River Road Ranch includes 163± deeded acres with architecturally-designed improvements that perfectly accompany and elevate the spectacular Gallatin Riverfront setting, creating a truly transcendent opportunity. The extensive use of natural stone and recycled wood blend seamlessly into the natural environment as if created with the spectacular riparian bottom itself.  The resplendent live water of the Gallatin River provides excellent trout fishing right out the door, and there are vast stands of mature cottonwood and aspen trees that surround the home and extend through the Ranch creating a comforting sense of privacy and an abundance of welcoming filtered light. The native landscape is beautifully accompanied by spectacular gardens that create a colorful and artistic palate that transitions with the Montana seasons.

The improvements are luxurious and elegant, yet rustic and easily balance with the agricultural production, wildlife, equestrian and recreational pursuits provided on the Ranch. Additional improvements include a shop building, pole barn for hay and equipment storage, and an outdoor riding arena.

River Road Ranch is the ideal size and location for a small horse and cattle operation, which combined with the excellent fishing and whitetail hunting opportunities creates a great recreation ranch, while still offering easy access to all of the amenities of Bozeman.

The Ranch extends roughly .75 miles on a north-to-south axis, with the house located roughly in the middle and the Gallatin River along the eastern border.  The north end of the Ranch includes the irrigated pastures, shop, pole barn, 300′ x 160′ outdoor riding arena, and livestock corrals.  There are approximately 30 acres on the Ranch that have been irrigated with a K-Line pod system, hayed once, and utilized as irrigated pasture for the balance of the year.  The southern end is an amazing riparian bottom with both irrigation and Gallatin River channels running through the stands of mature cottonwood and aspen trees.

The property attracts a wide selection of wildlife and big game including whitetail deer, moose, upland birds, waterfowl, bobcats, mountain lions, and black bears.

The setting with mature trees, live water, and irrigated hay pastures creates an experience that lives a world away from the bustling community of Bozeman, but in reality, is only a short drive away.

THE HOME

The centerpiece of the Ranch is the rustic, yet elegant and timeless home that was designed by the owners with renowned local architect Larry Pearson and built by the highly-regarded building company Onsite Management in 2002. The three-bedroom, three-bathroom residence, which has 3,818± square feet on one level plus a 700± square foot garage, is a perfect complement to the elevated location in the Gallatin River corridor, providing for complete nature immersion.  The home was designed to incorporate and repurpose three historic Montana barns that were reclaimed and used as distinct design elements within the home.  The house was impeccably and carefully designed for single-level living with easy traffic flow that transitions indoors and outdoors between the three wings of the home that surround an incredibly welcoming, protected, and accessible interior courtyard.  Utilizing the historic barns provides an immediate sense of history, and when combined with extensive use of reclaimed wood and natural stone elements, weaves an amazing tapestry that blends naturally with the active river-bottom environment. A natural Pennsylvania bluestone path guides you to the custom front door of the house and sets the stage for the architectural experience inside.  As you enter the foyer, your eye is immediately drawn through the home to the outdoor courtyard with artistic functional furniture and the surrounding river-bottom aspen stand. The foyer incorporates an expansive fir-coffered ceiling, wide-plank fir flooring, moss rock, and plaster walls that extend throughout the home offering a grounding sense of continuity and connectivity. The open kitchen, dining and great room feature vaulted ceilings with recycled timber frame and square-cut log accents that form the welcoming and active center of the home.  This open concept provides an inviting location for everyone to gather while preparing meals, enjoying a beverage, and companionship.  The living space opens to a screened porch on one side and the courtyard on the other allowing the gardens and river meadows to pour into the living area through the expansive banks of windows and French doors.

The living room is complete with a massive moss-rock fireplace with a hearth that provides the perfect place to warm by the wood-burning fire.  Tucked in behind the fireplace is a cozy office space that was created with the historic bones of the ‘Springhill Granary’ building.  The office area could also be utilized as an additional bedroom, private guest quarters, or a playroom with access to the screened porch, courtyard, powder room, and kitchen without disturbing the rest of the house. The spacious gourmet kitchen features beautiful Claro-walnut custom cabinets, that nicely balance the prevalent ambient light and light marble countertops. There are three Franke sinks, Waterworks fixtures, generous wrap-around counters, and a huge center-island space providing multiple workstations and comfortable opportunities for many helping hands.  The commercial-grade appliances will satisfy any level of culinary event and include a Sub-Zero refrigerator, two Sub-Zero freezer drawers, beverage chiller, double dishwashers, ice maker, Thermador double ovens and warming drawer, Thermador range with six burners, griddle, water pot filler, and custom vent hood.

