Bison Month, Ranch Story & Recipe

The latest news from Ron & T of The Buffalo Wool Co. at RATH Ranch. Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more

Happy Bison Month!!

We are almost to the end of these, and to be completely honest, I just didn't have it in me to finish this one this morning... was a crazy busy working weekend, and I was just flat worn out.

Worked outside in the 105F heat all day yesterday, just trying to get stuff caught up before we go. This farming side gig takes some effort and work, and I have been putting stuff off for too long... have been at the desk more than usual this month (as y'all are more than aware)

Figured y'all could use a little break from these too. Did make it to work by 6am, and have been packing stuff up all day. Y'all have kept us hopping this month. Best July on record for us! I am guessing everyone is buying their holiday stuff now before the Aug 1 price increase, and before we run out of stuff. Makes sense to me, that is what I would be doing.

I did somehow manage to get something finished today, and I didn't want to not complete bison month.. still have some great stories in the bag. only 4 more this month... then back to the once weekly. NGL, i am ready for that. Hope you have enjoyed some of these great rancher stories. The Terry Bison Ranch is one of our favorite places, have taken the grands horseback riding up there, was a great time.

Hope you had a wonderful weekend and had some fun, got stuff done, and are doing well. I am taking our shipment for the Alaska fair to the freight terminal in the morning, so probably another evening one tomorrow.

Things have been so busy around here, I am not even gonna stick products at the bottom of this, y'all are buying stuff as fast as we can make it. Thank you so much!

Hope you had a truly great day!

Ron & T, and the crew here at the BWC

From a friend, and yes, I laughed... because I really felt like this this morning.

Where the Buffalo Roam (and Tourists Hand Them Snacks):

The Wild, Woolly Tale of Boyd Meyer and Terry Bison Ranch

Picture this: You’re rattling along on a quirky little train built from old military vehicles, rolling across the Wyoming-Colorado border under a sky so big it makes your phone camera feel inadequate. Suddenly a half-ton woolly tank with a beard and an attitude ambles up, and you get to feed it by hand. Welcome to Terry Bison Ranch—where history, commerce, tourism, and pure Western chaos collide in the best possible way.A Ranch with Serious Pedigree (and Presidential Cocktail Hours)Long before it became a place where kids squeal over bison pellets, this 27,500-acre spread (once part of a massive 300,000-acre operation) belonged to Charles H. Terry, then to F.E. Warren—Wyoming’s first territorial governor and later a long-serving U.S. senator. Warren turned it into the southern headquarters of his Warren Livestock Company, running cattle, sheep, and even champion sheepdogs.

Teddy Roosevelt dropped by in 1903 and 1910 for dinner, cigars, and cocktails in the bunkhouse (still standing!). General “Blackjack” Pershing was a regular too—he married Warren’s daughter and got a speedy promotion in the process. Legend has it the ranch’s 7XL brand was chosen because if a hungover cowboy flipped it upside down, it still read the same. Practical branding at its finest.

Fast-forward to 1991: Ron and Janice Thiel bought the place. Ron wanted to raise bison. Their son Dan had a bigger idea—let the public get “up close and personal” with these magnificent, slightly terrifying beasts. After a year of red tape, Terry Bison Ranch Resort was born in 1993. Chuckwagon dinners in a three-walled barn, wagon tours that the bison kept charging and tipping over… classic startup problems, Western edition.

Buses replaced the wagons (mud and snow had other plans), then in 2004 the family laid 2.5 miles of track with rails from the Pacific Railroad and built custom trains from old military vehicles. The Terry Rail Express was born—Wyoming’s only privately owned tourist railroad. Genius. Also slightly mad. Perfect.

Enter Boyd Meyer: The Guy Who Actually Raises the Buffalo, and just a very cool guy too.

While the Thiels turned the place into a family-friendly adventure (train tours, horseback rides, pony rides, steakhouse, RV park, cabins, metal sculptures made from scrap, and even a “Chicken Bus”), It's a pretty amazing place to spend some time at, but someone had to keep the actual bison business running. That someone is Boyd Meyer of Cold Creek Buffalo Company. Meyer grew up showing hogs, then ran cattle. A friend suggested bison. He checked out a conference at the stock show, got hooked, and by 2002 was dabbling part-time. In 2005–2006 he leased the Terry Bison Ranch land, bought the herd, and went all-in, and did it amazingly well.

