Bad Cop, Good Cop

 

Saturday, March 19^th, 5:00 p.m.

Phone rings.  “Hi Scott.  How are you?”  “Juanita, I just wanted to call and let you know I moved the horses from the north section to the south.”  “OK, thanks.”  “I really called to tell you … that brown horse of yours ….” 

Oh, oh.  What has Alloy done now?  Apparently, after getting caught, loaded, and moved, Al had decided he couldn’t get out of the trailer fast enough, so he went charging out backwards, breaking the hay string that had been used on his halter to lead him and load him.  (We tend to use whatever is handy to move our horses around, be it a dog leash, hay string, belt, whatever – as they are generally very good about it.)  There was no way anyone was going to get near him again.  So we got the call that we now had a horse loose in a very large pasture with a halter on; an absolute no-no in all our books.

 We headed the 18 miles down off the mountain to see if we could be of help.  Fortunately, the time was just right for us to use our own canyon to make the trip.  Our canyon is under construction to fix flood damages from 8 years ago and you can only drive it certain times of the day.  We got to the pasture, found the horses and discovered we also were not going to get near them; even my boy who comes at a trot when I call said, “not now, there’s grass!”

                                        Washoe is the white horse, Alloy is hidden behind him.

We decided to just come back the next day and ‘walk them down’.  Sunday dawned bright and sunny.    This time Washoe walked right up to me and let me brush all the mud off, a good deal of winter hair, and detangle the dreadlocks from his mane; all without a halter.  We spent the morning walking the pasture behind a stubborn bay horse with a more stubborn black mare, who seems to have become the lead mare and wanted nothing to do with Alloy getting caught.  Washoe went back to the other horses and started grazing and the two errant horses decided to circle them.  You would have thought they were inside a 30 ft. round pen, instead of on 30 acres of pasture.  

 Fortunately, the mare is not the endurance horse Alloy is, and finally tired and joined the others grazing.  That made the circling game not so fun any longer and Alloy finally joined them after a few more circles. Bill did almost all the ‘lunging’ while I stayed on the outside incase one of them decided to leave the circle.  Finally, Bill walked back to the car for some water and more snacks.  In the interim Al decided to just hang with the others so I walked into the group and started rubbing faces.  Guess who wanted his face rubbed, too?  After a couple of attempts, he stood still when I offered him an oat granola bar in exchange for his halter.  He was very still while I unbuckled it, then almost forgot his oat bar.  He sooo wants to still be a wild horse! 

The whole process really only took three and a half hours.  Bill said Alloy considered him the ‘bad cop’ and me the ‘good cop’.  What a great way to spend a gorgeous day – with the horses.

Bionic Cowgirl

Snowshoe Time is Here!

One of the BEST ways to enjoy the out-of-doors in the winter is just that - get outdoors!  We took our own advice and in the company of a couple friends, hit one of the trails in the Wild Basin area of Rocky Mt. National Park, just two miles from us.

As you can see, the day was sunny and very bright, with lots of snow!  A bit windy, but hey, you have to have some sort of challenge.  Quite a few people were enjoying the great day, so we ended up parking a good ways out from any of the known trailheads, so we just hoofed it  snowplowed our way across the unbroken snow to the horse trail that runs next to the Middle St. Vrain River.  A few people had used it, making it perfect:  you knew where the trail was but it wasn't packed down snow.  This trail has a good bit of up-and-down to it without a great elevation rise; perfect for four people who have not been doing much strenuous exercise since the advent of winter. 

We arrived at the trailhead for Finch Lake (maybe 3/4 of a mile) and had worked up an appetite, so when we spotted a dry spot under some trees by the road, we made camp of sorts, removing snowshoes and plunking our backsides down on the ground or handy rocks, to devour our bag lunches.

We finished up by hiking back to the car, using the road.  At one point we crossed over the river on the bridge and had to have a Kodak moment waving at the fish in the open spot of ice.  OK, we pretended we saw fish there.  In all honesty, we all had such a great time, we forgot to take many pictures.  In fact, Bill and I were so excited, we forgot to even take a camera or phone, so fortunately our friend had his phone.
Bionic Cowgirl

April Showers (In the Rocky Mountains)

Last Thursday the temps were in the 70's and the sun was bright and the horses were napping and the birds were singing and all was well with my little world.

On Friday, we had a full lodge of "scrapbookers" show up for the weekend.

On Friday, it started to snow...

and it kept snowing...

and on Saturday, it was still snowing.

By Sunday, it slowed down.

