Meet The Family
The T Cross has been family owned since it was first homesteaded over 100 years ago. Today Mark and Gretchen Cardall maintain the proud heritage of the T Cross. Both Mark and Gretchen were born into the rich tradition of ranching and outfitting; together they are raising Kameron Alayna and Ethan Marcus Cardall – the fourth generation.
Mark and Gretchen are living attestation of the skill, eye and sense that is the birthright of great outdoorsmen. In the early days of the West, there were no schools for cowboys. Cattlemen and outfitters were the “professors of the West,” working with the land, working with the horses and cattle. Knowledge and skill were handed down from parents to children, evolving with time.
Heritage
In the 1920s Gretchen’s grandfather, Ike Neal, moved to the Jackson Hole area. It was there that he started the outfitting and later, the guest ranching trade. Gretchen’s father, Ken Neal, grew up in the business, married Garey Epple in 1964, and continued the legacy. This led them to the T Cross in 1991. Ken and Garey passed this along to their daughter Gretchen, who married Mark Cardall in 2001.
The One Thing People Cannot Find
The T Cross offers the one thing that most people cannot find, peace. The tranquility of the T Cross shows the fast-paced, modern world why cowboys of the past loved their life – it is freedom. In the reverence of the wilderness, you will witness an important tradition that the world has forgotten. It will give you the chance to see how it was and how it should be.
Tribute to Mom and Dad
Written by Gretchen Neal-Cardall as a tribute when Ken and Garey Neal were inducted into the National Dude Ranching Association Hall of Fame located in the Heritage Center in Cody, Wyoming, 2007.
When I think about my parents, there is a reverence that settles in my *****… I counted the combined years they have in the dude ranching industry, and as of the year 2007… It is 100 years! From the early days in which Dad was working for Betty Woolsey at the Trail Creek Ranch, and Mom at the White Grass Ranch living in the Washaki Wilderness of Dubois, Wyoming. They have proven themselves to be the authorities of this great way of life.
But let’s take it back even a few more years.
At the age of 14, being 4’11”, weighing 85 pounds soaking wet, Dad was sent on five day pack trips in the Jackson area. He was the head wrangler, guide, shoe-er, packer, cook, fisherman, and guardian of five or more well-to-do boys, all of them his age of older. No one else was there to help.
Meanwhile, Mom is riding English in a New England camp for the youths of her age.
Their attraction was only natural.
He was a cowboy, born and raised in Wyoming. Common sense, no nonsense, and a strong sense of right and wrong, he mastered the trades needed for that part of the world and quite a few others not well known about, such as skiing. After an accident as a youth, he rigged up a ski and boot that would accommodate his numb leg. He continued to ski the slopes. There have not been many skiing cowboys of any age, let alone of the last generation.
She was a sophisticate from the East. A beautifully elegant, graceful woman, mom left her predetermined future in the city of New York and headed West to see what freedom had to offer. She had a spirit not like those of her counterparts. Often, I am told, she would go down town in Jackson on Friday and Saturday nights to watch the bar fights. Such sport was a novelty; something to write home about.
East meets West, the combination was unbeatable. In 1964 they married in the Church of Transfiguration at the base of the Grand Tetons. They owned very little: a car,a pick-up truck, four head of horses, a couple of saddles, and a dog. But their combination of talents soon were to be tested and honed-in if they were to make a living in the Outfitting and Dude Ranching business.
Many years of hard work, snowbound winters, money or the lack thereof, employee problems, disputed with the Forest Service, BLM, and Nationals Parks (affectionately known as the “communists”), marketing and accounting, horses and cattle, summer and winter ranges, maintenance of cabins and corrals, miles and miles of fence…oh, and two kids! This would be the training ground for themselves and generations to come, I remember the difficult times and the worries, But you would have never known it if you were there as a guest.
The Western hospitality reigned supreme. For example, riding with my parents has always been a special occasion. Mom following Dad up the trail with guests not knowing, but trusting the horseman ahead of them, returning to the ranch later that day ( up to 10 hours later), sore and tired. They have been on a ride of a lifetime, having been somewhere wild, with someone authentic. All are content, but making their way to the hot tub.
Guests became wonderful friends, part of the extended family, with reunions promised every year. With a sense of style, my parents engaged with and entertained people. Holding it all together with social graces and horsemanship, I said horsemanship not “horse whispering!” They invested a lot of their time, talents, and energy into the DRA to promote the industry for all of us to benefit from and share a lifestyle with those who seek a haven from the world.
Dad was on the Board for a number of years and was President for four of those. He now serves (a seemingly never-ending term) on the Educational Trust. This has been done to protect the ideals and traditions of the original dude ranchers and give a direction for this industry in its heritage and influence. One that is to be entwined with high standards, beautiful country, true horsemanship…the proper creases in your hat, for that matter — the color of your hat!
For those that know Ken and Garey Neal, there is admiration and respect. For those who do not know them, consider the knowledge to be tapped into. As for my brother and myself, we would like to thank our parents for the unique and special childhood, one not given to many children. We hope we honor you by the way in which we live and continue with the 4th generation in a way that is respectable and honorable.