Description
Summer in Wyoming
Blanket Flower, Alpine Flax and Aster, CL Bar Ranch, Cora, Wyoming
Bloomed 8-25-23
Oil on Canvas 48 in. x 36 in., 2026
14,200
In my career, I’ve been very fortunate to have been inspired by some very special places in the West. In August of 2023 I experienced a very special ranch in Cora, Wyoming near Pinedale.
In 1902, Robert and Anna May Clark came to Wyoming and homesteaded on the head of Little Duck Creek. They built a two-room log cabin, dug a well, and raised two boys. They called their ranch the Rustic Lodge Ranch, and registered the CL Bar brand. They planted hay, and raised cattle and horses. Eventually, the land sustained a herd of 2500 sheep.
One of their sons, Bert, brought in Dr. Edward Lauzer as a partner in 1930. Lauzer eventually became the sole owner, and married the first registered nurse in Wyoming, Amy Geis Miller. It is rumored that the small cabin on the property was used by Butch Cassidy for medical attention from time to time.
In 1946, the ranch began hosting “dudes”, and cabins were built. Bison were introduced, and a monkey and two African lions entertained guests. Dr. Lauzer also started the new tradition of hosting an annual community BBQ and rodeo.
After Lauzer’s death in 1960, Thomas Lauzer Kitchen took over the ranch and raised the same sheep that Dr. Lauzer had bred. Eventually ranching ended, and the land was divided and sold in forty-acre parcels.
Enter Mr. Erivan Karl Haub and his family. Haub, a German businessman, had fallen in love with the American West. Haub bought up the parcels and put the 7906-acre ranch back together. The Haub family has continued some the ranch’s traditions, like hosting rodeos and raising bison.
The magic of this special land is hard to ignore. Wide Wyoming skies reach down to bison grazing by a rippling, sparkling creek. Wildflowers dance in the breeze along a blue reservoir. If you close your eyes, you can almost imagine the hard-working folks who made this place a productive home.
The day I gathered these blooms was spent enjoying the simple bounties of summer in Wyoming; a little fishing, a little exploring, and a meal shared with a table of people I will never forget. As the sun’s last rays illuminated the Wind River Range, a glass was raised; to all westerners at heart, who seek this land and appreciate its beauty. Cheers!