We had two feet of accumulated snow on the back deck, so we may have had a total of 3 feet fall and melt/pack down.

       (This is why buildings should have outer doors that open inwardly in the mountains.)

The lumps are SUV's.

More SUV lumps.

Sunday is the day that all of the gal's had to check out and go back to their lives down the mountain.   Digging out took some time.  Juanita and I were so glad we had a granddaughter up here working so we could help our guests man the shovels.

By the way, have any of you shoveled out your driveway and then watched the snowplow drive by and block it again with a wall of snow?  We had just cleared a path for the dozen or so vehicles in our parking lot when I saw the snowplow start coming down our road.  He turned off at the street before us.

I want to write him into my will.

By noon, the guests had managed to escape

.
This morning the thaw has begun, and the piles are shrinking a little.  But the icicles are growing.
The back porch looks dangerous to our dog.  She RAN to get to the yard, and waited for me to open the door before she came back.

Can't say as I blame her.

Stay warm.

Bill

Dinnertime Excitement

Yesterday we took the horses out for a picnic ride.  Ranger did quite well the whole way (whew).

As we were coming back and crossed the road by the horses' corral, we noticed that the choke cherries were fully ripe, and discussed coming back and picking some to make jam.  We marveled that nothing had eaten them yet...

Feeding last night was going along normally.  The horses had their feed; the hay bag was out.  It was quiet and I was enjoying listening to contented chomping sounds.  Then I noticed another sound; the llamas were clacking.  They quack kind of like ducks when something excites them.  I started walking over toward their pen at the opposite side of our corral, thinking they had spotted coyotes on the trail across the road.  That was holding their attention.  Standing there staring at the trail a motion caught my eye - much closer than the trail.  A bear was stripping the choke cherries off our bushes maybe 20 yards from the llama pen!

Washoe had quit eating and followed me over to the fence.  I pointed at the bear to show him and he was so excited he was running up and down the fence trying to get closer.  I think he thought it was a big dog that did not belong and had plans to run it off.  (He's my dog chaser.)

I finally went back up the hill to get Bill, hoping the bear would still be there when we got back.  We watched it until it was almost too dark to see it.  After Bill came over, Ranger stood near the feeder and snorted; Jesse wouldn't even raise her head out of the food.  Gotta love living in the mountains.

The llamas spent almost all of their time running back and forth at the fence line closest to the bear.   Quacking.


Bionic Cowgirl

Backup

   Well, our horses are back up on our mountain now.  We picked them up a couple days ago and trailered them home.

   Our horses get shuffled around to several different areas for their winter boarding, down at a lower (and warmer) part of the state where they can graze freely. The last property they stayed on this winter is a hay field, and the unseasonably warm weather started the grass growing.  So the field's owner wanted the herd off so they wouldn't damage this year's crop.  I suppose a herd of horses stomping, eating and pooping all over the hay field would limit the productivity of the acreage somewhat.  So home they went.

This is what we picked them up from.  No snow.

You can't see Ranger in this picture.  He took to hanging around the back fence of the farm house.  I suspect treats were involved.  He wouldn't say.


In this picture you can see in the background where they were going.

About halfway up the white peak on the left. Yeah.  Snow.

When we unloaded them from the trailer, the first thing they did was roll.  A lot.

After a good scrubbing in the snow they went off to check out the feeder.

Then suddenly, they heard it. And they went crazy.

For better than 20 minutes, they talked to a chicken.  It's really kind of embarrassing. 

(But I'm still glad they are home...)

Bill

A Little Twisted Excitement

Yesterday afternoon we had a mini twister come through our part of 'town'.  Quick, fast, unbelievable!  I had been asked to help over at the Livery with a ride going out in the afternoon.  I looked out the office window as I was getting ready to head out the side door.  "Whoa!  Bill, look at our sign.  It just went horizontal!!!"
And so was everything else you could see:  pine needles, branches, dirt ....

Bill hollered, "the horses" and ran out the door and across to the Livery to help the people already on the horses.  Compass was in the yard getting them mounted up.  When I spoke to her a little later, she said she heard a loud wind and before she could hardly look up, she couldn't even open her eyes.  When she did get them open, all she saw was dirt whirling everywhere.  Her wrangler who was bringing a group in off the mountain trail said he looked up and saw a black column and thought, "we don't get tornadoes".

