{"id":4012,"date":"2014-10-07T06:45:21","date_gmt":"2014-10-07T12:45:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/?p=4012"},"modified":"2014-10-09T10:29:40","modified_gmt":"2014-10-09T16:29:40","slug":"secluded-cabin-deepens-appreciation-of-familiar-river","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/2014\/10\/secluded-cabin-deepens-appreciation-of-familiar-river\/","title":{"rendered":"Secluded cabin deepens appreciation of familiar river"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\t\t\t<div id=\"slides-4012\" class=\"navis-slideshow\">\n\t\t\t<p class=\"slide-nav\">\n\n\t\t\t<a href=\"#\" class=\"prev\"><\/a>\n\t\t\t<a href=\"#\" class=\"next\"><\/a>\n\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"slides_container\"><div id=\"4012-slide1\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-cliffsun-1-of-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-cliffsun-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><\/a><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>The rising sun lights up the Yellowstone River and the big sandstone bluff just across the river from the three cabins at Yellowstone River Lodge.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide2\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-Main-house-1-of-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-Main-house-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><\/a><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Four bedrooms in the Sayers' big house are available as B&B rooms<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide3\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-channel-1-of-1.jpg*771*514\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-channel-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>This is the dry channel separating the Sayers' land from an upstream island.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide4\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-CabinNo.2-1-of-1.jpg*771*446\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-CabinNo.2-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>The middle of the three cabins, tucked into the foliage.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide5\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-bluff-clouds-1-of-1.jpg*771*478\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-bluff-clouds-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Mid-afternoon clouds seem to explode over the bluff on the opposite bank.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide6\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-moose-1-of-1.jpg*336*242\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-moose-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>This was the moose we woke up to Sunday morning.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide7\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-cabin-interior-1-of-1.jpg*771*514\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-cabin-interior-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>The interior of the cabin we stayed in.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide8\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-CabinNo.2-deck-1-of-1.jpg*336*211\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-CabinNo.2-deck-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>The deck of the middle cabin, seen from the side.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide9\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-flip-flops-1-of-1.jpg*771*504\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-flip-flops-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Robinson Crusoe was thunderstruck to come upon the footprints of another human being. We were not amazed, but amused, to find these Budweiser flip-flops abandoned near the remains of a fire on the nearby island.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide10\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-view-1-of-1.jpg*771*426\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-view-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><h6>Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>A view of the bluff from behind the picture window of our cabin.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide11\" data-src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-Lisariver-1-of-1.jpg*771*482\" data-href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-Lisariver-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><h6>Lisa Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>Another upstream view.<\/p><\/div><div id=\"4012-slide12\"><a href=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-Lisariver3-1-of-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-Lisariver3-1-of-1.jpg\" \/><\/a><h6>Lisa Kemmick\/Last Best News <a href=\"#\" class=\"slide-permalink\">permalink<\/a><\/h6><p>One more view of that magnificent bluff.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><script>jQuery( document ).ready( function() { loadSlideshow( 4012, 'https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/2014\/10\/secluded-cabin-deepens-appreciation-of-familiar-river\/', 12 ) } );<\/script>\n<p>Shortly after we arrived at our cabin on the Yellowstone River outside Park City on Saturday afternoon, my wife and I went for a short walk.<\/p>\n<p>Lisa and I strolled along the riverbank and then poked around an upstream island reached by a narrow, dry channel before heading back to the cabin. On the point of the island, I laid myself down on the warm sand and listened to the wind spilling through the towering cottonwood trees.<!