Brian's new cow dog

There are a ton of dogs here on the ranch, and they are by far, some of the hardest workers here. The cow hand who has a good trained dog, (or three), has a significant advantage in getting his corner of the field cleared long before the guy without a cow dog (Brian).

Although Knuckle has the heart to go all day in the heat and run down the cows, she just doesn't really have it in her after the first hour or so. She's a great partner for me, for long walks down the dirt road, but chasing cows for 10 miles....not so much.

Enter Sue. Brian put the word out several weeks ago that he'd like a cow dog. Not only for work here on the ranch, but he's been thinking that a good endurance dog like that would make a great mountain biking partner too. We'd had a few leads on some dogs that were possibilities, then this week, Sue came home with us. She's actually been on the ranch for several months with Roy, one of the single cowboys living at upper clover. She originally came from a ranch in Oregon.

Roy had 4 dogs including Sue. She's only 7 months, and really isn't yet trained to work the cows. Roy decided he wasn't a good fit for her though, because she was too friendly....he wanted more of a working dog with a different temperament. So now she's ours.

Our dog Knuckle has created some very clear boundaries for her, and took a while to adjust. But at this point, it looks like they'll get along well. Sue is very small compared to Knuckle, and will grow a little still, but not much. Yesterday, when I walked home from Midas (about 6 miles, at 3 in the afternoon (around 90 degrees)....the difference between the two dogs was obvious. We started with Knuckle leading the way, and Sue followed her every move, even turning around to check on me every 20 feet or so. Every time we were near the creek, Knuckle would walk through it drinking constantly while Sue would just go lay down in the middle of it for about 20 seconds, then get up and keep walking. By the time we got to our driveway and the last 2 miles of the walk, Knuckle was obviously tired, often walking a step behind me while Sue was still full of energy and maintaining her original pace.

Over the past 2 months of watching the other cow dogs, it has been pretty impressive how much endurance they have. It is also pretty typical for them to go lay in the water somewhere to cool off, then be ready to go strong again.

Cow dogs need to be one owner dogs....so Sue is Brian's dog. He has been taking her for walks each night, rewarding her with bacon for the commands "come", "down" (lay down-important for working the cows), and "load up" ( in the back of the truck). I stay home with Knuckle during their walk, I don't think she'd do well knowing that Sue is getting all that bacon.

The other difference between the two dogs is their relationship with food. Knuckle, like most labs, devours any food put in front of her. Sue however, nibbles, little bits at a time. She is a "self feeder", what she doesn't realize is that so is Knuckle.....if Sue's food bowl has food in it, Knuckle will feed herself!

Sue lives outside in a dog crate....she won't be the family dog that knuckle is because that will undermine her training and value as a cow dog. (Whew, there is enough dog hair to deal with as it is). She's pretty sweet though, and comes and lays at Brian's feet when there are a lot of people around.

Not much else going on at the moment. Brian finished training today as a volunteer firefighter, we have picture of a good sized bull snake on the back porch of the cook house, and we are now

in "scorpion" season....its just getting really hot so we're seeing a batch of new critters.

In the kitchen, I made butter this week, or actually, the food processor did: fresh cream from the new dairy cow, and 25 minutes spinning in the processor. I'm actually not that impressed with the flavor....I guess I'm just used to Tillamook butter!

This last picture is from yesterday morning at sunrise.....

Wild Flowers

Yesterday, Lindsey and Mia and I went picking wild flowers. It was interesting to see how the flowers changes when I was picking along side the irrigation ditch versus along the road. Many of what I picked are actually weeds, but they are pretty. Lots of wild mustard. Knuckle went with us and occupied herself chasing ground squirrels into their holes. We are starting to see a lot of snakes as well, but mostly bull snakes. Knuckle and I usually see one or two each day on our walk up the driveway, but so far I haven't seen any rattlers.

The wild flower bouquet is set on this great little table I found yesterday in the old, unoccupied bunkhouse. Now we have a little "outdoor living" space. Today, I have a jar of suntea brewing on the table next to the flowers.

