Our Story
Welcome to Circle H Ranch! We are Victor and Dani Hardesty. We have been married since 2008. We have four children: Arabella, Ian, Vincent, and Ziva. We live in beautiful Star Valley, Wyoming.
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Victor moved to Star Valley with his parents in 1990. They moved from California because of the way it was growing. Victor’s parents wanted to raise their children in a small town and found Star Valley. Later they bought a ranch in Geneva which is half in Wyoming and half in Idaho. Victor is at least a 4th generation farmer/rancher. His maternal grandparents had a dairy farm in California. His maternal great-grandparents also raised cattle. The brand Circle H was created by and used on his great-grandfather’s farm. We have the original brand that he used to brand his cattle and is still being used today. The logo for our ranch proudly uses the brand. Victor’s father was raised on a farm also. He worked the land and helped raise animals. Victor’s father would go over to his mother's farm and help milk cows. Victor’s parents also went to school together. Victor fell in love with farming and ranching. He went on to get his Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture Business and later got his Master’s in Secondary Education. Victor is now the Agriculture teacher in Star Valley High School. He is also the Star Valley Chapter FFA advisor.
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Dani moved to Star Valley with her parents in 1996. They moved from Alaska. Dani’s father worked in the Alaskan oil fields on the North Slope. Dani’s parents decided to move to Star Valley because it was too far to visit family in Minnesota while living in Alaska. Dani’s parents were both born in Minnesota and went to school together. Dani’s maternal grandparents were also farmers. They worked the land planting corn, sugar beets, and other cash crops. Dani’s parents did not farm or ranch. Her mother rode horses, and they built a home on 15 acres in Star Valley. Dani grew up riding horses and went to school for Horse Management where she learned to train horses.
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We grew up a mile and a half down the road from each other. Our families were very close growing up. Dani would go over to Victor’s house to help milk the cows, play with the FFA calves, and hang out with friends. Victor would go over to Dani’s house and eat all the leftovers on a Saturday or Sunday with his best friend.
Victor’s dream was to always come back to Star Valley and take over the ranch for his parents. He decided to breed and holistically raise Wagyu because of their healthy fat, docile disposition, and smaller frame. He always dreamed of, and very proudly, "doing it the right way."