Paws Up Montana – the ranch that gave the world glamping

Forty minutes north-east of Missoula, where the Blackfoot Valley opens into ponderosa pine and open meadow, Paws Up Montana occupies a private stretch of the American West the size of a small country. Opened in 2005, the resort covers 37,000 acres of elk-filled meadow, rocky peaks and ponderosa pine in the Blackfoot Valley, named for the river that gave Norman Maclean's novel A River Runs Through It its title and that runs for ten miles through the property. Dave and Nadine Lipson bought the ranch in 1997 and still run it today, their son Larry among the family at the helm. With 76 accommodations spanning historic ranch homes, safari-style glamping camps and the adults-only Green O, it is one of the most complete luxury wilderness addresses in North America — and one the MICHELIN Guide recognises with Two Keys, its mark of an exceptional stay.

01The house

Long before the hot tubs and butlers, this land shaped history. In 1806 Meriwether Lewis climbed Lookout Rock here, scouting a route home from the Pacific; by 1882 homesteader Henry Martin had staked a gold claim on what is now Martin Pasture. Benjamin and Ollie Morris built the ranch house that still stands around the turn of the twentieth century, and by 1915 rancher Paul Greenough — for whom the valley is named — had expanded the land into Sunset Valley Ranch, branding his sheep with a green letter O, the mark that later gave The Green O its name. From 1965, Land and Jon Lindbergh, sons of aviator Charles Lindbergh, ran the Lindbergh Cattle Company here for more than two decades. Dave and Nadine Lipson bought the ranch in 1997, renamed it after their dogs' enthusiastic greeting, and opened it to guests in 2005 as a working cattle and bison operation turned luxury resort.

02Rooms and suites

Paws Up counts 76 accommodations across three distinct worlds. The Homes range from family cabins to the allegedly haunted Morris Farmhouse, built in 1908 and decorated accordingly—except for the flat-screen TVs. In summer, guests can instead choose glamping tents on the banks of the Blackfoot or along Elk Creek, organised into five separate camps that take just six guests each; each camp combines a Western lifestyle with an African safari formula — canvas suites with private baths, a communal dining pavilion with fireplace and fire pit, a private camp chef, and butlers to help organise activities. It was this exact formula, pioneered at Paws Up in Greenough, that invented the term 'glamping' — a canvas tent with a king-size feather bed, heated bathroom floors, a private butler and a chef cooking dinner over an open fire. For adults travelling without children there is The Green O: just 12 private hauses on the property, a more intimate, adults-only experience set apart from the main resort, with hauses such as the Light Haus including a Lexus SUV for on-property use.

Insider tip

40 minutes from Missoula; the Blackfoot River and Bob Marshall Wilderness lie on the doorstep.

03Where to eat

Cooking at Paws Up is led by James Beard-nominated chefs, across dining experiences from continental cuisine with a Western flair at Pomp to tasting menus at Social Haus. Executive chef Sunny Jin calls his style 'refined rustic cuisine', drawing on bison tenderloin raised in St. Ignatius or Hutterite chicken from Cut Bank for the evening menu at Pomp, a chef-driven menu that changes nightly and might run to Rocky Mountain elk tartare and wild king salmon, paired with fine wines and handcrafted cocktails. By day, meals move to Trough, a looser, home-cooked affair where the huckleberry pancakes or black truffle fries are the ones to order. Green O guests dine separately at Social Haus, while Shed delivers seasonal outdoor dining with live music and Chuck Wagon serves rustic riverside eats under the open sky.

04The bar

Tank, the resort's year-round bar, does a modern twist on a leather western look, with dark leather seating and a stone fireplace. Evenings often end here with fireside cocktails, s'mores around the fire and live music, or a seasonal pour such as a Montana Fashioned made with huckleberry-infused bourbon or a Paws Up Margarita with huckleberry and sage.

05Spa and wellness

Spa Town sits at the edge of a meadow, a small colony of canvas structures strung along a boardwalk beside a running brook. Treatment tents are fitted with heated massage tables and open sides onto views of grazing horses, with both an outdoor yoga deck and a glass-walled indoor studio nearby. The Huff-and-Puff fitness centre runs around the clock, equipped with Peloton bikes, a rowing machine and a full set of free weights. Any sixty-minute treatment comes with a complimentary massage for the dog that travelled along, and in winter, when the canvas tents close, the historic Morris Ranch House is converted into an intimate seasonal spa.

06The neighbourhood, and making the most of a stay

The nearest town is Missoula, just 40 minutes away, with over 70 unique activities and adventures on the ranch itself, each personalised to maximise enjoyment in all four seasons. To the north, 1.5 million acres of the Bob Marshall Wilderness border the resort's own 100 miles of trails and ten miles of the Blackfoot River, a stretch that was part of the route followed by Lewis and Clark on their exploration of the American West. On property, the activity list runs from boating, hiking, kayaking, mountain biking, paintball, rafting, rappelling and swimming in summer to unguided snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, ice skating, snowmobile tubing, archery, skijoring, dogsledding and sleigh rides once the snow falls. In 2025, readers of Condé Nast Traveler voted Paws Up the eighth resort in the world in their Readers' Choice Awards.

For a weekend. For a lifetime.