Experience Skijoring: The Thrill of Snow Sports with Horses at a Montana Resort

There’s winter adventure, and then there’s horse-powered skiing on a remote luxury dude ranch. This Montana resort offers all of the above, and then some.

Fact checked by Elizabeth MacLennan

The Skijoring Experience

It was the Mountain West afternoon I’d long dreamed of: powder-dusted pines, grazing bison in the distance, and air so crisp I could see my breath. However, I spent the last hours of The Green O daylight nervously on skis, being pulled by a rescue horse through a slalom course of twists, turns, and a final jump that caused such immense tension I’d barely let out a breath.

The sport, known as skijoring, was entirely new to me. I signed up for this snow-and-horse take on waterskiing on a whim while finalizing details for my trip to The Green O, a posh adults-only escape in the enchanting pine forests near Greenough, Montana.

The all-inclusive resort’s 12 glass-walled cabins, resembling snow globes, are part of Montana’s Resort at Paws Up, a 37,000-acre property offering luxury-meets-adventure experiences with exceptional dude ranch vacations.

The resort’s outdoor concierges coordinate various excursions — we’d been snowmobiling the day before and dog sledding just that morning. Sadly, I missed out on cow croquet. While each experience is surreal, few activities scream “goodbye comfort zone” like skijoring — and according to Paws Up equestrian resort manager, Jackie Kecskes, that’s all part of the plan.

“We’re always trying to figure out how we can push guests just a little bit outside their comfort zones,” Kecskes commented as I grabbed the rope for my first attempt. It’s all about calculated risk.

Historical Background of Skijoring

To me, skiing while being pulled by a horse felt risky, but this sport is far from novel. The Skijor International association notes the first report of a skijoring-type activity dates back thousands of years to the Altai Mountains of Asia. For centuries, Sámi people also relied on skijoring for long-distance journeys, using reindeer. This thrilling experience spread across Europe and eventually into the U.S. in the early 1900s.

During the 1928 Winter Olympics in Switzerland, skijoring debuted as an exhibition sport, designed to showcase the event (sans medals). However, you won’t find it in the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, nor would you have found it in earlier years. Despite efforts to get skijoring recognized in the Olympics — with dogs leading instead of horses — it has yet to make a serious comeback.

Animal Rescue Initiative

But as the wind whipped my face and I prepared for the massive jump ahead, I didn’t need Olympic validation to feel like a serious Olympian — or, as Kecskes put it, an authentic Montanan.

“The goal of the resort, and The Green O, is to create a place where people who aren’t Montana natives can experience what we do as Montana locals,” Kecskes explained, noting skijoring competitions abound throughout the state. “Some places simplify these experiences, but we want to push the envelope so guests can grow and feel authentic.”

And grow I did, although I wasn’t the only one who built confidence that day. As an animal lover, Kecskes focuses on helping rescued horses find new purpose-fueled lives via the Paws Up ranch. The rescue horse that zipped me through the course? Bo, a former Amish country workhorse. He arrived on the property to start his new life in 2020, and ready or not, I became Bo’s skijoring guinea pig.

At first, “it was like trying to stop a freight train,” said Kecskes, who rides the horses while guests grip the rope from behind. Together, we decided I should skip the jump on my first circuit.

However, Bo proved himself time and time again. He was calm and ready for me to attempt that tiny mound of a jump. True to Kecskes’ goal for the experience, I felt prepared to obliterate that comfort zone.

The jump came, and though I considered a last-minute dodge, I went for it, full steam ahead. While I soared just a fingernail’s worth above the ground, I spent the rest of the day parading around The Green O’s Social Haus hangout like a true champion — as did Bo, who took a quick post-jump victory lap with Kecskes, clearly having found his new life’s calling. “This is the thing I love most about my job,” Kecskes shared as Bo pranced back inside. “We’re able to facilitate these significant life changes.”