Tamalyn Baldwin is head wrangler for Piiholo Ranch and married to Chris Baldwin, cattle manager. She is responsible for the upkeep and overall health of the horses and manages a team of wranglers that individually take guests for rides. Tamalyn applies her extensive training in natural horsemanship to the style of riding at the ranch, and ensures that her wranglers apply this philosophy out on the range. She regularly attends all disciplines of horsemanship clinics, some of her favorite teachers are Buck Brannaman and Curt Pate, and offers her knowledge to guests in a private ride. Tamalyn states, “True horsemanship is when the horse understands through feel what he’s expected to do.”

One of Tamalyn’s hobbies is braiding and hitching horsehair, something she learned while living in Colorado. Horsehair braiding is a long process – she first cleans the hair, ties up each strand, and then braids them all together. Tamalyn can braid in a variety of ways, from flat and round styles to four-strand and 12-strand creations. It takes one hour to hitch one inch of horsehair. Along with braiding horsehair, Tamalyn has a very strong, cowgirl ability: she can crack a bull whip louder than a shotgun blast!

Originally from Huntington Beach and Riverside, California, Tamalyn grew up showing western pleasure and reining horses, an interest that developed when her mom took her riding as a little girl. She started working for a horse trainer when she was 11 years old for $20 dollars a month! He would also give her lessons twice a week in exchange for help grooming the horses and cleaning the stalls. She comments, “I learned a lot and my horsemanship rests on this early foundation.” Tamalyn grew up skiing and snowboarding, and when old enough to drive she moved to Big Bear and worked in the snowboard park at Bear Mountain for 3 seasons. She then moved to Vail, Colorado, snowboarding during the winter and working at cattle ranches during the summer. Every fall she worked for outfitters at hunting camps, where she would pack in the hunters and pack out the animals. “It felt like the old west, being way up in the mountains and it hasn’t changed much working with the mules and horses,” says Tamalyn. She moved to a guest ranch in Steamboat Springs, known as the Home Ranch, and led guests on horseback for 4 years. In 1997, Tamalyn lived in Mexico and rode in a rodeo carrying the American flag. Seeking work as a wrangler year-round, Tamalyn moved to Kauai and wrangled for Princeville Ranch for one year, but afterwards decided to return to cattle ranching, something she truly enjoys. After relocating to Maui, she met Chris and Peter, and they developed the concept for Piiholo Ranch. Regarding the ranch and the family, Tamalyn comments, “I think the family business is a good thing since we get along great and work as a team. The ranch will excel due to everyone’s strong points.”