 5, 1887, well-known photographer Frank J. Haynes coordinated with Arctic explorer Frederick Schwatka and eleven guides to take the first winter photographs of Yellowstone. These brave souls spent 29 days snowshoeing and skiing over 200 miles, experiencing temperatures below -50 degrees and a blizzard that trapped them on the slope of Mount Washburn for three days. Still, Haynes successfully took 42 photos during the harrowing journey.
Before beginning the construction of the Old Faithful Inn, Harry Childs of the Yellowstone Park Company, the mastermind of this monumental project, ordered sledges to haul lumber and materials over the frozen landscape in December 1902. He rightly assumed that the heavy loads would be difficult to move over the soft ground of the spring, making it impossible to bring in what they needed to begin in June 1903.
The builders began work in the early summer and had the bulk of the structure completed before winter. To continue progress, 45 craftsmen endured prolonged sub-zero temperatures in the uninsulated, massive building and completed the 67-foot-tall structure (considered the largest log building in the world at that time) by the following June.
The prosperity and patriotism that rippled throughout the country after WWII contributed to the growing love of our national parks as families loaded into their cars and set out for a true American adventure. As visitation increased significantly during the summer months, the winters also saw an uptick.
Yet, as more people sought winter in Yellowstone, there was growing pressure to plow the roads, creating access to the park’s interior. To offer a unique experience, in 1949, West Yellowstone resident Walt Stuart employed three snow planes to take visitors on park tours. Invented in 1929 in Saskatchewan, the snow plane incorporated a small plane body with three skis powered by an engine and a propeller mounted on the rear. This safety nightmare offered a thrilling experience and enabled the driver and guests to skim across the snow and frozen lakes, much like the airboats in the Everglades.
Stuart and his team ushered 35 guests through the icy wonderland the first year, and by the winter of 1954, 171 tourists had seen the park from the snow planes during the winter.
SKI PATROL AT CANYON CIRCA 1910
The “Bombardiers” were the first snow coaches, purchased in 1955 by the Yellowstone Park Company to accommodate the growing number of winter guests. The tear-dropped shaped, enclosed vehicle was equipped with tracks to handle Yellowstone’s winter terrain.
LOADING THE BOMBARDIER
Besides touring visitors, the National Park Service occasionally tapped Stuart to assist in winter tasks. There is one story of him shuttling supplies to a ranger cabin across Yellowstone Lake in the spring. Although the frozen lake appeared solid during the trip out, he dared not look back as pieces of ice gave way behind him during his race back to safety.
The “Bombardiers” were the first snow coaches, purchased in 1955 by the Yellowstone Park Company to accommodate more winter guests. The tear-drop shaped, enclosed vehicle was equipped with tracks to handle Yellowstone’s winter terrain. Created by Canadian inventor Joseph-Armand Bombardier, it was his answer to the need for a reliable means of over-the-snow travel after his son died of a burst appendix in 1934 because they could not access the hospital due to snow-blocked roads.
Drivers loved the “Bombs,” even though they were so loud
they required ear protection. These tough machines glided along the snow-covered terrain and could blast through drifts with ease. While conversion vans and larger snow coaches eventually came onto the scene, the Bombardiers created memories for Yellowstone visitors until 2016, when the park retired its 21-coach fleet.
One of the most pivotal moments in park history was the arrival of the first snowmobile in 1963: the Polaris “Snow Travelers.” Even though only three entered the park that season, they soon became an extremely popular way to experience Yellowstone. By 1973, the park was grooming the roads, and the Old Faithful Snow Lodge housed visitors keen on snowmobiling, taking snow coach tours, or skiing the snow-covered trails to see the thermal features in their winter attire.
By the early 1980s, winter visitation exceeded 100,000 guests. During the winter of 1992, more than 140,000 visited – a number officials hadn’t planned to see until the year 2000. During its peak, an average of 795 machines toured the roads each day launching a heated debate.
These early snowmobiles were extraordinarily loud, many reaching over 100 decibels. They also spewed copious exhaust, including carbon monoxide. At one time, there were so many machines at the West Yellowstone entrance that it nearly violated the Clean Air Act. Snowmobiling was banned for several years in the early 2000s. While many visitors loved the thrill of riding through the park in the winter, the noise and air pollution detracted from the experience for others.
The other challenge was run-ins with wildlife, particularly bison that preferred to use the groomed roads. Multiple incidents with bison charging snowmobilers who did not respect their distance fueled the debate.
During the winter of 1996-1997, Yellowstone received 150 percent of its annual snowfall. To make matters worse, a thin layer of ice prevented bison from plowing through the snow to reach vegetation. So bison did what bison do; they walked to better ground, and this time they followed the groomed roads out of the park.
Concerns that bison would transmit brucellosis (a disease that causes cows to abort their calves) to domestic cattle led park officials to manage the culling of 1,084 bison that wandered from the park. The Fund for Animals sued the National Park Service (NPS) and for a short time it looked like there would be no more snowmobiling in the park. Fortunately for winter recreationists, the NPS agreed it would study the issues to mitigate the problems, and the machines continued.
Today, snowmobile technology is cleaner and quieter, and winter travel in Yellowstone is carefully managed to protect its wild character. Nearly 140,000 visitors each year explore by guided snowmobile or snowcoach, while others ski, snowshoe, or drive the open road from the north entrance at Gardiner to Cooke City through Lamar Valley.
More than a century after Frank Haynes first lifted his camera into a snowstorm, winter travel in Yellowstone continues to balance innovation and restraint. The snow coaches, skis, and snowmobiles may have changed, but the spirit of exploration endures.
