Daryl Oberquell

Daryl Oberquell, age 74, passed away at his home on Thursday, May 30, 2024, after a long battle with cancer.

There is no public memorial service planned, as this is not what he wanted. As adventurous as he was, he was also very private. The family will spread his ashes in the mountains, per his wishes.

Daryl was born in Denver, Colo., in 1950. He was the fourth child out of five siblings in the family. When he was five years old, his family moved to Opheim, Mont., where they managed a farm. Much of his grit, tenacity, and work ethic was developed from being raised on the farm. Daryl was very gifted musically and artistically as well. In high school he enjoyed playing the tuba in the Battle of the Bands. He also played banjo, bass guitar, and acoustic guitar when he was older. Daryl could belt out a tune with the best of them, and he was always tapping out a rhythm. He graduated from Glasgow High School in 1968. He married his first wife, Fern Johnson, in 1969, and had two children together during the course of their marriage, Heather and Christian Oberquell.

After high school, Daryl worked for the Great Northern Railroad for nearly 10 years. He suffered a traumatic accident when a piece of hot steel flew 50 feet away directly into his right eye, causing him to go totally blind in that eye. After his tenure at the railroad, he purchased and ran the Hide-Away Bar in Glasgow for two years.

Daryl was a Mountain Man. He moved to the Clyde Park, Mont., area in 1986 where his brother Don and his family lived, and he had just about decided to go off by himself and live off the grid in the mountains. Before he could do that, he met his future wife, Anne Costello and her three children – Ryan, Garrett, and Kate Costello. Instead of living the mountain man lifestyle by himself, he brought the lifestyle to his new family. Daryl and Anne married in 1992 at a national mountain man rendezvous in Polebridge, Mont. Some of the best memories together were at different mountain man rendezvous – sleeping in teepees, wearing buckskins and moccasins sewn by Anne, throwing tomahawks and knives, shooting black powder rifles, and just experiencing life in the mountains, pre- 1840s style.

When Daryl turned 50, he took a canoe trip in his buckskins and iconic skunk hat along the Lewis and Clark route. He paddled from the Yellowstone River outside of Livingston, Mont., to St. Louis Arch in Missouri. He battled the fierce wind and waves of Lake Sakakawea in North Dakota before the Missouri River finally narrowed and took him South. It took him 93 days to reach St. Louis, where he was reunited with Anne.

In his later years, when Daryl wasn't building houses and projects for others, he was sitting out in his shop carving, smoking his pipe, and listening to music. He created many intricate carvings and gave them to dear family and friends. Daryl and Anne were married for almost 32 years when he passed away, but were together for a total of 38 years. He was as tough as nails, all the way to the end and Anne never left his side.

Daryl was preceded in death by his parents David and Mae Oberquell; his nephew Derek Leckie; and his brother Dwight Oberquell.

Daryl is survived by his wife Anne Oberquell; his daughter Heather Martinez, grandchildren Cassandra, Sydney, and Anthony; his son Christian (Melissa) Oberquell, grandson Shandon; his stepson Ryan (Madelene) Costello, twin baby grandsons Jonathan and Daniel; his stepson Garrett (Chanda) Costello, grandchildren Annalise, twin boys Shawn and Tyler; his stepdaughter Kate (Ben) Welna, granddaughter Amari; his brother Duane (Linda) Oberquell; his brother Don (Carol) Oberquell; his sister Crystal (Ray) Anderson; and numerous nephews, nieces, and cousins.