On a frosty morning in late December, Marce Hoffman backs two huge draft horses out of a barn at the historic 320 Ranch south of Big Sky.

“Step up, step up,” Hoffman instructs the horses as he maneuvers them toward a waiting sled. It’s time to take the animals out for a turn on a trail they’ll know well by the end of the winter season. They’ll tread the path up to seven days a week during the holidays and five days a week after that. The animals strain in their harnesses, eager to pull and run.

“They’re fresh. They won’t be fresh come New Year’s, though; they’ll be all muscled up, ready to go,” said Hoffman.

The 320 has a long history. It was homesteaded as two separate ranches more than 125 years ago.

“1912 they combined them to form 320 acres That’s how the ranch became known as the 320,” explained Hoffman as he practiced the history lesson he gives while narrating the ride through the high, narrow valley the ranch is nestled in, just outside the boundary of Yellowstone National Park.

In 1936, Bozeman doctor Carolyn McGill purchased the ranch.

Hoffman said, “She fell in love with this area on different hunting trips, trips down into the Yellowstone Park.”

You might recognize McGill’s name from somewhere else.

“Caroline started the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman; was actually called the McGill Museum when it first opened up,” said Hoffman.

Current owner Dave Bass purchased the ranch in 1985.

Hoffman explained that’s when the ranch really began to grow into a tourist Mecca. He said, “He (Bass) bought it up from a 20 gust capacity over 200 that we have today.” He pointed to cabins that drifted by, framed by the mountains and the Gallatin River. It’s the view guests get as they take a one-hour trail ride in the sleighs. Hoffman ticked off the sights: “You get to see Cinnamon Mountain, Burnt Top Mountain. We’ll be able to see the Spanish Peaks when we go along the Gallatin here. Looking back you’ve got a view of Monument.”

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As he drives onto a flat, straight stretch of the trail, the horses get frisky. “These guys are gonna air out right here,” he cautioned, just as the horses break into a run. It demonstrated the challenge of managing big Percheron horses around guests.

“Our number one priority is keeping everybody safe. So we always have to be constantly looking at the equipment. As far as the people, probably the hardest part is herding them up and getting them on the sleighs,” Hoffman laughed as he allowed that it is probably harder to manage the passengers than the animals.

Sitting next to him, Head Wrangler Logan McDaniel said she enjoyed working at the ranch.

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“I like, of course, to drive and work with the horses but also meeting people from all around the world. You get to meet people from all different parts of life, all kind of different places,” she said. “They’re here for vacation. You get to kind of realize a little bit of people’s life story. It’s pretty cool just to meet different people.”

And the horses?

Hoffman said, “We’re looking for good disposition, you know. We’re not looking for heavy pullers we’re just looking for horses that are pretty docile and easy-going horses. They’re not gonna win any pulling competitions here.”

But these workhorses are no slouches.

“We’ll pull 18 people no problem and these guys are big horses,” said Hoffman.

He said that translates to about 18 hands and nearly 2,000 pounds each. As the horses cool down after their workout, Hoffman wiped them down and explained how these animals cope with the harsh winters at the ranch.

“You know those horses are on hay, you know free choice grass hay and water. They do pretty well. We’ve got a lean-to for them to get out of the wind. But for the most part, you know, they’re pretty hearty animals,” he said.

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By late afternoon, as dusk descends on the ranch, guests begin to wander toward a pair of the big sleighs. They board the blanket covered seats for a ride out to the other end of the valley where a wood-floored canvass tent awaits. It’s heated and features a bar serving snacks, hot cocoa, cider, and more. A fire crackles in a pit surrounded by seats outside. After a bit of rest, the passengers will climb back into the sleds for a ride back to the ranch restaurant.

Taking in the view around them, Hoffman and McDaniel reflected on their jobs. Hoffman said, “There’s a lot of people that never seen a horse or been around horses, so it’s a good opportunity to you know, to introduce them to the horses.”

McDaniel added, “It’s cool watching people fall in love with the horses. That’s why I kind of do this. It’s to see people fall in love with horses like I do.”

Neither of the authors of “Homesteading 2.0” (Dec. 15 Review-Journal) lives in Nevada. Yet, they believe they are qualified to advocate for increased development of our public lands.

To date, much new development has focused on luxury housing and green energy projects, rather than the need for affordable housing. While the authors acknowledge our successful conservation efforts, they fail to mention that current residents are being heavily regulated by the water authority, facing penalties, and pressured to reduce water usage. Lawns are being replaced with desert landscaping, and ongoing development to accommodate growth is contributing to the urban heat island effect. This growth has led to more congested roadways, wildlife encroaching into urban areas due to habitat loss and reduced access to recreational spaces that residents once enjoyed.

One of the defining features of Las Vegas was the open space surrounding the valley, which has long been a unique advantage of living in the Southwest. We must carefully consider how much growth we are willing to support moving forward.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – If you’re from New Mexico, there’s a popular sweet treat that will be on the dessert table this holiday season, biscochitos.

While you can buy them year-round, the holidays are especially busy for bakeries who specialize in making them.

For Celina’s Biscochitos that means making double if not three times more biscochitos to make sure locals and people nationwide have a sweet taste of New Mexico tradition.

“We probably do on average about anywhere from about, this year, probably about maybe 400 to 600 dozen a day,” said Celina Grife, co-owner of Celina’s Biscochitos. 

It’s no easy job making biscochitos.

For the past 14 years, Celina’s Biscochitos has been making her grandma’s recipe. This year, just like the rest, there is a high demand for our state’s official cookie, especially during the holidays.

“We’re just trying to keep up with the demand. So everyday by the end of the day, we’re just trying to scramble to make sure that we have enough cookies on the shelf for our customers, so that way they can pick them up at the end of the day,” said Grife. 

They’re making anywhere from 4,000 to over 7,000 cookies a day. That’s two to three times more than what they usually make outside of the holiday season.

Over the years, Grife has added more than just their traditional cookie.

“Our very first flavor was the red chile biscochito. And then one thing lead to another, we just started playing with it,” Grife said. 

Now they offer red and green chile, lemon, blue corn pinion and chocolate chip. This isn’t just the unique, different flavors they offer, it’s the tradition they carry on.

“We are one of the few commercial companies that are still making them the traditional way. So we still use lard, and by lard, I mean the old-fashioned blue and white container that everybody uses at home,” said Grife. “We still use brandy in our product as well. We still use the old fashion anise.”

One thing Grife has learned over the years is that for some people, a biscochito is much more than just a cookie.

“This is very personal to people, and I had no idea how personal it was to people. I could be working at an event, and I’ll have people say, ‘No, I can’t have yours because my mom or my aunt or my uncle.’ Whatever! Somebody makes them in the family,” said Grife. “Or we get somebody who doesn’t have that family member with them anymore, and they try ours, and they’re kind of like, ‘This brings back so many memories.’”

Grife says their goal is to keep that traditional biscochito flavor and texture, in every cookie they make.