Golden Forge

04/14/2026

You don’t fix what’s broken.
You forge what wasn’t there.

Golden Forge
163 acres · 8,600 ft · Colorado Rockies

04/13/2026

Hard terrain heals. It also demands real skill. At 8,600 feet, remote is not a concept at Golden Forge—it’s the condition. Backcountry competence and nervous system regulation are not separate things. When you know you can handle what the terrain throws at you, something shifts. This training belongs here. Sign up.

June 8th is less than two months away, and registration for our Backcountry Horsemanship and Wilderness Medicine course is still open. If you have been considering this training, now is the time to commit.

This five-day intensive was developed in collaboration with Orion Medical Consulting to prepare outfitters, guides, hunters, search and rescue personnel, and anyone operating in backcountry environments for the realities of remote terrain. When you are hours from the nearest road and something goes wrong, you need to know how to manage your horses and pack animals under stress, assess a patient in the field, control hemorrhage, treat trauma, and plan an evacuation without waiting for help to arrive.

This program integrates basic horsemanship and pack animal operations with wilderness medical response because those skills do not exist in isolation when you are working in the backcountry. You will earn your Wilderness First Aid Certification and Certificate of Completion in Basic Horsemanship and Pack Animal Operations, but more importantly, you will walk away with the confidence to handle emergencies when evacuation is not immediate.

For registration instructions, reach out to ruggedmountainoutfitters@gmail.com.

Mitch Vazquez
Orion Medical Consulting
Jimmy Gruenewald
Golden Forge

04/12/2026

Sunday morning church traffic…

04/10/2026

Friday evening traffic on the ranch…

04/09/2026

Where the air is thin and the work is real.
On deck at 8,600 feet: archery, horsemanship and wilderness first aid—with more events soon.

04/03/2026

You can argue about the world.
Or you can build something in it.

03/30/2026

We’re dialing in gear for Golden Forge going into 2026 and could use some input.

We’re heading into a full season of field testing on the ranch, and with documentary filming underway, whatever we land on is going to get put through its paces on camera.

Life here means time on the land, physical work, training, and being outside all day at 8,600 feet—cold mornings, intense sun, wind, and real use. Whatever we get has to handle all of it.

Also, let’s be honest—some of us are still in the same sweats from COVID (not kidding). It may be time.

I’m also tired of women’s gear built more for ads than actual work. We want to know what real athletes, land stewards, ranchers, farmers, and people doing hard physical work are actually wearing.

Bonus points if it doesn’t involve revealing half an ass cheek.

Drop your recommendations below 👇

Sun hoodies · work pants & overalls · training gear · base layers · wind shells · durable long sleeves · hats & gloves · trail shoes · work boots · recovery footwear

Specific brands and items welcome.

03/24/2026

Marine Corps plan: hole, pole, done.
Army plan: let’s model the wind.

At 8,600 feet with real wind, cast your vote: who wins?

03/23/2026

Another combat Marine veteran here this weekend…

Sometimes deep healing starts in stillness—when doing gives way to being.

03/18/2026

Friction doesn’t stop the build.
It just changes the next move.
Chickens or laundry shed?

03/15/2026

A Marine visited the ranch recently and spotted something I’d overlooked.

She was drawn immediately to a particular rock outcrop—one of many here, but the one she and so many others gravitate toward.

Why? Because it’s high ground. It offers visibility. It feels defensible. It’s the place you go to protect what matters.

Years of training can wire that instinct into your marrow—to the point where you don’t even realize you’re scanning for it. Even here. Even when you’re safe.

Part of the work at Golden Forge is acknowledging that “watch.” But the deeper work is creating a space where the body finally realizes it is allowed to recalibrate.