Sentinel towers,
Battlements rise, keeping watch
Over cows and calves.
Tag Archives: cows
Spring is rushing over us!
Spring has definitely sprung, if not with weather, then with spring work. After a dry winter, we have had series of spring rains and snows. In the meantime, we have lots of baby lambs and calves arriving. We are trailing sheep to spring country and preparing to shear.
Cows with calves at Powder Flat
Heifer eating afterbirth
Wild horses watering at developed well
windmill from the ground
ewes and lambs
docking the early lambs
bum lambs in a box
lambs warming up in a tub
rainstorm with Battle Mountain
Little Boy Blue in Nebraska
or…the heifer’s in the corn stalks
A Little Boy Blue come blow your horn,
The sheep’s in the meadow the cow’s in the corn.
But where’s the boy who looks after the sheep?
He’s under a haystack fast asleep.
Will you wake him? No, not I – for if I do, he’s sure to cry
Cows on the Laramie Plains
Many of us may not think of Laramie as the ideal wintering grounds, but for our cows, it is…Laradise!
Laradise
Pregnant!
Dr. Warner McFarland making a life-altering determination
It’s the time of year when we pregnancy check the cows. Dr. McFarland uses a combination of ultra-modern ultrasound goggles and old-fashioned palpation to determine if the cow is pregnant (the best option), open (the worst option) or late. He calls out his judgement, one after another, as the cows step into the chute for their pregnancy test. The pregnant cows will spend the winter in Laramie, eating hay and gestating. The open cows will be sold–either to become hamburgers or to be given another chance to breed. The lates are sold to someone who likes the cows, and likes to calve later. Our calendar for calving is fixed by the seasons and by our grazing permit on and off dates. We can’t calve too early, or we will surely meet with cold and snow (still a possibility). We can’t calve too late, or the cows will already be on the National Forest permit. If the calf survives predators, it will still be young and small when we ship in the fall. The calves were sorted and shipped a few days ago, so now it is time to start the cycle anew.
Brittany, bringing up the cows on Fancy, an adopted wild horse.
Eamon
Pat and Warner, talking cattle
the dogs think they could be helpful…if only
Brittany
Pat and Jeff in a stare down with a cow
and pregnant!
Fire in the Park
Fire north of Big Red Park
Aerial Mapping puts Big Red Fire at 529 acres
(STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo.) August 29, 2017 – A helicopter flight over the Big Red Fire today gave fire personnel a more accurate view of the incident size and as a result the fire is now being reported at 529 acres.
The fire has grown over the last few days due to timely winds, group and single-tree torching, and then subsequent short to mid-range spotting of the fire into unburned areas on the Routt National Forest.
Despite the large increase in reported acreage, management of the wildfire remained the same as it has been, with emphasis on firefighter and public safety, utilizing trigger points to engage the fire where there is a high probability of success, and monitoring fire behavior. This management approach is consistent with other recent area fires in similar fuel types.
The main focus of 70 personnel working the fire has been to utilize Forest Roads 500, 500.1B, and 500.1A to establish fire line along the southern boundary of the fire.
Private land near Big Red Park and an active Forest Service timber sale (Blue Duck Salvage) could be at risk if the fire moves south.
An area closure remains in place, temporarily closing part of the 500 Road and its’ subsequent spur roads, as well as Forest Trail 1204.1A.
The Big Red Fire was discovered on Saturday, Aug. 19 in north Routt County, Colo. It is burning in mixed conifer, which includes spruce, fir, pine, and both live and bug-killed timber.
The wildfire is located just north of Big Red Park, along Forest Road 500, and approximately five miles south of the Colorado/Wyoming state line.
It has been determined that the fire was caused by lightning, with initial response by Forest Service and County staff.
Although unplanned, wildfires such as the Big Red Fire have the potential to reduce hazardous fuels and improve forest health.
InciWeb will be used as the primary means of information distribution for the Big Red Fire. An incident page will be updated at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5551/. The Forest Twitter account, @FS_MBRTB, will also be used for fire updates.
Our crew headed into the trees to look for cows and calves
Smoke rising
double blazes
Siobhan capturing photos of the fire
Fire crew headed out for the night
Casey and Kimmy and cows likewise headed out
Sunset over the Big Red Fire
Ides of August
Cows and calves in the Smylie Meadow
Alfalfa windrows
All is green and warm. It’s hard to believe that we are not far away, in time, in temperature, from fall. Soon we will see frosty mornings, golden leaves, and critters headed for lower climes. For now, we hang onto these long sunny days. Each sunrise the sun sneaks south, while we breathe warm breezes, a little longer.
Cora and Sadie, looking ahead
Ladder Ranch
