“We’re the best-kept secret in Gallatin Valley,” Dan Marsh said. “Most people don’t realize that there’s a volunteer group out there clearing the trails.”
Every week, multiple times a week, the Gallatin Valley Backcountry Horsemen are out in the backcountry, clearing trails so everyone else can enjoy the nature and beauty of Montana without having to summit logs and downed limbs.
WATCH: Gallatin Valley's Best-Kept Secret: The Trail-Clearing Efforts of Dedicated Horsemen
“We’ve come across a couple of trails – we’ve done Porcupine, Elkhorn – and there were some trees, good-sized trees — 24 inches or better — that were figured on a slope, and there was just no way around them,” Dan Marsh said.
Loaded with handsaws, chainsaws, first aid, and more, all the equipment is carefully loaded up and balanced on a string of pack horses and the occasional mule. This brings us to one of the most important tools used by the horsemen: the horses.
“(Merlin the Horse) saved my bacon a lot. He’s really good on the trail!” Marsh said.
But packing and trail skills don’t come overnight. Marsh says that it takes time in and outside of the arena to train these horses to respond to aids and to get desensitized to what they may see on the trail, as well as to the equipment they use.
While the horsemen are one of many groups that help care for the backcountry, the next time you’re out enjoying the bountiful nature of Montana, you may have the Gallatin Valley Backcountry Horsemen to thank.
