Meet the lady behind the phone and computer…Hannah

 Tell us about yourself and what you like to do for fun.

Oh boy, the dreaded ‘tell me about yourself’ question! I’m originally from the Southeast, but moved out here specifically to work at this ranch.  Although I miss the South, I really love Montana, so I guess I’ll stick around for a while. I live with a feisty cat named Alice and a geriatric yet peppy Jack Russell Terrier named Sammy.

When I’m not at work, I love to hike and go on road trips around the region.  I’m really trying to get back into gardening and writing, two hobbies that I used to spend a lot of time at.  I also watch a frankly shameful number of educational videos on YouTube (shout out to SciShow and Last Week Tonight, my go-to binge material).

Sometimes I like to ride horses.  I’ve always been jealous of people who are really in tune with their steeds, but I’m also kind of embarrassed at how bad I am, so I try to sneak down to the corral when no one is around.

This is your fourth summer at the ranch, what keeps bringing you back to the Covered Wagon?

This is the most interesting job I’ve ever had as well as being somehow the most laid-back and the most challenging.  I enjoy the variety of work I do, from giving tours of the ranch to entering receipts.  I always tell Melissa that I’ll keep coming back until I find a job that I like better, and that just hasn’t happened yet.  It also helps that I get four months of the most amazing food I’ve ever eaten, for free!

Melissa says you make her life easier; what do you do at the ranch?

Whatever I want!  As for what I’m supposed to be doing… I take reservations, answer guest inquires through phone and email, give tours to new guests, and process check-ins and check-outs.  I do a little bit of bookkeeping as well, by which I mean squinting at receipts and bills for hours to make sure they match.  I also check to make sure the cabins are in tip top shape before guests arrive (not that I really need to after our awesome housekeepers get through with them).

What do you consider your specialty?

Brooding over all the embarrassing things I’ve said any given day.

Or if you mean from a culinary perspective, then peanut-butter jelly sandwiches.

What is something you are known for?

Ideally, most people don’t even notice me.  But I think what I’m known for among my friends is my dry sense of humor and my aggressive reluctance to sing and play guitar with Kurt after dinner.

You love to play the guitar; can we find you singing around the campfire?

See the answer above. You can find me singing around the campfire, if I’ve knocked a few back at dinner.  Otherwise, I have a sore throat… *cough cough*

Where is your favorite place to hike?

So far, the coolest place I’ve been hiking (in the Gallatin Canyon) is Lava Lake.  It takes three to four hours round trip, which is about my max, but I’m always rewarded with a very relaxing lake-side siesta.  I also like driving down the Taylor Fork Road or into Yellowstone and just wandering through the hills.

What is one thing people do not know about you that you would like to share that would help them to get to know you better?

I’m really shy and awkward when you first meet me, and it takes a long time for me to be comfortable enough to open up to people.  Of course, I’m still awkward once you get to know, just hopefully in a more endearing way.