There is something so restorative about being in nature. Especially when that nature is found on 37,000 acres at a critically acclaimed luxury resort with sweeping views of rolling meadows that reach the foothills of snow-capped Montana mountains. Paws Up Ranch is located 35 miles east of Missoula, Montana, and it takes just over a half-hour from the airport to arrive at the working cattle and bison ranch that feels like a world of its own. The Kevin Costner hit Yellowstone is filmed just up the road, and the valley’s beauty inspired Norman Maclean’s famed novel A River Runs Through it. The resort’s playful name—originated from how the owners’ dogs would greet visitors by putting their paws up in the air while thumping their tails enthusiastically—reflects its happy, easy-going, friendly vibe.

After check-in at the Reception Barn, we were whisked off to our Big Timber Home, a spacious log cabin with a master bedroom and two-bed loft, a great room with a wood-burning stove emitting a wonderful wood-smoke aroma, a full kitchen, and laundry room. In the large bathroom, an etched glass artwork serves as one wall of the shower. The cabin is outfitted floor-to-ceiling in Western chic—rustic yet contemporary—with furnishings and artwork hand-selected by the owners to give the house the feel of a dear friend’s home. Every room had one thing in common, magnificent views. We literally soaked in these views while enjoying the back porch’s hot tub. Relaxing in that warm bubbling tub overlooking the red Ponderosa pines outlined against the blue Montana sky and mountains in the distance would be a favorite pastime in the days to come.

A luxury Lexus SUV is parked in the driveway of each house for transportation. If you prefer to be picked up for activities or meals, the request can be made via Paws Up’s trusty app. We opted to hop behind the wheel for the short drive to the resort’s culinary headquarters located in The Village. Pomp, The Resort’s gourmet restaurant, offers continental cuisine with a Western flair for dinner. Grounded in the fundamentals of classic cooking,  Executive Chef Sunny Jin (a veteran of The French Laundry and El Bulli) uses his background and imagination to create mouthwatering culinary innovations for the refined palette. Local ingredients are featured, so offerings change just like the seasons. The menu boasts a select number of carefully curated options for each beautifully presented course. One evening we enjoyed a salmon tartare with capers, horseradish, and herbs for a first course, followed by a succulent beef tenderloin with duck fat potatoes, petite carrots, and wilted spinach with aged sherry. The meal’s culmination was a chocolate and tahini concoction—so exquisite that I am still dreaming about it.

Trough features a more casual menu and atmosphere for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Next door, Tank provides a wide selection of the finest drink selections in the West and a casual environment complete with flat-screen TVs, music, breathtaking views, and a spectacularly large fireplace.

One afternoon we headed to the Wilderness Outpost for a two-hour horseback trail ride. A dusting of snow covered the ground making the scene entirely idyllic. We rode along and through the emerald-tinted Blackfoot River. The trek through the river was quite exciting. Fancy, my horse, wasn’t too keen on the idea originally but with a little encouragement, he headed into the deep waters and through a fast current. Fancy took to a run as we ascended the bank into the conifer forest—at that moment I felt like a wrangler in Yellowstone. Just before we entered a fragrant sage field, our guide pointed out a rock that Lewis & Clark used to survey the area.

Post-ride we enjoyed an outing to the spa. In the summertime, Spa Town is nestled on the edge of a meadow with a colony of white tents with full baths and heated massage tables. During the winter, the spa migrates indoors to the Saddle Club where we were booked for Swedish massages, just what the doctor ordered after my hours atop dear old Fancy. My masseuse used a circular technique that I had yet to encounter but hope to experience again.

Early one day we joined a naturalist for a two-hour nature hike to discover The Ranch’s diverse flora and fauna. There are 30 miles of marked trails to explore, and we covered only a fraction on our jaunt through the forests, meadows, babbling brooks, and up to James Pond. Our guide explained how the Indians used the Ponderosa pine in a myriad of ways from using its roots to dye textiles to boiling the bark for medicinal purposes. The pine bark’s reddish hue is accentuated by the chartreuse green moss that thrives on its branches. The entire floor of the forest is blanketed in amber pine needles, and darling little pines shaped like miniature Christmas trees pop up all over the forest floor. The crisp air has a palatable pine scent with a hint of wild sage lying underneath. Montana black chipmunks, which I mistook for tiny squirrels at first, race around the forest. Although these bushy-tailed fellows are black from tip to toe, they dart around exactly like the chipmunks we are familiar with in Illinois.

Famished following our hike, we visited Trough for chili con carne and a side of truffle fries. We lingered over lunch watching a herd of bison grazing in the meadow and an enormous flock of white snow geese undulating across the sky and over snow-capped mountains. It seemed as if the whole scene had been orchestrated.

According to our server, it was just an ordinary day in Montana. The Resort offers an array of unique accommodations. Glamping tents are available in six different camps and would be ideal for a summer visit. Green o, the newest addition to Paws Up, is an absolute dream. This adults-only property features twelve spectacular houses. My favorite was the glass multi-level “Tree Haus” appearing high up in the pines in a densely timbered hillside overlooking a picturesque valley. The Social Haus is the dining property for Green o guests, and the chef changes the menu daily. We enjoyed a nine-course tasting menu here; every course presented by the chef or sous chef was more amazing than the last. I must visit again as the Green o is a property unlike anything I have ever seen.

Paws Up also boasts more than 100 miles of designated hiking, mountain biking, horse, and ATV trails. Outdoor adventures include fly-fishing, cattle driving, rappelling, whitewater rafting, bird and wildlife watching, and sporting clays shooting. Winter activities include snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, snowmobiling, skijoring, sleigh rides, ice skating, dogsledding, and downhill skiing nearby. One could visit Paws Up over and over and experience something completely new each time. Hands down, Paws Up needs to be on your travel list. Book early as the word is out.

For more information, visit pawsup.com.