Bar J Chuckwagon

We heard that you could have a real Western experience at the Bar J Chuckwagon in Moose, Wyoming, just west of Jackson Hole, so we decided to try it out. Who could resist a steak dinner plus a cowboy show for a mere $30? As it turns out we got our money's worth and much more....

The Bar J welcomed us with this oversized gate, which is a staple feature of ranch architecture,  perhaps symbolizing both the openness and hospitality of the West. The Bar J originally offered horseback rides to tourists, with a campfire dinner to follow. Turns out folks were more interested in the singing than the horses, so the family-run business morphed into a slick enterprise serving a quite edible meal to 700 guests in just 25 minutes. That alone was impressive!

The idea was to replicate a dinner ranchers might have had on the road (i.e. cooked on the chuckwagon). The menu consisted of beans (naturally), steak (they conceded chicken for the Easterners), biscuits, applesauce, and spice cake. 

As our host observed, no tossed salad! 

He also made a few trenchant observations about the politics (and economics) of raising beef cattle whereby the cattle are raised in Montana, fattened up in the East, sold back to the folks at the Bar J, who then sell it back to the Easterners on vacation, with prices rising considerably with each transaction. Touche!  

The dining hall doubled as an auditorium for the Bar J Wranglers, who would entertain us after dinner. 

The dinner was good, but the show was amazing! Turns out the Bar J Wranglers are part of a Western music family dynasty, with an impressive career performing with the likes of Roy Rogers and Randy Travis.  http://www.barjchuckwagon.com

They began with a poignant rendition of Home on the Range, complete with the closest harmonies you could ask for from a group of cowboys. They proceeded to regale the crowd with some amazing performances of authentic Western music, including a fret-tuning-trick that I had never heard before, and some very old cowboy songs. Their jokes were quite amusing too.

We had to leave the show early as it was getting dark, and it was a long way from Moose to our campsite at Lizard Creek.  As the poignant harmonies of the Wranglers echoed in our heads, we could see elk lurking like ghosts by the side of the road, and eventually darting in front of our car.

It was our first encounter with the wild night-life of the Tetons.