The Reservoir

A couple of nights ago we took an evening drive up to the reservoir. This is the reservoir that feeds the irrigation system for the ranch. I had not yet been there, although Brian was driving past it almost every day when he was working on snow fence up in the mountain allotment. The reservoir is part of the private (deeded) land on the ranch, but it is open to public access. There are no services there, but on weekends we sometimes see folks heading up the road with their rv's, boats, etc, to set up camp for a few days.

It is about a 30 minute drive on the dirt road ( a little bumpy and slow) to get the reservoir, and just a little ways past the sheep herders camp. When we pulled up, knuckle was super excited and headed straight for the water. I think it was the first "bath" she'd had in about 2 months, since all the canals on the ranch she gets in and out of aren't exactly clean water. We threw the tennis ball into the water for her to swim after until she was exhausted. It was a nice evening.

The Sheep herders and a new baby lamb

About a 20 minute drive further up the canyon than our ranch site, there is a sheep herders camp. They are from the next ranch over, but sub-lease some of the squaw valley ranch land in early summer. Unlike our cowboys, who ride out to the where the cows are most days, the sheep herders camp with the sheep, and do the majority of their herding on foot. Their camp, in this photo, is comprised of two "arks" (the white trailers) and a cooking trailer. They keep many supplies of extra food at squaw valley in one of the barns, and come through about once a week to refill their

water supply, gas tanks, and food supply.

This week, they let Firman and Lindsey know that had a leppy lamb, one whose mother has

either died, or won't let it nurse. Firman and Lindsey had been wanting a little lamb for Mia as a pet, so they now have a baby lamb at the ranch. He eats mostly from a bottle still, and guzzles 20 ozs in about 30 seconds. He lives in the yard with the dog, and yes, he is very cute.

In the kitchen this week, I made one of our favorites, whole wheat fig newtons, heavy on the molasses.

Reno and the New Saddle

On Thursday afternoon last week, we drove to Reno. It is about a 4 1/2 hour drive, and we had business Friday morning, so we went down Thursday night and stayed the night. For all of you who love Reno, all I can say is "really?". I think I have completely become what my dad would call an old fuddy duddy.

We stayed in one of the hotel casinos downtown. We should have known it wasn't a good thing when we had to park in a parking garage....Brian had sworn off parking garages, and we were in our F250 quad cab diesel, which isn't the easiest vehicle to maneuver in small spaces (all the way up to the 8th floor). I had made our hotel reservations online through a 3rd party, and when we went to check in our reservations were wrong, we ended up paying for a room we didn't get, with every one's apologies of course, and a promise to upgrade us the next time we stay (which is highly unlikely). We had asked for a hotel with Internet, which they had, for $10 a day....its been a very long time since I've stayed in a hotel that charged you for wireless Internet access.

Something about the casino itself was incredibly unappealing, and although we had thought previously we might play a few slots, we walked right through without wanting to even stop and look. Once outside the hotel, looking for a place to eat (because the restaurants in the hotel just weren't appealing) there were very few people, but plenty of taxis, all advertising the whorehouses they could take you too. Didn't I say I was an old fuddy duddy?

Although we had television at our fingertips, nothing there seemed worth our time, so we watched a DVD of Bravehart on our laptop (we happened to have it with us). That may have been the best part of the hotel stay. The next morning we were going to have breakfast at the hotel buffet before leaving (even though it didn't open until 8, and we'd been awake since 5) , but that was before the security guards decided that Brian, the guy in the cowboy hat, boots, and button up working shirt, was the guy they wanted to profile that morning while he was returning from taking bags out to the truck. They ran him through the paces. After locking out all the elevators in the hotel, confronting him in front of several people, threatening him with Jail, then calling up to the room to ask me if I knew who this guy was, he returned only long enough to gather me and the rest of our things and get out!

The memorable, and valuable event of the trip though, was the new saddle and bridle set. We went to a great western store called DbarM. They were super friendly, and remembered us from when we had been in a month ago. Brian sat on several saddles, and picked one that is pretty great. And, as a bonus they threw in a couple sweatshirts! (I'm pretty excited about my new sweatshirt).

