Cowboy Cooking: Breakfast at a Cow Camp

Chuck wagon coffee and biscuits fuel hungry cowboys—and an Old West tradition

Chuck wagons were the first meals on wheels for cowboys, keeping them fed while they worked cattle. Shannon Keller Rollins

It’s 2:45 a.m., and I’ve already dressed and put on my boots as the alarm clock sounds. I don’t recall in all my years as a chuck wagon cook that it ever did wake me up. I guess my biological clock always had it beat.

You might be wondering, “Why so early?” Well, cooking for cowboys on ranches isn’t as easy as walking into the kitchen, switching on the light, and turning the knob on the stove. A cook on a chuck wagon isn’t what I would call a glamorous job, but the pay is well worth it. I’m not talking pay in money, but I’m paid generously in scenery, peace, and friendships.