Today he and his family (wife Allison and four sons deeply involved) run a serious commercial operation on those same rolling acres. Roughly 750 bison (numbers have fluctuated over the years—he’s finished thousands annually in the past), rotational grazing, DNA testing for performance, and a feed yard. The animals are efficient little (okay, massive) forage machines: a bison cow eats about half what a beef cow does in winter and mostly takes care of herself. Calving? They handle it. Escaping? They’ll jump a six-foot fence flat-footed if they feel like it, so the secret is keeping them happy.

One winter storm, hundreds of them drifted through a fence and onto the Union Pacific railroad tracks. The railroad was… not thrilled. Meyer’s philosophy is pure Mother Nature respect mixed with practical cowboy smarts: “You’re not going to force them to do anything they do not want to do. As long as you are patient, you are fine.”

He’s become one of the bigger private bison operators in the country, helping restore a species that once teetered near extinction. Private ranchers like him get a lot of credit for the rebound from roughly a thousand animals to hundreds of thousands.

Two Worlds, One Epic Ranch

Here’s the fun part: The majestic herd tourists feed from the train is living the dual life of commercial livestock and celebrity attraction. Meyer’s Cold Creek operation supplies the serious meat side. The Thiel family’s resort side delivers the unforgettable experiences—hand-feeding, trail rides, Senator’s Steakhouse buffalo burgers (Bobby Flay once crowned one the best in the state), and enough Western kitsch and genuine history to make any road-tripper happy.It’s a place where you can learn that bison are smarter and tougher than they look, that trains made from military surplus are surprisingly charming, and that Wyoming still does big sky, big animals, and big personalities better than almost anywhere.So next time you’re near Cheyenne (just take I-25 exit 2 and head south on Terry Ranch Road), hop on that train. Wave to the woolly residents. Maybe silently thank Boyd Meyer for keeping the herd healthy and the Thiels for making it so darn entertaining. And if a bison gives you that look that says “Got any more pellets?”—just smile. You’re part of the story now.Where the buffalo roam… and occasionally crash the railroad. Only in Wyoming.

Well worth the visit.

Bison Enchilada Breakfast Ring- From Great Range Bison.

Enchilada Biscuit Ring

Makes 2 Biscuit Rings

Ingredients

16 oz ground bison
¼ cup shallots (if you have them... if not up the onions and garlic)
1 tablespoon garlic
½ cup enchilada sauce + more for drizzling
½ cup cheddar cheese - shredded + more for topping
2-3 green onions - chopped
2 cans crescent biscuit dough (or make your own..thats what we did)
4 tablespoons butter melted

Instructions

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground bison and sear until mostly browned. Stir in the chopped shallot and garlic. Continue to stir until the shallot is softened and the garlic is fragrant, about 5–6 more minutes.
Add the enchilada sauce. Stir until most of the liquid has evaporated, another 3–4 minutes. Turn off the heat and stir in the cheese. Remove from the heat source and set aside to cool to room temperature for about 30 minutes, or until it is no longer steaming.
The filling will make 2 rings, but only prepare one ring at a time to keep the cooking even. Keep the biscuit dough in the fridge until ready to fill.
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Prepare a round baking sheet with parchment paper, then unroll the crescent dough and separate into individual triangles. Arrange the triangles in a star pattern on the baking sheet, leaving about a five-inch gap in the center.
Add about 1–2 tablespoons of the cooled filling to the inner edge of the ring. Lift and fold the top half of each triangle over the filling and gently tuck the ends underneath to seal. Leave small gaps between the dough sections for even baking.
Brush melted butter over the ring, then add shredded cheese and a drizzle of enchilada sauce. Bake for 12–15 minutes or until the biscuits are puffed and golden. Check the bottom of the ring to confirm the dough is fully baked and adjust the time as needed.
Repeat the above steps with the remaining dough and filling and transfer to the oven as soon as the first ring comes out.
When the bread is done, remove from the oven and transfer the ring, using the parchment paper, to a serving platter. Garnish with green onions, plus extra enchilada sauce and cheese as desired.
Cool for 10 minutes prior to serving. Pair with salsa, queso, or sour cream - enjoy!

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