Goodbye to the Gatekeeper

For years, visitors of the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range have been greeted by the Crooked Creek bay horses and their stallion, Hickok. He was a strong red bay stallion and the most seen horse on the Dryhead. Thousands of people from across the globe have witnessed his beauty as they traveled through Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area.

He earned himself the nickname “Gatekeeper,” as he was always at the range’s entrance, welcoming everyone, including myself, to the wonderful place he called home, the place he lived wild and free for 17 years. 

A few months ago, the beloved Gatekeeper was no longer with his faithful mares. He had been spotted a few times around the area but in poor physical condition. I was lucky enough to find him with my mom and dad on Father’s Day, June 16, 2025. Little did I know this would be the last time anyone saw him alive. He was up the drainage from Crooked Creek Bay, by himself. My father and I hiked down off the steep bluff to watch him, and he seemed so lost without his mares, just wandering around the area. A little over a month later, I was out again by myself and found his body lying peacefully under the cool shade of a lone tree, in the drainage where I had last seen him with my father. The old stallion had found his final resting place, and what a beautiful place it is. The sky is wide open and blue, contrasting wonderfully with the red dirt where he lay.

Finding him was a full circle moment for me, as Hickok was the first Pryor mustang I had seen when I first came to the range at age 11. For years, he was the one I was always excited to see and was my favorite. He healed broken parts of me in ways nothing else could. Seeing him always brought me so much joy and so much closer to nature and the feeling of freedom.

Being the last person to see him alive and the first person to find his body is so special to me. It feels surreal, almost incomprehensible. It was a unique moment in time, because before I found his body, I found his grandson, Wyatt Earp, in the exact same place I had last seen Hickok on Father’s Day. Wyatt Earp looks a lot like his grandsire, having the same bay coat color and physical strength.

Based on hoof prints it is clear Wyatt Earp had been in the drainage where Hickok lay to rest, almost like he was saying goodbye to the legendary stallion. It was a very special realization in my life, that family lives on through younger generations, even in wild horses. I witnessed a circle of life moment that I will never forget.

Finding the final resting place of this amazing stallion will forever remain an adventure close to my heart. He will be extremely missed, but he will live on through his multiple offspring, many of whom still reside in the Crooked Creek Bay area. They are the greeters now. He was and still is loved by so many and inspired a lot of people, myself included, to fight and advocate for these wonderful wild horses and those like them around the nation. Hickok was born, lived and died wild and free just as he should have, and for that I am incredibly thankful. While his legacy will live on and he will forever be remembered, the Gatekeeper has closed his gates for the last time.

Forellen Bonham has been visiting the Pryor Mountain Wild Mustang Range since she was 11 years old and is now a summertime employee of the Pryor Mountain Wild Mustang Center in Lovell. She is a resident of Buffalo Creek, Colorado, and is a sophomore at Montana State University Billings.