And that fast ... it was here and gone.  No time to think about anything.  As Bill was walking back to the Lodge, he looked up and there was one of our biggest trees on top of the roof!  The Lodge had protected the lower half, but the wind twisted the top off right at the roof line, and laid it down on the roof.  The Kid is on his way up with his bigger chainsaw, so it's going to be a 'chainsaw massacre' on the roof this afternoon.  Too bad that wood has to dry a good two years before we can burn it; it was a really healthy tree!  This 80 year old building sure is secure, though.  We didn't even feel a shudder when the tree hit.

The good news across the street:  the Livery horses just turned their butts into the wind and stood their ground; all guests were OK and the ones coming in on the ride were in total amazement at what they had seen.  Shortly afterward my mom called and said the TV news had reported a tornado had gone through Allenspark; they didn't know if it was heading toward Estes Park or Lyons so they put warnings out to both towns.  We still just call these 'micro-bursts'.

Bionic Cowgirl

Allenspark Lawn Services - For Hire

The grass here at Allenspark has gotten knee deep.  Something needed to be done and the 'neigh'-bors offered to help.  Actually, they have been offering their services for days.  Today we relented.  We popped up a new addition to the hot wire; they watched with interest.

Washoe and Jesse - grass up to their knees.

Finally, we let them get to work.

Ranger got a whole section to himself.

They do love their job!
Bionic Cowgirl

Snow & Moose

So after a couple of days of a May snow storm, we got more than three feet of new snow; about 18" on the ground now because it is melting and going away almost as fast as it came down.  The sun is sparkling and the sky BLUE!  I went out to feed, calling to the grays who are sun-bathing in the middle of their corral.  They come running up and then I get this:

 

"Hey, guys.  What do you see?"  I stare for awhile and don't see anything but snow falling from the trees.  Jesse figures there's nothing to hurt them and looks at me for food.  I go in the hay shed, cut the strings on a bale of hay, and look over my shoulder.

"Washoe, what is so interesting?"  

I put their hay in the feeder and they ignore me, so I stand and watch with them.  Soon there is a movement and out walks a very young moose.

I hurry home for a camera and Bill comes back with me.  I cropped this picture hoping it would really look like a moose.

Don't you just love it when your horses share information with you?  What a great start to the day.
Bionic Cowgirl

Larger Than a Kayak

Today was our day in town, doing chores, buying groceries, that sort of thing.  Bright and sunny and early we head down Hwy 7 - the St. Vrain Canyon.  Coming around a corner we are surprised to see a huge, yellow 'steam shovel' crawling down the side of the bank into the river!

It then turned on its tracks and started crawling along the river, basically straddling it for the most part; sometimes in the water.  Now pre-flood there would not have been room for something so big, but the river bottom is considerably wider now.  It was just such a strange sight to see.

 
One of the behemoths had a huge jackhammer it was using to break apart the boulder piles; another one had the regular 'steam shovel' arm.

I watched that one take a giant scoop from the river, then turn and dump it on the bank.  Probably a hundred gallons of water poured out - then this huge boulder clunked down.  It would have been fun to just hang out and watch.  It brought back the kid in me!

After finishing our town business, we headed back home, up the same canyon - and passed SIX of these big machines cleaning dead trees and debris from the river bottom, with yet another one on the side of the road, getting refitted for different work.

Look at all those trees and rocks that were clogging the river!

 Thank you to all the 'hard hats', as the locals have nick-named them, for being willing and able to put in all this effort to help with flood control for next spring's runoff; and thank you to FEMA for awarding more money to the state to help with this.

We were also rewarded with some beautiful ice sculptures on the rocky cliffsides along the road.

 

This is the real beauty of our mountains.  Come up and get unplugged from the real world and let your imagination play, too.
Bionic Cowgirl

Calling All Snowshoers!

We got twelve inches of snow three days ago - and then the wind blew our parking lot clear.  This morning we woke up to four more inches of new snow - and it hasn't quit snowing all day - so I think we have probably accumulated another four to six inches, but it's really hard to measure because it tends to compact when you get his much.  A few people have said we might get up to 36 inches before this storm is over, so --- it's time for the winter attire and sports.  Great plans to watch the Super Bowl on Sunday, and then hit the trails next week to check them out.  I'm sort of sorry the horses aren't here; gotta go on our own feet!
Bionic Cowgirl ... on foot.

Moose Crossing

Today we decided it was time for our weekly horse check; just to make sure they were still where they belonged (sometimes Jesse takes them on a walk-about).  About 200 yards after we turn onto Hwy 72, we see this sign:

Now this always causes a chuckle from Bill and I because we are not known for moose on our side of the Continental Divide, although we have heard that they are spotted more frequently now; but really - a sign!

So another mile and a half down the road, I see this:

I start hollering, "Moose, stop!"

