National Cowboy Poetry Gathering p.2

A slow Sunday morning (for a change,,,). Soon departing for Salt Lake City - fortunately, without snow this time! It rained for the last two days, but warmed up, and mountain passes seem to cause no problems. Yesterday was our last day at the NCPG, another full day of fantastic music, poetry and talks. In total we attended more than two dozens of shows/panels, films not included in these three days. 

Saturday morning we spent in another venue, the Highschool Performing Arts Building Auditorium (photo above), first with a show of three different music bands (Lone Pinon, Lara Manzanres, Margo Cilker) and one great young poet, Olivia Romeo, a poetry slammer and poet from New Mexico with Mexican roots. Next one: famous legend, folklorist, poet and musician Hal Cannon, with "first-timer" Buffalo Kin (a black Choctaw cowboy), Andy Hedges (Texas) and Forrest VanTuyl (Washington State) on stage together, then: some 1950s Swing with the Hot Club of Cowtown - one after the other.

In the short break afterwards we drove back into downtown to Capriola's (pic left), famous for its spurs and bits and saddles, but also carrying western wear of all kinds, to say "hello" to the owners Susan and John. Also, checked out the marketplace - mostly Indian vendors of jewelry and everything Western - in the Stockman's Casino.

In the pouring rain we then walked over to the WFC for another highly interesting discussion (photo below), led by an organisation called "Rancher to Rancher" (Kent Reeves) and a panel of different artists (like Lara Manzanares, below left), talking about their relationship to the land, their challenges and their inspirations. Kent Reeves showed at the same time with simple tools how important the soil, plant cover and biodiversity are for water management. 

 

 

Home we drove for a quick freshening-up and do some laundry before the last evening show (above) in the bar theater started. To our surprise, waiting to get in, we met a couple of the artists and talked to them, all of them very approachable and polite. Good-looking (and even better singing!) cowboy Brenn Hill from Utah (photo below) was one of them, Jonathan Odermann (far below), a rancher/poet from Medora/North Dakota another.

Brenn Hill

 

Jonathan Odermann

The show ended at 10, we stayed some longer, had a beer and watched the local ranchers and young folks dancing and bands jamming in the Western Folklife Center.

BTW: Other than in Germany, Trump didn't really come up as a main topic during our stay. People here, in the backcountry, don't care much about far-away Washington, DC and the President. To them their County or State reps are much more important. Stupid presidential decrees? Cattle prices, rain or upkeep of roads and a good relationship with the BLM, from whom many ranchers lease land, are much more important to most.