Saturday, April 10, 2021

The Roller Coaster Ride Continues!

 The roller coaster ride that is our weather continued this week with peaks and valleys on both sides of extreme. The rancher next door moved his cattle over last week as most of the cows had calved. He does not let them come onto our property until they have their calves and knows everything is alright. Then come over to eat our grass and hide in the trees should some weather hit.

Driveway guard

There are lots of little ones scattered around the property

And hit it did! Monday found Barb and I shed hunting in t-shirts as the weather reached well into the 70's. We had a great day and found these two beauties. The first one is a whitetail and is pretty decent for a whitetail in our area but the second one ....wow! I don't care where you live, that is a nice elk!


Barb's big find!

Once we had crested the peak with the mid 70's on Monday we had no where to go but down and down we went at lightning speed! Tuesday was a high of 36. Snow started falling about noon and did not stop until well into the night. When we woke up Wednesday morning we had well over 12" on the ground. 
That is what 12" of wet heavy snow looks like!

The deer sure appreciate the hay on these cold snowy mornings!

Having hit the bottom the temperatures again started to climb with the high on Wednesday in the mid 50's and 60's on Thursday. By Saturday it was all pretty much gone and things were greening up again. 

Before the snow hit on Tuesday we went into Rapid to get new tires on the truck. We went with BF Goodrich KO2's this time. A little more aggressive tread than we have gotten in the past but with us living where we do and not being on the road quite as much we thought it was a good match. Barb had set up an appointment with Discount Tire on line and had everything paid for before we even got there. Imagine our surprise when we pulled up at 9am the there was a sign in from of one of the bays welcoming us! We pulled up to that bay, they moved the sign and we pulled right in!

Getting new shoes for the truck!

They had 5 guys working on our tires and we were out of there with 6 new tires mounted and balanced in 30 minutes!

I had changed the oil and replaced the air filter earlier this week and now with the new tires we were ready to mount the camper! It had not been on since last fall and is ready for our next adventure!

Lining up and ready to put on the camper!

We spent the next couple of days getting it packed up for whatever adventures await us. Hard to pack up when you don't know exactly what you are going to do but we are planning for the best and are ready for anything!

Our big adventure of the week actually happens tomorrow when Kevin and I take a road trip just north of Sioux Falls to pick up 3 Scottish Highlanders! We went in with Kevin and Cheryl on them and hope to grow our herd in the future as well as filling the freezer.  



They are yearlings and will spend the summer over at Kevin's and head over here in the fall. We got one heifer that Cheryl named Norma and two steers we named Filet and Mignon. 

Last but not least, we are less than a week from picking up Zoey! She went to the vet yesterday, got her shots and the clearance to travel next week. She weighed in at a whopping 6.1lbs. The breeder continues to send us videos and pictures almost daily. Here she is with her litter mates....

Chores done, camper packed, it is time to head north once again to help with the spring planting. We are ready for a break from the house and cannot wait to see what adventures await us!

22 comments:

  1. We will be arriving on the 22nd and starting work May 5th. See you guys when the planting is done.

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    1. Definitely! Where are you guys staying? Looks like it is going to be another busy summer in this area!

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  2. That’s a wild weather swing. Nice find with those Elk antlers! Love the names you chose for your heifers. 🤣 I think Zoey will like all her new friends.

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    1. Norma will be our breeder so she gets a normal name. The other two? Well, they are self-explanatory!

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  3. We go to Discount Tire in Carson City and they sure need to get it together like yours! Ever since Covid hit their service has gone down hill even with an appt! You're right that Elk shed is very impressive, would love to have seen the one it belonged to! Little Zoey is adorable!

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    1. I wish we could have found the other side to that shed! We might head back out there and look some more when we get back from the farm but by then someone else will have probably found it.

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  4. Those cows sure are hairy. What a huge elk antler. We were about 50F for a few days and now we are at 30F with a skiff of snow ourselves. This should be the last gasp of winter though as temps are to warm up to the 60's this coming week. Nothing like your temperature swings though. Wow, 12" of snow.

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    1. Looking forward to seeing pictures of all the fish you will catch this summer!

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  5. Awesome elk shed! 5 point is a big fella for sure. Unheard of to get a tire swap like you did, usually drop off in the morning and come back 8 hours later. I knew some people that had a few Highlanders, we called them hippie cows lol. Have an awesome spring on the tractor, this is your year for the employee of the year! Don't get stuck in the mud ;)

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    1. We have never had to wait 8 hours but 2-3 is not uncommon. I am looking forward to some tractor time, just out there watching the world go by contemplating life...

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  6. Looks like you are getting ready for a different type of adventure.
    Be Safe and Enjoy the family addition.

    It's about time.

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    1. Life is all about the adventure and sometimes you have to create your own!

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  7. Love the highlander cattle. About that eating part ... I never named them. It made them pets which meant too many tears. Zoey ... now there's a chunk!! Too much cuteness in that picture!!! I just got new tires also. Around here you just drive up and they install them. No waiting time, which is apparently a miracle.

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    1. We usually name ours but with appropriate names that leaves no question as to their fate. Norma will be our breeder for a few years but when she is done breeding we may have to change her name to "Burger".

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  8. I don't think I can ever do another northern Spring again. It just breaks your heart. "It's warming up!! ... just kidding, no it's not."

    :(

    Hopefully you're done for real this time. Warm weather and puppies = happiness!

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    1. We are addicted to the misery so we cannot see ourselves missing one. Just love seeing the landscape wake up after a long winter!

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  9. Spring weather is definitely up and down in the northern part of the country. Glad you had food out for the deer. The Scottish Highlanders are so cute. Love those names!! Maybe just keep them as pets:) That elk antler is awesome!

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    1. The deer still visit every day but they are eating the alfalfa less and less as the green grasses are starting to emerge and must be much tastier!

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  10. You do realize that you and Kevin need to get kilts in order to own those cattle, don’t you?

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    1. With the winds we have around here, you would not wanting us wearing kilts!

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