Paws Up Montana debuted in 2005, when owners Nadine and Dave Lipson were convinced by loved ones that their 37,000-acre property in Greenough, Montana, would make as good a home for travelers as it already was for horses and cows. It was a bit of a lark, since the Lipsons were ranchers by trade. They rented a few cabins out (now known as the Meadow Homes), then Moonlight Camp and its six safari-style canvas tents came next, nestled along the bank of the Blackfoot River.
Nearly 20 years later, Paws Up has grown in myriad ways but remained the same in others. There are now six intimate camps, each with six fully furnished glamping tents and a butler-staffed-dining pavilion (elevated multi-course dinners, served to the tune of the rushing river, are lovely); 31 stand-alone cabins with two, three or four bedrooms; and The Green O, a gated resort within the larger one with 12 modern homes, some lofted in the trees. For clients seeking a cabin stay, look at the original Meadow Homes, which just revealed completely new (and beautiful) interiors.
The resort’s furnished, safari-style tents have full bathrooms.
Credit: 2024 The Resort at Paws Up
What hasn’t changed is the team’s resolute aim to provide a luxury wilderness experience that feels authentic to Montana, and the seasonal tented camps — open mid-May to mid-October — get right to the heart of that goal. They are the most rustic option at Paws Up, and they keep guests immersed in the Treasure State’s sights and sounds.
The dining pavilion at Cliffside Camp
Credit: 2024 The Resort at Paws UpWhat It’s Like to Be a Guest at Paws Up
Last month, my spouse and I checked into Cliffside Camp, and so did near-freezing temperatures. I found myself laughing at the angsty Montana weather, which brought sleet and snow with little warning on our fly-fishing excursion and random showers every other day. I laughed because no tears were needed; any bump in the road was quickly smoothed by a fastidious staffer, or preempted entirely. Electric blankets and heated bathroom tiles kept us cozy in our two-room tent. Our fishing guide provided rain ponchos mid-trip on the Clearwater River. Dwindling evening fires were stoked with new logs whenever needed, and s’mores fixings and cocktails (or mint tea) were served upon request.
And to dine at Cliffside Camp's dining pavilion, for breakfast or for dinner, was a defining glamping experience. I might forever equate luxury in nature with asking a camp butler for seconds on salmon crudo cones topped with avocado mousse, with a roaring fire and rushing river in the background.
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Huckleberry pancakes were served fresh and piping hot at Cliffside Camp's dining pavilion.
Credit: 2024 The Resort at Paws UpIf the culinary side of a vacation ranks high in priority for clients, Paws Up will surely satisfy. Under the watch of Sunny Jin, general manager of food and beverage, every dish I had was delicious, and many reflected the destination, from a smash burger made with Paws Up beef to huckleberry pancakes speckled with locally grown fruits. Bison are now raised on the ranch, too, so clients can try plates like bison chili and biscuits with bison gravy. And never needing to settle a bill (or lay down a tip), as meals and gratuities are included in resort rates, made camp feel more like a home than a hotel.
Getting Around Paws Up
It’s hard to understand just how vast 37,000 acres is until you’ve arrived. The resort’s hub, known as The Village, is somewhat central, but I quickly learned I wasn’t walking to and from Cliffside Camp from it.
Guests check in at The Village and enjoy meals at neighboring restaurants Trough and Tank, where the decks overlook the resort’s wide pastures. Pomp, a dinner-only, reservations-required restaurant with a pre-fixe menu that changes regularly, is also here, and definitely something for clients to experience at least once during their stay.
A walkable dirt road delivers guests from The Village to the Wilderness Outpost (and past a still-functioning, one-room schoolhouse). The Outpost is both the starting point of booked activities and an incredible gift shop. Anything you might want can be purchased here, from cowboy boots and hats and branded Paws Up merchandise to kid’s clothes and jewelry and coffee table books.
Most activities will require a shuttle ride from the Outpost — our fishing excursion began here, as did our clay-shooting experience. (When we wanted to go from The Village to our tent, from our tent to Pomp or from our tent to the Wilderness Outpost, we needed a staffer to call for a shuttle, which was either a Lexus SUV or a large multi-passenger van.)
The upside of the shuttles, for me, was not needing my own car at all and mingling with other guests, who you will often adventure with after your ride. We made fast friends, for example, with a fellow guest on our clay shooting excursion. He’d never held a gun before either, so there was a lot of laughing (and friendly competition) about hitting our targets as they flew through the trees.
If clients would rather have full control over their transportation, book them in a house or at The Green O, as a Lexus NX comes with the stay at those accommodations.
The writer tried her hand at fly fishing on a guided Paws Up excursion in spring.
Credit: 2024 Richard LoweResort Activities
The Resort at Paws Up could easily be enjoyed for a full week; I've never seen a list of activities as vast and varied as the one Paws Up has put together. Horseback rides, fly fishing and clay shooting are musts in spring, summer and fall. But then, when I imagine how stunning the resort must be under a blanket of snow (when guests can play broom hockey on ice and go dogsledding and snow tubing), winter seems like the perfect time to visit.
Guests pour over the activity menu and make selections long before arrival, so that they check in with a fully planned itinerary that suits them just right.
The Blackfoot River runs through The Resort at Paws Up, and sitting along its bank is a good way to while away an hour or more.
Credit: 2024 The Resort at Paws UpImmersing In Nature
The ultimate luxury at Paws Up, I found, was being part of the landscape. A resident bald eagle, its massive nest built in a treetop in River Camp, drew me back daily; I’d observe it (and its juveniles) from my red Adirondack on the riverbank. On a guided hike bordering the Lubrecht Forest, I sniffed the bark of ponderosa pines, the scent reminiscent of vanilla, and learned about the medicinal properties of wild arnica, balsamroot and wild sage. Stripe-faced marmots watched me warily, alert and up on their hind legs, when I discovered them at another camp on an afternoon stroll. And the Blackfoot River lulled me to sleep each night — a happy replacement for a white noise app on my phone.
In fact, any client looking to ditch their phone entirely is a good fit for the ranch. If Montana is “The Last Best Place,” then The Resort at Paws Up is the corner to experience.
Rate Inclusions
Rates for The Resort at Paws Up include three meals per day and beverages. Bookings also come with round-trip transportation from the airport in Missoula, which is about a 35-minute drive from the property.
