Adventure in the Wild West - Wyoming, Yellowstone and Ranching in Montana

Twelve days in Wyoming and Montana, and the structure is the appeal: a week of touring and then five nights in one place actually doing things rather than looking at them.

Jackson Hole opens it, then two nights at Yellowstone. Old Faithful still erupts roughly every ninety minutes, the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone drops three hundred metres through yellow rock, and the dawn wildlife excursion is the one to get up for, since bison, moose, wolves and grizzly are all in the park and all more active early. Mammoth Hot Springs follows with its limestone terraces and the falls at Undine and Wraith.

Then the pace changes entirely. Five nights on a working Montana ranch with riding, fly fishing, mountain biking, archery, canoeing, rodeo alongside the cowboys, sunrise yoga and campfires in the evening. Ranch stays can be artificial, but a genuine working operation with this much on offer gives a family a week that is remembered better than another three parks would be.

Bozeman closes the trip after the drive up the Gallatin, with the Museum of the Rockies, which holds the largest collection of dinosaur fossils anywhere in the world, including a substantial number of the tyrannosaurs ever found. Original Travel include the hire car, accommodation, the ranch activities, the guided excursions, concierge access, a 24-hour helpline and carbon absorption through their own programme. International flights and most meals are separate. Prices run from 6,650 to 9,300 pounds per person, which is a wide band and moves considerably with season and with the ranch chosen.