Last June, Pat and I visited the Navajo Agricultural Products Industry (NAPI) farming operations near Farmington, New Mexico. The farm was established by the Navajo Nation to grow crops using water supplied by the Navajo Dam. NAPI boasts the largest contiguous farmland in the nation., with about 70,000 acres currently in production, and another 40,000 to be developed in the next couple of years. Their Navajo Pride brand includes potatoes, corn, alfalfa, beans, and small grains, such as barley, wheat and oats.
While we were there, the farm manager Tsosie Lewis asked us if we would host interns later in the summer. NAPI sponsors scholar interns and summer interns who are students and
are part of the Navajo Nation. The scholar interns receive a college education and in turn work on the farm for a period of time.
Three young ladies, Alexandra, Shantel and Leticia came and visited our ranching operation. They visited sheep camps, helped move cattle and toured various parts of the ranch. We really enjoyed having them, and were glad to have a chance to repay the hospitality we had received.
Leticia, Siobhan and McCoy, ready to ride
Shantel, Alex and Leticia, mounted
Siobhan and Leticia–look-alikes with boots, jeans, red shirts, baseball caps and long ponytails
Alex relaxing on Daisy
15 heifers and a cow
Shantel on Coco
Eamon said he had never had so much help!
Ladder Ranch
