Since 2021 Hawkeye has welcomed hundreds of adventurers.
We’re just getting started.
The five elements of Hawkeye
A Pristine Wilderness
Hawkeye is as close as you can get to the backcountry while still having hot showers. The location and amenities allow entire families to immerse themselves in a wilderness experience, even if their kids are not old enough to go primitive camping. At Hawkeye we challenge our guests to go outside their comfort zone for the sake of growth, but moderate the experience with comfortable beds, tasty food, and abundant fellowship. The intentional lack of internet fosters the kind of deeper human connection that was the default until two decades ago, and allows guests to see mountain peaks, trout, waterfalls, and big game without mediation or distraction.
Horses
Horses are relational in ways that are at once familiar and strange. The challenge of a Hawkeye experience is to build a strong bond with a horse in a relatively short amount of time. Growth in horsemanship allows guests to progress to an end-of-week ride whose difficultly level is calibrated to the guest’s increased competence. Being able to confidently ride through the rugged terrain of Yellowstone Country is a tangible marker of a guest’s growth and success.
Sacraments
Though Christ already has dominion over everything, Hawkeye claims a small patch of Wyoming especially for God’s glory. In this splendid setting, God is particularly present and accessible. To facilitate a real encounter with the person of Christ, many Anchor Families bring a priest during their week at the ranch. Priests receive private accommodations and time for restoration and rejuvenation, and they are welcome to offer Mass and confession opportunities to Hawkeye’s guests. A shared sacramental life promotes a lively solidarity among families. The priest enriches parents and children by deepening their commitment to the common good, and all are reminded of the interdependence between the vocations of marriage and the priesthood.
Staff
Drawn primarily from friends of Hawkeye alums, our summer staff share with guests their charisms of Christian hospitality and hard work. Most have experience in and deep love for the Wyoming wilderness. At the ranch, their sacrificial service is always on display in the background, and often in the foreground. Their unique Christan witness gives Hawkeye a Catholic soul.
Friendship
Spiritual growth at Hawkeye builds upon the sturdy foundation of friendship, as grace builds on nature. Each week’s guest list is chosen by a trusted “Anchor Family”, who gets the keys to the ranch and fills it with friends of its choosing. If in the beginning of the week invited guests aren’t yet friends with each other, they will be by the end, owing to their common relationship to the Anchor Family. Friendship furnishes trust, which promotes joy, elevated conversations, and insight into the Divine.