--more--><\/p>\n<p>That might have been the best moment of the day \u2014 just lying there looking up at the green and yellow cottonwood leaves shimmering in the wind, while across the river even stronger winds swept a thick carpet of grass atop the sandstone bluffs, making the grass look like a sheet of pale yellow flame.<\/p>\n<p>The next morning \u2014 we awoke to see a cow moose in the meadow not 50 feet from our picture window \u2014 it occurred to me that for all the time I\u2019ve spent on the Yellowstone River over the years, I had almost always been in transit.<\/p>\n<p>I had been either rowing down the river or biking or walking along its banks. There had been plenty of opportunities to stop and enjoy the scenery, but I had never lingered for more than an hour or two in one spot.<\/p>\n<p>And what a spot where we spent most of Saturday and Sunday morning!<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_4028\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 771px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-4028 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-3cabins-1-of-1-771x514.jpg\" alt=\"Cabins\" width=\"771\" height=\"514\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-3cabins-1-of-1-771x514.jpg 771w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-3cabins-1-of-1-336x224.jpg 336w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-3cabins-1-of-1-1170x779.jpg 1170w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 771px) 100vw, 771px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News<\/p><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">The three cabins at Yellowstone River Lodge. We stayed in the one at left.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The cabin we stayed in is part of the Yellowstone River Lodge, which also has a bed-and-breakfast in the main house, located 8\u00bd miles west of Park City off the frontage road. We had first seen the lodge\u2019s three cabins from the river about a month earlier, during an all-day float from Columbus to Buffalo Mirage, a little upstream of Laurel.<\/p>\n<p>I thought I remembered reading something about cabins for rent on that stretch of river, and when we got home and confirmed that <a href=\"http:\/\/billingsgazette.com\/business\/lodge-provides-peaceful-river-retreat\/article_3973f284-1397-11df-8998-001cc4c03286.html\">I had<\/a>, we decided we had to try the place ourselves.<\/p>\n<p>By the time I called and spoke with Jan Sayer, who owns the business with her husband, Dan, the earliest date we could reserve a cabin was this past weekend. We fretted a bit, given the wildly variable weather we\u2019ve had this fall, but we couldn\u2019t have asked for a finer day.<\/p>\n<p>It was cloudy in the morning, but by the time we arrived early Saturday afternoon we had blue skies, scattered clouds and temperatures in the low 70s. Fairly strong winds blew in for most of the afternoon, but we didn\u2019t mind.<\/p>\n<p>We stayed in one of the long, rectangular cabins that were designed by the Sayers\u2019 son and daughter-in-law, Josh and Coral Sayer, both of them architects in Billings. The 450-square-foot cabins look a bit like repurposed shipping containers, with lots of windows and set up on 3-foot concrete piers. Those are for times of high water, but they also make the viewing even better.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_4029\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 336px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-4029 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-Sayers-1-of-1-336x213.jpg\" alt=\"B&amp;B\" width=\"336\" height=\"213\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-Sayers-1-of-1-336x213.jpg 336w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-Sayers-1-of-1.jpg 771w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 336px) 100vw, 336px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News<\/p><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Dan and Jan Sayer on the second floor of their house, which doubles as a B&amp;B.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Jan said she was initially offended when one visitor mentioned that the cabins looked like chicken coops. But when Jan relayed the comment to Josh, he didn\u2019t mind a bit. The cabins were meant to mimic rural buildings and blend in with the surroundings, he said, so a chicken coop was fine.<\/p>\n<p>A newer, 650-square-foot cabin was recently added and is fully accessible to people with disabilities. All three cabins are about 100 yards from the river, and directly across the river is huge sandstone bluff with sheer cliffs. It sits right on the edge of a sharp bend in the river, with hills behind it stretching off into the distance.<\/p>\n<p>Standing on the riverbank, looking up and down the Yellowstone, about the only sign of civilization you can see is an old iron bridge leading to a downstream island. If there is a prettier spot on the whole Yellowstone River, this must be a close second.<\/p>\n<p>The Sayers think so, too. They\u2019re Montana natives who spent many years in Billings running Sayer Paint. They always wanted to build a house somewhere on the river between Park City and Columbus, and when they finally found some property it happened to be almost exactly in the middle.<\/p>\n<p>And it wasn\u2019t until they bought the land that Dan discovered that his great-grandfather, John J. Walk, a very early pioneer in the valley, had run cattle not far from where they ended up.<\/p>\n<p><div class=\"well\"><div class=\"dfad dfad_pos_1 dfad_first\" id=\"_ad_652\"><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/goo.gl\/mjhWkW\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/201703_capeair_variable.jpg\" alt=\"CapreAir_Variable\" width=\"510\" height=\"180\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-18069\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/div>They built their five-bedroom house themselves, putting a bathroom next to each room. Dan thought that when he retired he might want to do some guiding on the river.