Just to make sure, Bill turned the car around and we drive slowly by as this beautiful, juvenile, female moose happily chews on bushes - right at the edge of the road.

Talk about making our day - and of course, now we have to quit laughing at the sign.

We did get over to the horses, too, who were more than happy to enjoy the apples we had taken for them.
Last week we brought them no food, just a drink.

They were kind enough to take an obligatory drink of water after we painstakingly hauled it over to them in 5-gallon containers.

 I love this picture of the wind blowing Ranger's mane.  They are all so furry and shiny; I think they like their "wild days".

We spotted 'other' large tracks in one of the fields next to theirs.  Some we checked on and they belonged to our guys, but others were obviously a 'different' animal.  Wonder if they have met their neighbor moose yet?
Love mountain life!
Bionic Cowgirl

Winter Buffet

We took hay over to our horses a couple days ago.  We had below zero(f) temperatures and a little under a foot of new snow with no wind, so the grass in the meadow they like to eat at was pretty well covered.  As I drove up in the truck with the bales in the back, I saw Ranger pawing at the ground to get to the snow.  I over heard him muttering:

"This is the dumbest place I have ever lived.  In the before people time I lived in Nee-va-da.  The white stuff did not fall ALL OF THE TIME like it does here.  When I lived in Air-a-zona I never saw the white stuff."

He continued his monolog until he noticed me bringing a couple bales to the fence and tossing them over.  Then he and the grays came at a run.

None of them seemed worse for the wear, but they were glad to see some food they didn't have to dig for.

The wind picked up last night, and has blown things clear, so we won't need to take them any more hay right away.

Horses are well designed to handle cold like this.  Juanita commented this morning that with that long nose warming the air they breath, they are pretty well equipped for these temps.  I'll bet it's not usually too pleasant on the Mongolian steppes this time of year, and their ancestors did pretty well there, without our help.  

On the other hand, for us hairless beach apes...

Stay warm.

Bill

In the Dark

This afternoon, the power went out for a while.  But the phone still worked.  We got a call from the Ranchers' Daughter.

"Juanita?  Bill?  Can you guys do me a favor?  I have a friend with a couple cattle at the rodeo grounds in Estes, and they only have one days' worth of hay left.  I told them they could put them with my cattle near the town of Ward.  Only I can't get to Ward to check on my cattle.  I haven't seen them in weeks.  Can you guys see if you can find them?"

"Sure!  Beats sitting around here in the dark!"

So, Off we went in search of "Eleven or twelve of them."


Past the National Guard roadblock.

(We gave them cookies this morning)

And off to the mountain side the cattle were supposed to be on.

We parked by the catch pen, and climbed through the fence.


We hiked back into the area for nearly an hour.  Up and down the rocky terrain, through heavily forested areas looking for likely pastures.  A little bouldering to the high spots mixed with wading through bogs in low lying areas and fording new, small streams.  It got dark enough we couldn't see 20 feet away.  We gave it up and hiked back out.

It was jet black by the time I hit the barbed wire fence.  And yes, I hit it.

Damn.

As I was untangling myself from the barbs,

*SNORT*

Um, what was that?

*SNORT*

That was not a horse.
I don't know if it was a cow.
What kind of sound does a p!ssed off moose make?

*SNORT*

Juanita suggested we at least get the fence between us and "it".  Sounded like a plan to me.  We climbed through the fence and into the minivan and snapped on the headlights.

Eyes.

The damm cows had gone into the open back gate of the catch pen, and were waiting for us.

Right where we had started.

Sometimes, I feel I understand horses, at least a little.

But I just don't "get" cows.

Bill

May Day Mayday

Today is May 1st. 

Time to anonymously drop flower baskets off at friends and relatives front doors, and run off.  Sort of a floral "ring and run/ding dong ditch" thing.

Only not today.

Last month we had somewhere between 4 and 5 feet of snow here at the lodge.  I could not WAIT for April (snow) showers to be done.  Well, they are done.  Now it's May (snow) showers.  We woke up to 8 inches of new snow standing on the ground this morning, and it's still coming down.  Over a foot expected today.

Wow.

Day before yesterday, most of the snow around the lodge had melted off.  Just "north-side" drifts. 

I saw flowers.

Pasqueflower, actual photo!

Today it looked like this.

Snow, actual photo!

The horses don't seem to mind.

I can not tell you how beautiful it looks outside right now.
There are no words.



I can not tell you how tired I am of the snow right now.
The words are &#^@%$)%ing unprintable.



SOS-(stop our snow)

Bill