Rocky Mountain Cowboys follows the working year on the 250,000 acre Pitchfork Ranch in ‘Marlborough country’, Wyoming, one of the most beautiful parts of the United States. Dylan Winter records the working cowboys as they summer pasture their cattle at 8,000 feet where the men live in log cabins miles from the nearest power plug. The programme shows the full range of cattle ranching activities, including roping, bronc-busting, droving and working with horses, cattle, mules and Blue Heeler cattle dogs.
Dylan’s interviews with the cowboys and their wives offer an insight into the lives of these hardy people and he outlines the history of the Pitchfork from pioneer days to the current relationships with environmentalists. The film also includes dramatic shots of some of the best, and worst, rodeo riders in the USA and the beef lots of Colorado where cattle are kept in fattening units of 100,000 head or more.
In his usual style, Dylan shows how he adapted to the Spartan life of a mountain cowboy, and much of the programme is set against the splendour of the flora and scenery of the Wyoming high country.