MAGAZINE FEATURE  ABOUT THE RETREAT

 

The cavalcade came from every direction...

From the east, a cluster of New York City publishing and insurance executives possessing all the grit and humor that the east coast has to offer. From the south sauntered a marketing executive. From the west and northwest came fiction writers, a documentary filmmaker, a special events facilitator, an illustrator, teacher, hypno-therapist, magazine editor and an author espousing the merits of chocolate.

What these women (and a few brave men) had in common was a zest for life, a joie de vivre, and a sense of adventure! Just as their predecessors had over 150 years ago, these were women with strength of character and bravery traversing the great divide in search of a new life experience. We conquered the Wyoming landscape on our steeds of palomino, buckskin, gray and bay set against the backdrop of the ever-changing Wyoming big blue sky.

We rode along a variety of roaring rivers, alongside gallivanting elk and antelope and nesting bald eagles. We felt the sweet swell of the saddle against our thighs, and heard the hearty footfalls of our horse companions against the sometimes-rocky plains. We heard meadowlarks and listened to the wise words of our wranglers. We saw signs of early homesteading, and spotted skulls of fallen wildlife.