The ‘Rancher And Hippie’ Brothers Who Started Two of Montana’s Favorite Festivals

We had the chance to speak to Bryan Hovda, President and one of the shareholders of the Rockin' the Rivers Rockfest in Three Forks, Montana.

This has been a favorite festival of Montanans for years, and while Hovda has worked with the festival for the past 10 years or so, he is working with the festival in a new capacity now. But he gave us some interesting backstory on how both Rockin the Rivers and the Headwaters Country Jam started.

The Cowboy and The Hippie

It started with two brothers, John and Art Zuelke, from Three Forks. "One of them is a rancher and the other one is an old hippie," Hovda said, explaining that the festival started 25 years ago when their mother Audrey passed away and left them some land. They called it "Audrey's Acres."

The Old Suspension Bridge

"And then one of the brothers went out and bought this old suspension bridge. This was on the Jefferson River. His idea originally was to turn it into a stage. It ended up just getting placed there by the entrance on blocks and it has sat there ever since. That's why they kind of named the venue, The Bridge at Three Forks," Hovda said. 

Hovda added that he and his partner have considered the possibility of continuing the Zuelke brothers' vision.

"We do have plans to invest in the venue as well. We have three festivals a year out there right now. The Headwaters Country Jam, Rockin the Rivers and Rappin the Rivers which is new just last year," Hovda said. 

This year's lineup for the Rockin the Rivers will include Stone Temple Pilots as well as local favorite Tim Montana. Details about tickets and more are available at rockintherivers.com.