Nice day for a January cattle drive

[Soapweed]

This morning we drove 201 replacement heifer calves about twelve miles through the hills to a neighbor's place. He will winter the heifers and then AI them next May. It will then be just a six-mile drive back to the northeast corner of our ranch to get them to grass next summer. We got a good early start, and Peach Blossom led the way with the pickup and trailer, hauling her horse along in case it was needed. (It was. ).

The calves are used to being caked and fed hay with the Hydra-bed pickup. This wasn't the same vehicle, but they still followed fairly well. The terrain we went through was pretty rough for the first six miles, but Peach Blossom did a superb job driving until getting almost to a good gravel road. There she went around a pond the wrong way, and the sun was in her eyes. The poor old pickup could go no farther, as it was stuck in the mud.

Earlier in the morning, Saddletramp's sharp eyes caught sight of a lone black two-year-old heifer, still out on summer range. We knew we were short one heifer, and I had gone looking for her on three different occasions without success. The reason I couldn't even find any tracks in the two pastures she could have been in was because she wasn't in either of those pastures. How she got where she was remains a mystery, but I'm just glad she turned up as she has been missing since before Thanksgiving.

As Peach Blossom's pickup was incapacitated, she unloaded her horse and rode back the way we had come. She found the heifer and took her on home as she went. She then left her horse at the ranch and brought back another pickup and trailer. Saddletramp, Kosmo, and I continued on down a gravel road to the north with our heifer herd. We arrived at our destination where hay was fed out, just as Peach Blossom arrived with the pickup and trailer. It was just past noon. We made our way back to the stuck truck, pulled it out, ate our lunch which was along, and returned home to take care of the rest of our stock.

The day was absolutely beautiful for this time of year, and got up to 60 degrees. With our good early start, a cloud cover, gentle breeze, and not hurrying the calves, they arrived at their new home in great shape.

The proof is in the pictures.


Bright and early start

Beautiful January morning

Early morning by the lake

Cowboys and cattle are a comin'

Ears the way we do it

A joke being told

Kosmo Kid and Kompany

Saddletramp and the Kosmo Kid

Winding through the hills

Peach Blossom leads the way

Saddletramp, sandhills and soapweeds

Ladies marching onward

Coming down the road

Interested spectators

Ears Shadowtramp

Going down the road

Yup, this is where she got stuck

End of the trail

[the_jersey_lilly_2000]

Musta been a day fer gittin stuck. How I'll never know as dry as it is here, mr Lilly's dad got the dozer stuck. Had his 4x4 Ford hooked to the Dozer trailer with a winch attached to the dozer tryin to winch it out. Wasn't workin, he called us to come help. Tracks were totally buried in clay.
When he called he asked me to bring my lil 4x4 toyota, I seriously thought, "Huh?" Ok, Toyota to the rescue...hahaha.....All I got to do was drive down in the huge hole he'd dug, back up the other side and pop the hood and jump the dozer off. But....I did get to put it in 4 wheel drive, and he didnt think I'd be able to pull myself out..........I did.....Weeeeeeeeeeeee giver the gas and here we went...all I could see was blue sky's there for a few seconds...strait up and outta the hole I went!!!!!! Anyway, got the dozer out, and wouldnt ya know it, I didn't have my camera with me. That is somethin that is HIGHLY unusual. So no pics of todays fun.

Great pics Soapweed. What I wanna know is what kinda digital camera you have, I cannot get mine to take pictures when it's as dark as it appears to be in that first shot.........they always come out blurry.

[Big Muddy rancher]

Thanks for taking us along for the ride. It was a great day, took advantage of it to move some hay from one stackyard to the one at home to tub grind for the calves. It was 2 year old hay so is nice to keep the oldest used up.

[cert]

I would have been called every bad name ever imagined if I'd have done that. Matter of fact, hubby might not be talking to be yet.

[Karl]

Looks like that was loads of fun. Now I'm geared up for drivin' our cows home to calve in February. Great pictures, Thanks.

[Soapweed]

[Faster horses]

Besides doing everything you described, I bet Peach Blossom fixed lunch as well. What a woman!!!!!!

Nice pictures Soapweed. I think my favorite this time is "Coming down the road." I would choose that one to hang on our wall.

And, I really like that coon-tailed horse of Saddle Tramps. So tell me more about him, please. I am a sucker for coon-tailed horses. Never saw a bad one. In fact, we bought one at the Nehring Sale in Bowman in September. He is a 3-year old and is he ever nice!!!!

[Soapweed]

The horse that Saddletramp is riding is nine years old this spring. He was a green broke four-year-old when I bought him at the Weller Angus bull and gelding sale in February of 2001, for $2200. Saddletramp has put a bunch of miles on the gelding since then, and he has turned into a pretty fair ranch using horse.

[Soapweed]

Here are a few more pictures of the cattle drive, taken from Peach Blossom's perspective.


Sunrise on the Soapweed Ranch

Cattledrive in progress

Cattle in the countryside

Spectators

It looks like I'm earning my keep

Coming through the swale

[Faster horses]

Very nice!!!!

I love to see cattle strung out like that.

It is becoming a lost art...


BTW, you are up late soapweed; as am I.

[WB]

Nice pictures as usual Soapweed.

I went to college with both Bill and Carrie Weller and they have put alot into their horse program from what I can tell. Went to their horse sale this past August and I don't believe they sold on of their own for less than $5500. As they looked all to be well broke.

[the_jersey_lilly_2000]

That slow shutter speed in low light is the reason I asked for a tri pod for Christmas. (the person who asked what I wanted or needed for Christmas, apparently forgot, we won't mention his name) LOL that's ok, they dont cost much and I'll go get one next trip I make into town. but it's still aggrivatin, mine tells me sometimes that there's low light up durin the middle of the day, if I"m in the shade. I've even tried using the night setting, and that doesn't seem to help.