When we returned to the ranch, everybody found out pretty quick that he had a new saddle, and they all went to check it out. Kind of like when you show up to work the first day with a new car...people usually want to admire it with you. Jokingly, they said they were surprised he was leaving it in the barn overnight.....apparently cowboys often keep brand new saddles pretty close by for the first several months. Brian didn't really think there was room though to put it to bed in the trailer.

A few pictures of this mornings wrangle and ride out. The horses are usually all grazing in a

field (these are not stabled horses) and each morning someone goes out on a quad and brings them all into the corral where its a little easier to get a halter on the one you are going to ride for the day and take it into the barn to saddle. The guys are heading out to move cows again today, then likely Brian may head back out to the well project I talked about a few weeks ago. The pump is in the well, wired, and works. The concrete has been poured in the center of the troughs, and drainage pipes are in place to take the overflow into the ponds. I think all that's left to do is spread the loads of gravel we took out there on Saturday around the troughs so the ground doesn't turn into mud bogs, and put the fences back up.

This final pictures is from yesterday. I had been laying out in the yard reading, and left my blanket (sleeping bag) unattended for a while. When I returned, I found knuckle right there in my spot, with her tennis ball (of course). Apparently, she's knows exactly what a blanket in the lawn on a sunny day is for!

One final note...last night everyone on the ranch got together for dinner and a game of scategories. In the game, the category was "things you find in a souvenir shop", and the letter was "K". Brian said "kelp ball" and I challenged him. He says kelp balls are in the shops on the Oregon Coast, and they make lamps out of them (?). Everyone else believed him, but I need some convincing (I think he's just a good bluffer). So, I'm open to votes on whether or not kelp balls are souvenir items. Anyone?

The horses, and evening entertainment

Over the weekend it was time to re- shoe some of the horses. Brian, Jesse, and Jake worked on 4 of them, I think there's a long way to go. Brian had not done this work before, so he has learned now to remove old shoes, file, and clip the hooves.....but the more skilled part, re-shoing, he hasn't done yet. Even after just a portion of the job though, he's decided not to pursue being a farrier as a lifetime career. (and he thought concrete work was hard on the back).

Most evenings, Brian and I, and Knuckle go for a walk on the ranch. Often, as we walk, Brian practices his roping skills. Roping is a really valuable skill to have

on a ranch, but I think takes a long time to develop, especially from the back of a running horse while you've got both hands on the rope, and neither on the horse. As we walk, he can rope a fence post (handy that it doesn't move) and sometimes he can rope the dog. Unfortunately, Knuckle is not a very willing participant. He tried roping me a few times....yeah, that didn't go so

well!

Yesterday evening we spent about an hour watching Maura and Gareth working with some

young horses. (Maura's sister Ricarda and her husband Jesse are the ranch managers) Both

horses are about 2 years old and belong to someone in Washington. They are here for about 8

months so they can be trained consistently. It was really neat to watch the process of getting the horse accustomed to the rope, blanket, the saddle, and having some weight just in the stirrup long before they ever tried to get on the horse. Personally, I like the idea of a well trained horse much more than a horse who you try and keep control of long enough just to get a few cows moved.

This weekend there is going to be a course here at the ranch on riparian restoration....stream health and habitat restoration.....for BLM and other professionals. Its like a continuing ed class. We helped Gareth clean up the barn a bit last night since they'll be holding some of their classes in there. It will add a little flare to the next few days to have extra people around!

Cows in the House field

Last night, the guys moved a bunch of cows into the house field, that is, the field we all live in. The only thing keeping the cows off the front porch is the fence around us. As you can see in the pics, the cows are keeping pretty close tabs on what we are doing. Last night we were working on putting up wire around the garden spot, and they were right there with us watching the whole time. Yearlings are very curious.

This morning, they spent several hours rubbing on the t-posts, and just watching. Knuckle would run at them if they got too close, they'd back up about 10 feet, then walk right back up to the fence. I think Knuckle was getting tired, so I brought her in to give her a mental break from the cows.