The dining room adjoins the kitchen and features a comfortable sitting area with two upholstered chairs and a custom oval farm table that seats ten in padded leather chairs that provide a welcome space for lingering over dinners while enjoying the surrounding nature-filled experience.  This is a very rustic, yet elegant and welcoming space, and few locations anywhere in the world will provide the exceptional and nature-filled indoor-outdoor dining and living experiences of River Road Ranch. As you exit the living area and walk down the hallway past the foyer, you will encounter a powder room and then the first of three main-level bedrooms.  The ‘Ovando Stagecoach’ building is the second historic structure that was used in the home and has been utilized as the foundation for a colorful and welcoming family bedroom.  There is a beautifully-appointed bathroom that features a clawfoot tub and double sinks.  This bathroom is shared in a Jack-and-Jill configuration with the second bedroom.  There is also a small room on the east side of the hallway, that has been used as a playroom and makes a short-term guest space with a comfortable day bed, or could be converted into an attractive second office should that be desired.  As the hallway ends, a right turn leads to a beautiful laundry room with built-in counters, shelves, and cabinets, the mud room, and an exterior door to access the covered breezeway to the two-car garage.

The garage was designed and built to be converted into a carriage house, should additional living space be needed.  The additional gravel parking area could then be converted into a larger garage.

A left turn at the end of the hallway leads you back towards the river and into the former ‘McAllister Granary’, which is now beautifully repurposed as a dramatic master bedroom.  The master bedroom has a vaulted ceiling with square-cut timber-frame accents and windows on three walls that provide an uninterrupted invitation to experience the natural surrounding landscape and river bottom.  The private master bathroom includes a steam shower with a European glass door, a custom cabinet with a slab counter and drop-in sink, and the radiant-heat floor is comprised of tumbled river stones that were hand laid.  There is also a spacious and well-organized master closet complete with custom storage rails and shelves that hides neatly behind the antiqued, mirrored French doors. The upper level of the home includes the mechanical room which has been utilized for convenient storage, but it is finished with heat and drywall and could be converted to additional living space should it be required.

With over a half mile of the Gallatin River braiding through the Ranch, fishing is exceptional both on the property and nearby.  Trout fishing in the area is legendary and anglers come from all over the world to experience the fly fishing available in Southwestern Montana and Yellowstone National Park.  The list of famous rivers within an easy day trip from the Ranch reads like a destination-fishing guidebook with the Yellowstone, Gallatin, Madison, and the spring creeks of Paradise Valley all within an hour’s drive.  Expanding the scope just a little includes additional notable rivers such as the Jefferson, Big Hole, Ruby, Beaverhead, and Missouri.  The Ranch would be an outstanding home base providing the devoted angler miles of rivers and streams to relish for a lifetime on a comfortable day-trip basis.

An indication of this area’s world-renowned trout fishing reputation is the headquarters of the internationally-acclaimed Simms Fishing Products in Bozeman and Winston Fly Rods nearby in Twin Bridges.

The Ranch is well suited for the avid equestrian with many great rides on the property; and a 300′ x 160′ outdoor riding arena, which is set up for roping, is located right on the banks of the tree-lined Gallatin River.  In addition to all of the Ranch riding, there are boundless opportunities for riding in the nearby national forests.  There are also many opportunities in Bozeman and throughout the state of Montana for competing in all facets of the sport – western or English.

Exceptional skiing is available at two spectacular ski areas that are less than an hour’s drive from the Ranch.  Bridger Bowl featuring the famous ‘Cold Smoke’ snow on over 2,000 skiable acres and a 2,700-foot vertical rise, provides a wide variety of terrain including long slopes, glades, chutes, and gullies.  For the Nordic ski enthusiast, Crosscut Mountain Sports Center offers over 45 kilometers of groomed Nordic skiing trails that are well suited to all ability levels.   Big Sky Resort and Lone Mountain Ranch are less than 50 miles away and offer world-renowned alpine and Nordic skiing.  Bozeman offers a comfortable, small-town feeling with big-city amenities that is ranked as one of the Top 10 ski towns by Skiing Magazine.

Golf enthusiasts will appreciate the proximity to Cottonwood Creek Golf Course, which is located only three miles from the Ranch.  The Gallatin Valley is also home to a number of other public and private golf courses, including Black Bull, Valley View, Riverside Country Club, and Bridger Creek, which offer premier golf facilities and a variety of other activities including racquet sports, swimming, and dining.

