Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy

- Season 1

(1999)

After a long winter confined to the cabin with Rich and Pan, Gloria Hobson is eager for some time alone. But she discovers that springtime in the Natchako includes far more than flowers. Meanwhile, the men go on a dangerous hunt for missing cattle.

Kit's true identity is revealed. This prompts a trip to town where Rich finds the girl's father. But as the man's true colors are shown, Gloria pushes her partners to give Kit a permanent place on the ranch. Meanwhile, Pan's sometime affair with the widow Franklin heats up again.

Gloria's best friend, Muriel, makes a surprise visit to the ranch with her new fiancé, Connor McCann, who once asked Gloria to marry him. Although Gloria never had any intention of marrying Connor, she turned him down in part when Rich entered her life. Their visit is in part because Connor has enlisted and will soon be shipped overseas. Gloria is happy to see her friends, but Rich is less than excited to socialize with his old nemesis Connor, especially since he doesn't know the specific details of Gloria and Connor's past relationship. Despite a bumpy start, Pan ...

After Rich returns from two weeks on the range, he and Gloria are anxious for some time alone together. Arranging this alone time is even more difficult than usual since their old friend Robert McDaniels has returned to work on the ranch. He is also sleeping in the one-room cabin with the married couple and Pan. Beyond McDaniel's return, the twosome have other issues which are preventing them from their much wanted alone time. They have to protect McDaniels from any intruders as he is still wanted for murder, with a bounty on his head. And they have to deal with Tommy...

The herd is growing, which has many repercussions on the ranch. Rich, Gloria and Pan have purchased thirty new horses, all of which need to be broken in. One of those horses will be Gloria's new horse. To show up Pan, she chooses the wildest of the bunch, one of which Pan would even admit to being just a little scared. Gloria has to perform magic to tame her new steed, who she's named Steinway (she wanted something "grand"). One other manifestation of the increasing herd is that they need more land converted to hay fields for feed. The entire conversion process is no ...

After he gets her into a drunken state to ease her pain, Rich brings the Widow Franklin to the ranch since he feels she needs someone to care after her since she received notice that her son, Charles, has been listed missing in action in the war. Rich is hoping that either Gloria or Pan can provide her with some comfort. Despite Pan having a "benefits" relationship with her, Pan doesn't know what to say to her since they don't really have a "friends" relationship. And Gloria would like to provide her some comfort, but the continual criticism she throws back at Gloria ...

A provincial government employee named Deaver gets lost on the ranch property while on his way to Devil's Thumb to survey for the location of future radio towers. As he is from the city and has no experience in back country travel, he hires Pan and Rich to be his guides, much to Gloria's chagrin, despite the extra money, as she would rather have Rich stay on the ranch and at least start the addition to the house which he promised for so long. Pan and Rich come to the quick conclusion that Deaver isn't all that he seems. Back at the ranch, Gloria decides to start the ...

Rich doesn't remember until Pan reminds him that his and Gloria's first wedding anniversary is approaching. What's worse is that Rich was planning on heading off with Pan on that day to go for a multi-day wild horse hunt. Gloria is already angry enough by Rich forgetting and not making any romantic arrangements for their honeymoon, but to make the best of a bad situation, she decides to go along on the wild horse hunt so that she can be with Rich. As such, Pan decides to stay home instead, which ends up making him go a little stir crazy with nothing to do. Rich and ...

With all the ranch hands gone to do work, Gloria figures it's time for her and Rich to celebrate a proper, albeit late, romantic first anniversary alone at home. Rich is just as eager for this alone time with his wife. Instead of having a romantic time together, they decide to do something else they don't ever seem to have have time to do: talk. Into their conversation, they seem, at least on the surface, to be at different points in where they see their collective lives together. As each threatens to run off, they have to decide if their marriage can survive these ...

With debts mounting, Rich feels the only short term solution is to do what Nelson has done, which is to work at a nearby logging camp where they pay good wages in cash. Rich is willing to leave to work on the camp despite Gloria's currently broken foot and her concern over his welfare. She has reason to become more concerned when life at the camp seems to be more focused on the casual but wagered boxing matches - winner take all - that are organized by one of the other loggers named Danny Doyle. Rich is a former boxer, but who hasn't boxed in close to a decade. The ...

It's haying season. Robert and the Georges are coming by to help out. However, Robert and Nelson are temporarily tied up with other tasks, leaving Rita, young Horatio and Francis - who makes an art of getting out of work - as the only people currently available. After the division of labor is decided, a small wrench is thrown into the proceedings when Gloria sprains her ankle, which means she is relegated to the kitchen, much to everyone else's dismay. But a more serious and life threatening accident occurs when Francis is run over by the mower. As they all deal with ...

When a slow-talking but highly-skilled young wrangler shows up in search of work, Pan believes the ranch-hand problems may be solved. But love and heartbreak are in the air, and "the Natural" ends up being more trouble than help.

Everyone on the ranch is helping out with the end of season cattle drive to Vanderhoof where they will sell their mature herd. The struggle for ultimate power seems to be reaching a head between Rich and Pan, especially as Rich inadvertently gives away Pan's favorite steed to Nelson as payment for work. Half way through the drive, they make a bet. Rich will take half the herd and Ed and Gloria, while Pan takes the other half of the herd with Kit and Tommy to see who makes it to Vanderhoof first, with the winner to be boss of the ranch for the next year. Beyond the ...