CARING.
April RN, Surgery
Caring for patients starts with caring people, like our team at SageWest. We go above and beyond, every single day, to make sure our patients feel heard, respected, and empowered in their healing. Because to us, healthcare is not a job, it’s a mission. And that’s why we’re here.
April RN, Surgery
OF FALL OF FALLFlight Paths Flight Paths
As the warm days of summer give way to chilly fall mornings, the birds of summer will be on the move. Along with the distinct autumn feel, we’ll see, or more likely hear, snow geese and tundra swans getting ready for their departure. Like many other bird species, they are looking for a warmer place to spend the winter, which provides us with surprising opportunities for spectacular bird watching.
This time of year is quieter overall, especially when hiking favorite trails along the Rocky Mountain Front as many of the birds have already left. Swallows and nighthawks, which both focus on midsummer insects, are some of the first to go, and we will soon see impressive displays of those heading to warmer climates.
The fall migration of waterfowl is the big show for many birders. The Central Flyway – spanning Wyoming, Montana, and the Great Plains – is a massive corridor. Snow geese and tundra swans spend summers in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic tundra, but as cold weather descends, they move south, stopping at prairie potholes across Alberta, Montana, and Wyoming.
Freezout Lake, close to Great Falls, is a favorite dawn destination during migration. Even in warm autumns it’s cold, so layering is a must. If conditions align, thousands of Snow Geese, Canada Geese, Tundra swans, and ducks rise in unison as the light spills across the landscape to the gasp of chilly observers.
Because the autumn conditions are so erratic, every day can be different. While mornings are often good times to be there, after a storm clears, afternoon visits can be equally rewarding as the flocks look for places to rest and feed in surrounding fields.
For snow geese and swans especially, resources like birdcast.info offer a way to track these spectacular movements in real time.
“The weather has a huge effect on the birds. They congregate in stages,” said Brent Lonner, wildlife biologist at Freezout Lake Wild Management Area in Central Montana. As long as there is open water and food, particularly grain left in harvested fields, they will linger until weather pushes them onward.
On brisk nights, the nasally, high-pitched “kowk, kowk” can be heard – distinctly different from the deeper “honk" of Canada geese. Sometimes, if they’re flying low, their “V” formation is visible as they search for a place to land.
“Usually by the end of November and the beginning of December, the bulk of them would've all gone through,” Lonner said.
While the mass migrations are aweinspiring, songbirds also impress. Zach Hutchinson, community science coordinator for Rocky Mountain Audubon, said, “One of my favorite places during the fall migration is the riparian corridors.”
Brilliant yellow Wilson Warblers with their slicked-back black caps gather in the hundreds, along with other songbirds moving south. Excellent places to watch include the North Platte River near Goshen Hole and the riparian zones along the Green River at Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge.
Other familiar species join the southbound flow. Pelicans, which arrive in spring to nest at sites like Yellowstone Lake’s Molly Island and Pathfinder Reservoir near Casper, will head toward the Pacific or Gulf coasts in impressive “V” formations. Zach pointed out that Sandhill cranes gather in family groups, their haunting calls carrying across autumn skies as they migrate to northwestern Texas and Mexico.
CANADA GEESE TUNDRA SWANS
Even though they’re the iconic snow bird, many Canada geese no longer migrate very far, instead remaining close to their summer ranges. During recent Christmas Bird Counts (CBC), Montana birders tallied around 39,000, while Wyoming observers recorded 18,000. As long as there are food resources available, they will stay.
While songbirds and waterfowl are the most obvious migrants, raptors also follow their own ancient and less arduous flyways along the ridges of the Rockies.
“Here in Montana, what we’re noticing are raptors from northern Canada and Alaska making their way through Montana, heading south,” said Bret Davis, board member of Sacajawea Audubon. This pattern holds true for Wyoming, which boasts the largest breeding population of Golden Eagles and serves as a stopping point for many birds on their southern journey.
Watching raptors takes more effort than driving to Freezout Lake or a similar wildfowl habitat. Hiking up to observation sites like Bridger Bowl, which climbs 2,000 feet in two miles, or Commissary Ridge near Kemmerer, WY, a 1.5-mile ridge walk, require a greater time commitment.
It’s also important to remember that autumn in the high country means it is 20 degrees colder on the ridge, and relentless wind is a given. Layered clothing, hats, gloves, water, snacks, and binoculars are essential.
DUCK AT SEEDSKADEE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE
AMERICAN WHITE PELICANS
WILSONS WARBLER
GOLDEN EAGLE
Raptors use these ridges to conserve energy. The Bridgers, aligned north to south, catch prevailing west winds, creating lift. Thermals rising from sun-warmed rocks also help, making afternoons particularly active. While not every eagle flies directly overhead, when they do, it’s a sight to behold.
For 34 years, the Bridger Raptor Festival has celebrated this migration, with activities for families and opportunities to join researchers on the ridge. Last year, nearly 3,000 raptors of 17 species were recorded, with Golden Eagles making up half the tally. Yet according to counts, the numbers are declining – down 40 percent since counts began.
Bret cited habitat loss and hunting practices. “Lead ammunition kills a lot of raptors every year. Golden Eagles end up scavenging on gut piles. It only takes a minuscule amount of lead to kill an eagle.” He advocates copper bullets as a safe alternative, so we can continue to observe them for years to come.
Fall migration is the season to say goodbye to our feathered neighbors until spring. From warblers in willows to Golden Eagles on the ridges, each time they leave, we look forward to another “birdiful” year in the spring.
SNOW GEESE
RAPTOR
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