The city of Bozeman offers a very diverse and active local calendar that includes music, symphony, theatre, and a full slate of NCAA Division I Intercollegiate athletic events that are available at Montana State University. There are many avid fans that actively follow the MSU Bobcats, creating lively and welcoming sporting events.  The next owner of the Ranch will be able to live in a number of different worlds with fishing, hunting, skiing, equestrian, golf, tennis, and the cultural conveniences of Bozeman so easily accessible.

Long before Lewis and Clark arrived in the Gallatin Valley, the Native Americans referred to it as “The Valley of Flowers”, a result of the right mix of moisture and sunshine producing gorgeous wildflowers.  The Valley’s name is derived from the Gallatin River, so named by Lewis and Clark to honor President Thomas Jefferson’s Secretary of the Treasury, Albert Gallatin.  Although Mr. Gallatin is the namesake for this world-class river, its fertile valley, and its magnificent mountain range, the honorable statesman never had the opportunity to visit our nation’s frontiers.  Foreign service took him to Europe, not out West to explore mountains and prairies.  However, because of his interest in conservation, he was a worthy namesake for this abundantly beautiful area.

Early Europeans may have entered the Gallatin Valley in the late 1700s as they trapped for beaver pelts to send back east for hats and coats.  Lewis and Clark’s Corps of Discovery left the first written descriptions of the valley in both 1805 and 1806 during their epic journey.  A gentleman from Georgia named John Bozeman was looking for gold and established the Bozeman Trail as a shortcut connecting the Oregon Trail to the gold rush Territory of Montana.  Many followed this trail for gold but stayed in the valley to take up farming, ranching, logging, and business.

Bozeman was incorporated in 1883 and grew steadily, reaching a population of 3,500 by 1900.  Bozeman is now one of the fastest-growing micropolitan cities in the nation with a population in 2020 of 52,000 – not including approximately 16,000 full-time students at Montana State University, and the rapidly growing and developing greater Gallatin Valley that exceeds 118,000 people.

Properties like River Road Ranch that check all of the boxes for buyers looking for an exclusive, private, natural, yet elegant living experience in close proximity to communities like Bozeman, Big Sky and Yellowstone Park are few and far between.  The 163± deeded acres include exceptionally-designed improvements, Gallatin River frontage offering excellent fishing, whitetail hunting and equestrian opportunities. The native landscape is accented with artistic gardens that add great color in every season.

River Road Ranch has high-end improvements that easily balance with the agricultural production, wildlife, equestrian and recreational pursuits provided on the Ranch. It is not an overstatement to say River Road Ranch is an opportunity that cannot be replicated and is truly a rarity in the Bozeman market.
Come home to Montana at River Road Ranch.

OFFERING PRICE and CONDITIONS OF SALE

River Road Ranch, as previously described herein, has been reduced in price and is now offered at US $12,500,000.00 Cash or Terms acceptable solely at the discretion of the Seller.  The conditions of sale as of August 2021 are as follows:

1. All Prospective Buyers must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Seller’s absolute financial capability to purchase the Ranch prior to scheduling an inspection of the Ranch;
2.  Earnest money deposit will be due upon completion of a fully executed contract, and all earnest money deposits will be held in escrow by Security Title Company in Bozeman;
3.  The Sellers will provide and pay for a standard owner’s title insurance policy.  Any endorsements requested by the Buyer or any lender will be at Buyer’s expense.  Title to the real property will be conveyed by a deed;
4.  All of the water right claims controlled by the Ranch will be transferred to the Buyer at Closing, and all of the mineral rights which the Sellers actually own will be conveyed to the Buyer at Closing;
5.  Buyers’ Brokers are welcomed and invited to contact listing brokers Tim Anderson or Mike Swan in our Bozeman Office for information regarding Cooperation Policies.

The Sellers reserve the right to effect a tax-deferred exchange for other real property in accordance with provisions in Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code.  The Buyer will not be required to incur any additional expenses nor to step into the chain of title on any property which the Sellers may acquire.

This entire Offering is subject to errors, omissions, prior sale, change or withdrawal without notice and approval of purchase by the Sellers.  Information regarding land classifications, acreages, carrying capacities, crop yields, potential profits, etc., are intended only as general guidelines and have been obtained from sources deemed reliable; however, accuracy is not warranted or guaranteed by the Sellers or Swan Land Company.  Prospective Buyers should verify all information to their sole and complete satisfaction.

TERMS OF INSPECTION