Owner Alison Hagerman (pictured on offers on-farm vacation rentals and tends a variety of animals with her husband, Brian, and children, Wyatt and Brinley.
Connecting Visitors to Land and Food
The first member of Hagerman Ranch to greet me is Cedar, a black cow dog, whose tail wags fiercely as I pull in. Second are the chickens, who approach cautiously, hoping I’ve brought some snacks.
I have driven by Hagerman Ranch and the surrounding farms dozens of times on my way to and from Billings, without giving much thought to who lives here and what happens here. I’ve always found the area pretty—the endless fields on either side of the interstate, the river carving its way through, the cottonwoods framing the view. It takes only five seconds after I get out of my car for me to realize how much I was missing.
A few minutes after I arrive, Alison Hagerman drives up with her two kids, Wyatt and Brinley; they’d just returned from a dentist appointment in Bozeman. The minute the truck door opens, Alison is warm and friendly, asking if I’ve made myself at home, gesturing with her arms to the pasture, the river, the chickens. She takes me in, and her eyes ask, Does she see what I see?
Alison and her husband, Brian, along with their two children, run Hagerman Ranch near Greycliff, 70 miles east of Bozeman. They raise all-natural Black Angus beef that is grass-fed and grass-finished using regenerative agriculture practices.
The Hagermans also offer two vacation rentals on their property. The Bennett House, a three-bedroom home, greets you as you enter the ranch. Farther in, perched above the Yellowstone River, is The Cabin—a one-bedroom retreat with views for miles, perfectly positioned for sunrise and sunset over the Crazy Mountains. In addition to enjoying the accommodations, guests can also purchase farm-fresh eggs and beef from the Hagermans during their stay.
Alison tells me that the people who stay at Hagerman Ranch come from all over and all walks of life. Some know a lot about farming; some have never experienced it before. Once, she found a guest standing outside during a snowstorm, filming with his iPad, dressed in shorts and seemingly unaware of the cold—captivated by something that, for the Hager mans, is simply part of life here. Another time, a young boy saw his first cow on the ranch; the mother texted Alison a photo of her son, wide-eyed with an ear-to-ear grin, as he took in his first encounter with cattle.
This is agritourism.
Hagerman Ranch sprawls beneath Montana’s endless sky near Greycliff.
Agritourism can sound like a buzzword or conjure images of staged farm experiences built for social media. But for those championing agritourism in Montana, it’s not. At its core, agritourism is about inviting people into working agricultural spaces—sometimes actively, sometimes simply as witnesses—and giving them the opportunity to better understand where their food comes from and how land is cared for.
For Haley Vine, food and ag development officer for the Montana Department of Agriculture, that distinction matters.
“The angle we’re really pushing is that people should leave agritourism experiences feeling educated about Montana agriculture,” she says. “It’s more than just having a fun time, taking cute pictures, and leaving. That definition is still evolving, and you’ll hear different opinions—from multi-generational ranchers to people who recently moved here and are doing more community-focused agriculture. But I think agritourism has room for everyone if we keep the shared goal of learning, education, and supporting our food system.”
At Hagerman Ranch, that education often begins with dinner. When guests want to purchase steaks from her to cook in their vacation rental, Alison asks what cut they’d like. More often than not, the question opens into a larger conversation. Many guests are familiar with only a handful of cuts they’ve purchased under fluorescent grocery store lights. In the process of walking them through their beef options, Alison helps them understand why grass-fed, grass-finished beef tastes different—and how those differences reflect nutrition, land management, and animal welfare.
Many guests are familiar with only a handful of meat cuts they’ve purchased under fluorescent grocery store lights. In the process of walking them through their beef options, Alison helps them understand why grass-fed, grass-finished beef tastes different—and how those differences reflect nutrition, land management, and animal welfare.
“They have no idea where the beef comes from,” Alison says, “and they have no idea that the quality differs between feedlot beef and something finished out here. This is Sweet Grass County for a reason. The taste is different, and I explain to people why.”
Agritourism itself is not new. Across Europe and the United Kingdom, farm stays and agriturismos have long been woven into rural economies. Deborah Queen, from the Montana Agritourism Association (MAA), has spent much of her career working with nonprofits and in agricultural education in the U.K., where agritourism is a deeply established practice.
“In the U.S., it’s still kind of seen as an interesting addon,” Queen explains. “Whereas in Europe and the U.K., it’s really integral to developing any kind of farming or ranching operation. There’s more of an attitude of bringing people in—talking to them about where their food, farming, and fuel come from.”
For Montana producers, one of the biggest barriers to agritourism is liability. The fear of someone getting hurt on their property—and the legal consequences that might follow— keeps many ranchers from inviting tourists onto their land.
MAA can help with that. The organization provides members with resources, including durable signage that clearly states visitors participate in agritourism activities at their own risk, using language drawn directly from Montana legislation to support agritourism in the state. It’s a practical step, but an important one—helping farmers and ranchers feel supported rather than exposed.
Walking the farm with Alison and Brinley, we reach The Cabin just before sunset. We have a shadow named Lady, a chihuahua mix, who is convinced she was bred for ranch life. On our walk, Brinley made sure I met her bunny, sheep, and horses. Wyatt is inside. Alison describes him as “her sports kid,” whereas Brinley knows how to “drive just about every piece of farm equipment on the ranch.”
In these brief hours with Alison, it’s clear that offering farm stays wasn’t a business calculation so much as a natural extension of what this place and life mean to her. She gestures broadly across the pasture, toward the river, to the distant mountains.
“How could we not?” she says, as if the answer is self-evident.
Alison recalls a family from Australia whose son came to Montana to work in agriculture and sadly passed away in a farm accident. They came to visit hoping to feel closer to him.
“She just took my hand,” Alison remembers. “She told me being here helped her understand what her son loved about Montana, why he chose to be here.”
Agritourism, at its best, creates experiences we can’t even predict, those that have the potential to benefit the farmer just as much as the visitor.
For those traveling in Montana and looking for experiences like what the Hagermans’ offer, resources like Abundant Montana, with their food-and-farms map, make it easier to find farm stays, ranch visits, and agritourism experiences rooted in real working landscapes. Visit abundantmontana.com to learn more.
