Anaconda

"Imagine going to nearby Virginia City, and thinking you wish you could stay at a place that takes you back to that time - with a few modern creature comforts, of course. It’s nice to have things like screens on the windows, really (and I've got a picky back) comfortable beds, plumbing, showers, electricity and a functioning equipped kitchen. Throw in a world famous trout stream, a family of deer or a moose as regular visitors or neighbors, and an alarm clock that moonlights (yes, actually - not a pun) as a great-horned owl who answered our hoots from the porch with our morning coffee. Make no mistake, it's not the Ritz - it's Montana. No crowded campground of noisy nosey neighbors - want music - bring your guitar or your CDs, or browse the house collection. And if you want the Ritz, Google the location you desire - it isn't in Montana. Personally, I thought the conversation of brothers and long - lost friends with background of wind through aspens and willows and the occasional splash of an alarmingly big fish in the Big Hole River was more than enough, but a guitar and harmonica around the fire pit would have been nice if that's your thing. We came to fish - and to visit each other. Plenty of space and opportunities for both. A reunion of brothers and friends - who share a love for the Montana outdoors and the culture of the West. In spite of "Hoot Owl" closures on the Big Hole, 2 of the 3 fishermen in the group filled a Montana Grand Slam of a brook trout, brown trout, cutthroat and rainbow trout - in 5 days on the waters of the open sections of the Big Hole and nearby waters. But that was part of the story - the whole story was more than the grand slams or the over 200 fish we caught in those 5 days, or the infinite number of subjects for the photographer in our group, or the countless trails for the hiker among us. As someone who lived in Montana for 4 years while in college longer ago than I care to admit (I'm a fisherman - so I lie - I'm proud to have survived as long as I have), and whose great-grandfather came through the mountains and deserts of the West and through this part of the country as a teenager - This place screams MONTANA! to anyone willing to listen. It has all the privacy you want, without the need to hike 5 miles off the road. It has just the right balance of comfort and rustic features for a really Western feel."