The guys went to move another batch of cows up in the mountains this morning, and didn't have as much luck as they'd hoped. The group got split up, cows went the wrong direction, and some cows just got tired and stopped moving. All in all, only about 1/4 of the cows are where they want them to be. We had a group lunch at Midas though, so hopefully that helps everyone's state of mind. This afternoon they are going to shoe a bunch of horses so I'll get some pics of that for a post this weekend.

Meanwhile, here in the trailer I used up my last batch of frozen zucchini from last summer's garden and made zucchini bread....the recipe called for raisins and nuts, but I left those out and put in chocolate chips instead. Also, I replaced the oil with organic virgin coconut oil, which leaves a very light coconut flavor, a nice addition.

I also made a batch of padishka's, (what my mom always called them). I use a pizza dough recipe, but basically make small single serve calzones full of ground beef, corn, green beans, a little tomato sauce, seasonings, and grated cheese. Brian takes them for his lunches. They are a great alternative to a lunchmeat sandwich. I used the leftover pizza dough to make a pesto, onion, and feta cheese pizza we'll have with our dinner. Yummm!

The old homestead at Lower Clover

Yesterday was kind of a neat day. I spent about half the day down at Lower Clover, watching the baby (3 months- ish) so Ricarda could do some irrigating in the meadows. I started with a walk out to an old homestead not far from the barns. I didn't even know this one was there until yesterday, but did get a few photos.

We know the ranch originally started in the late 1800's but I don't know if this homestead dates back to that point or not. One of the things that is characteristic of the homesteads,

old and new, is the tall hardwoods. For example, when we are coming down the valley from squaw to lower clover, we can see lower clover from at least 10-12 miles away because of the large trees, and it would be even further if the hills weren't in the way. Most of the vegetation here is sagebrush and grass, and most of the homes have trees planted all around them. In other words, if you see a clump of trees, from however far away, chances are good there is a home, or old homestead, somewhere in the midst of it. I suppose its like that a lot of places where the land and vegetation is pretty flat, its just so different from the Willamette Valley.

On our way back to the house we walked near the field where a few horses were hanging out,

and they were very curious about the stroller and the little guy inside! After a walk down the driveway ( I am guessing about 1 mile each way), I watched a little TV.....it had been over a month since watching any television....nothing new really.

Brian had a long day yesterday, getting home about 7:30 last night (started at 6:00am). He and Jesse were way up in the mountains trying to finish fixing and putting up the snow fence. It sounds like they've done all they are going to do for now.

Today we made a run into town to get the rest of the supplies needed to finish the well/watering trough project. It was kind of fun when we were in the loading yard picking up the bags of concrete, and off to the side I noticed big stacks of lumber labeled Seneca Saw Mill, Eugene Oregon...all the way out here in Winnemucca.

Fixing the Well

Today, Brian and I, and knuckle, worked together on a well project.

The well sits at a corner where fences on three different meadows

connect and it feeds two different watering troughs that overlap into two fields each. Previously, the well pump was powered by a windmill, but as you can see from the photo, the windmill has had a rough life and is being replaced by an electric pump that will be connected to a generator. We are suspending the pump about 55 feet into a 65 foot well.

These huge tires will be used as watering troughs, and the water will be pumped into them,

(Brian will pour concrete into the opening at the base of the trough where the center of the tire is) and he is building an overflow system that will drain extra water into 3 different ponds in the surrounding fields. The trough actually straddles the fence line so cows will be able to get to it from multiple fields.

We took a long lunch today and went into Midas (photos). There is just one business in Midas, the restaurant/bar. The couple that owns it knows our name....which makes it that much more fun.

For Memorial Day weekend we went into Winnemucca and met some friends who came down from Grants Pass to visit. It also happened to be the weekend of the annual "Run-a-Mucca", a motorcycle run. It was a fun day, and we ended it with a BBQ up at Squaw with all the ranch folks and a dozen or so folks from Midas.