blackfoot-valley

194 A personal Recollection 2018 It began with the Meyer Company Ranch in 1990, when I came to the Black- foot Valley. It was the perfect place to pursue a lifelong dream of returning to my agricultural roots through ranching, as my immigrant ancestors from Scan- dinavia had done. The valley was an ideal place of natural beauty to start a ranch, the soil was rich, there were spring-fed streams, and forests of old growth trees dating back to the time of Christopher Columbus’ discovery of America. We made the original Wales house our home. The house had views in every direction of mountains covered with dark green pines and leafy Aspen trees. Within those mountains were fertile meadows that provided habitats for a vari- ety of living creatures. We were inspired to set up an ongoing conservation program, to support the health of forests, regrowth of meadow grasses and sustainable use of water sources. With our efforts wildlife has returned in abundance. Lee Madland discovered through his research that this valley was steeped in history from ancient glaciers to immigrant pioneers who came here 175 years before, building homes and businesses through hard work and self-sacrifice. The Meyer Ranch Family is honored to live in this special valley and to partici- pate with other ranchers and families in our efforts to conserve and safeguard the land for future generations. Bob and Britt Meyer