<\/p>\n<p>But after three neck surgeries, he decided to get out of the construction business early, so in 2006 they went into the lodging business full time, adding the cabins later on. Business has been so good that they\u2019re building a four-plex near the cabins. They own more than 70 acres, and with public access to the upstream island, visitors can stroll up and down about a mile of riverbank.<\/p>\n<p>Jan said they\u2019ve had visitors from all over the world, and she estimated that 90 percent of the people who stay there are going to or coming from Yellowstone National Park.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy friends thought I was nuts building cabins here,\u201d Dan said, but not anymore.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEven my own family was amazed at how secluded it was,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_4030\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignright\" style=\"max-width: 336px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-4030 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-cabin-window-1-of-1.jpg\" alt=\"Images\" width=\"336\" height=\"214\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News<\/p><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Cabin windows reflect images of cottonwoods at sunset.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>It is hard to believe, sitting on the deck of our cabin, looking out at that beautiful stretch of river, that you\u2019re just half an hour from Billings. You can sometimes hear trucks on the interstate and the rumble of passing trains, and when trains blow their horns it can be jarring.<\/p>\n<p>But welcome to the Yellowstone River, which parallels the highway and the railroad for most of its length. Those distractions did little to detract from the quiet beauty of the place, and as afternoon lengthened into evening the most common sound we heard was the chattering of countless birds.<\/p>\n<p>The cabins are equipped with microwave ovens, coffeemakers and refrigerators, but we took the short drive to Laurel for dinner. We\u2019d been meaning to visit Caf\u00e9 Mabel\u2019s for a long time, especially after reading Scott McMillion\u2019s article about it in the most recent issue of Montana Quarterly. (Not available online; you\u2019d better get out and buy a copy.)<\/p>\n<p>The Mexican restaurant lived up to its rave reviews. And because Mabel\u2019s doesn\u2019t have a beer-and-wine license, we stopped in at the Beartooth Grill for pre-dinner drinks. From the looks of it, Laurel residents are loving one of their newest restaurants. It was packed the whole time we were there.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_4031\"  class=\"wp-caption module image alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 336px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"addboard wp-image-4031 size-medium\" src=\"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-bigcabin1-1-of-1-336x205.jpg\" alt=\"Interior\" width=\"336\" height=\"205\" srcset=\"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-bigcabin1-1-of-1-336x205.jpg 336w, https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/Lodge-bigcabin1-1-of-1.jpg 771w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 336px) 100vw, 336px\" \/><\/a><p class=\"wp-media-credit\">Ed Kemmick\/Last Best News<\/p><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">An interior view of the larger, newer cabin.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Back at the cabin, we had a fine, quiet evening. There\u2019s no Wi-Fi, which is probably a good thing, and we promised each other that we wouldn\u2019t look at our phones while we were there, and we didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n<p>We got up early to find the aforementioned moose out in front of our cabin, and I went for a walk along the river just as the sun was prying an opening in the clouds over the hills to the southeast. We made a simple breakfast of a baguette, huckleberry jam and Gruyere cheese, then spent the morning reading on the deck and walking some more by the river.<\/p>\n<p>At one point, I was actually oppressed by the thought that it was somehow unfair, or absurd, that I had spent so little of my life enjoying something as beautiful and so near as that stretch of river.<\/p>\n<p>But it was too gorgeous for regrets. And there\u2019s always next time.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Details<\/strong>: Our cabin was $145 for one night. The B&amp;B costs a little less and the larger cabin a little more. You can visit the Yellowstone River Lodge <a href=\"http:\/\/yellowstoneriverlodgemt.com\/\">website<\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Shortly after we arrived at our cabin on the Yellowstone River outside Park City on Saturday afternoon, my wife and I went for a short walk. Lisa and I strolled along the riverbank and then poked around an upstream island reached by a narrow, dry channel before heading back to the cabin. On the point [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4013,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,16],"tags":[1467,1466,1465,675,1464],"class_list":["post-4012","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-diversions","category-montana","tag-beartooth-grill","tag-cafe-mabels","tag-dan-and-jan-sayer","tag-park-city","tag-yellowstone-river-lodge","prominence-top-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4012"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4012\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4012"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}