Ranch Grinding Stone

On the day Dad was born, July 10, 1951, Grandpa signed on a 3,500 acre ranch south of Tensleep WY. There was a lot of cool old equipment on that place, much of which we were able to preserve. The ranch stayed in the immediate family until about 2000, when Grandpa and his brother, Ruben, passed the farm and ranch down to the next generations. 

Uncle Ruben, had collected a lot of antique tools and kept them in the backyard of his house. Among them was this old pedal operated grinding stone off the family ranch. Mark, Ruben's son, has been going through some of his father's old tools and thought Dad would like to have the old grinding stone. That's pretty thoughtful. 

These guys are neat. Used to sharpen axes and other farm tools, it's fairly rare to find one with the sandstone in good shape. This stone is well used, but still ready for work. 

Along with the grinding stone, Mark gave Dad the old hand-powered drill press that hung in the ranch tool shed. Another impressive tool of old. This one is not in as good of shape, as all the moving parts are pretty well ceased up. 

Still works.

Fun stuff. That was pretty good of Mark to give those tools to Dad. The ranch, and the mountain ground that came with it, are near and dear to all of us. Though the land has moved on, our memories remain. These rusty old tools help bring those good days of the past back into the present. Ranching with gratitude. 

St. Agnes

Pray for us!

             https://youtu.be/RwVj3dmCmEs           

Riding Herd

With the January cold finally showing up, I thought I better go ride herd and see how the critters are holding up. 

Look pretty content. 

Having worked through the latest lick tub, I brought them a new one. Sliding it off with the sideboard is a pretty slick trick.

Mollie and Chief sure appreciate some molasses and protein. 

The last tub they licked until it rolled into the ditch. 

The cold and wind over the weekend really iced up the water. Amazing that the little trickle is enough to keep everything flowing. 

Heavy with young.

Cows are incredible with what they can do with dry old grass. With their rumen, a four chambered stomach, they glean all the possible nutrients out of grass. When I see a cow lying down, chewing her cud, I know she's doing well. These cows are going to need some feed in the next couple weeks, and sooner if the weather turns to winter. In the meantime, I think we'll let them keep turning this dry grass into muscle matter. Ranchin. 

Stirring the Pot

Jesus shows His priestly roots.

           https://youtu.be/Dp82hZGpVW0         

About the Heart

Rend our hearts, nor our garments.

           https://youtu.be/HJ85-zXcf1s         

Lamb of God

Good time to go deep.

             https://youtu.be/2sjVoKyLuOI           

 

Re-weaning

If at first you don't succeed, try again. Last fall we weaned our two calves for two weeks. Then, threw them back in the herd. I knew there was a bit of a risk in doing that so soon, but you never know until you try. Turns out, two weeks of separation isn't always enough time to fully wean. 

Long story short, I caught the black calf nursing the red cow two weeks ago. Knowing the only way to get them fully weaned was to separate them until summer, Peter and I set up a catch pen and got to work.

With the wind blowing hard from the north, the horses wanted nothing to do with being caught. So we grabbed Jack's steal horse and gathered them up.

It was a race against the clock, as that norther was coming in strong and fast. 

The cows went right the pen. And we cut out what we didn't need.

Then jumped smokey and blacky into the trailer, and headed for Worland.

We'll just feed them over here for the next few months. It'll give Dad something to do and Mom something to keep an eye on. 

A netted round bale of grass should do them good for a long time.

So we kicked them out.

Have fun.

Unconventional ranching has its ups and downs. Running freshly weaned calves back in with the rest of the herd may sound good in principle, but doesn't necessarily work in reality. In time, we'll get everything back together. But for now, Red cow needs to focus on her new calf to come. And, black calf needs to learn how to live on her own. Ranch on!

Healer

 Our Lord came to heal us.

             https://youtu.be/0tMts-AKJIM           

Bautista

There aren't a lot of men and women left around Johnson County who are first generation from the Basque region of Spain and France, but there are a few. Bautista Juanicotena is one of the remaining beloved. A neighbor to the church and a friend to all, Bautista has been in the Buffalo area since the 1960s.

Having an exceptionally beautiful January day, I grabbed my Spanish friend to run out to the ranch. Still having a ranching flame inside, he jumped out of the truck to grab the gate without me even asking. For much of his young life, Bautista proudly herded sheep for the Camino Ranch. 

In his mid 80s, he still wanted to help me load panels. They say you're only as old as you tell yourself. 

Ranch on, pard.

Sometimes it takes a foreigner to help the natives appreciate what they have. Bautista is that man. He loves Wyoming like a little kid on vacation, enjoying every moment. For those who know and love him, you'll be remembered of Bautista's favorite saying: "Wyoming's greatest blessings are high altitude, low multitude, and good attitude." Keep grinning, pal. The world could use a few more colorful characters like Bautista Juanicotena.

Here I Am

I come to do your will.

             https://youtu.be/Dzm_Jh8QtUo           

Phase Converter

We've had the meat locker over here for 6+ months. Turns out, though, that the 3 phase power near by won't work unless we set new transforms. Not going to happen for our little hobby cutting shop. So I decided to give a phase converter a try. 

I've been around these guys before. Basically, they take a 3 phase motor and turn it into a generator of sorts. This guy is a 20 hp converter that would be big enough to run both our compressors at the same time. That's the hope at least. 

The plan was to mount it under the trailer, in between the to compressing units. 

So we had to build a robust enough bracket/cradle to hold the load. 

Should work.

So we hauled both out to the trailer. This guy is not light.

Then drilled the holes for the cradle first.

Then mounted it to the motor.

And hauled it over with the skid-steer. 

And got it as close under there as we could.

And used a floor jack to do the rest.

Money.

The meat locker is useless without power. Hopefully this will work. I don't doubt there will be some kinks to work out once we start wiring. The beauty of it, though, is that we will no longer have to search for 3 phase power. Now, to test an electrician's wiring skills. Let's ranch.

Authority

Jesus' authority is attractive.

           https://youtu.be/M4bpHY8SqUg