April 3 – 11, 2004: No Guests

Saturday April 3, 2004

It snowed all night dropping six more inches of thick wet snow, a glorious sight. I was out early chaining up the truck to head to Albq. to attend a bull sale. I need five more bulls to round out the herd for the upcoming breeding season.

It wasn’t a bad drive; by the time I got to the Plains of St. Augustine there was no snow just lots of mud with rain coming down. From Socorro to Albq. everything was flooded, streets were closed but no one was complaining. This storm was needed in the worst of ways. I got to the sale barn and looked the bulls over, it was a bit disappointing. There were only about 40 bulls in the sale and only about a dozen Angus bulls. I was looking mainly to buy a couple two-year-old bulls and most there were yearlings. The couple two year olds looked pretty nice. I saw my accountant there and we got to talking and I mentioned that I was interested in the older bulls and he told me the owner had been having some serious Bovine venereal disease problems in his herd. Well I sure didn’t want to bring that home! I left the sale before it even started.

I called Maggie on my way home and she told me it had snowed over a foot since I had been gone. It was just rain all the way home until I got about 20 miles from the house when it changed over to a heavy wet snow. Just a few miles later I had to stop and chain up the truck to get through the thick stuff. I got home about 5pm and was amazed at how much snow there was. It was kind of a wasted day.

Hi 31 lo 29

Sunday, April 4, 2004

It snowed lightly all night then got heavier as the day went on. It snowed about five more inches but was melting as it stayed right at the freezing mark or a bit above. There was not much to do outside, everything was muddy and snowy but I am sure not gonna bitch about it!

Monday April 5, 2004

Another day of snow and light rain, just seems it doesn’t want to quit. It stayed about 33 degrees so a lot of melting was going on. There is water running everywhere, mud everywhere. What a spring we will have. Those folks coming in May will be in for a treat with the wild Iris blooming about mid month. It will be a great year for them. I spent the day in the shop fixing a few chairs that needed some work.

Tuesday April 6, 2004

Finally a sunny day! And warm, it got up to 45. I spent most of the day cutting down the old night lot fence getting ready to start rebuilding it. I got most of it cut up into firewood and wore myself out by 3pm.

Most of the snow was gone by that time so I grabbed Gambler, tossed on my saddle and took a quick trip out to fence tank checking water and seeing how the cattle faired the storm. Every creek was over its banks, every tank was plumb full, what a wonderful sight. The snow was all gone out in the open country and all the cattle looked happy. We made a quick trip of it staying in a trot the whole way. I saw about 30 antelope, 75 elk, two eagles and only one coyote. Also I saw a few Bluebirds and Robins so spring must be here.

Lyndsey had gone to Silver City yesterday to do some town stuff and attend a wolf meeting. She reported that it was very disappointing. A bunch of earth muffins had come in from various cities such as Phoenix and Albq. and were gushing about how wonderful it was that the wolves were back and doing well. They were also saying that any problems with the ranchers having cattle killed was caused by the ranchers poor management of the cattle and that the ranchers should just leave so the wolves would have more freedom. Give me a break!

Sunny all day a bit breezy hi of 45 lo 22

Wednesday April 7, 2004

I drove to a friends ranch in Datil about 3 hours away to look at some bulls. I had bought my last bulls from him a few years ago and decided I would just continue on with the same genetics, they are doing me well and why change. We drove around and looked, they were all a bit wintry looking but I bought three two year old and a couple yearlings. The price was a bit more than I wanted to pay but I know what I’m getting. I also looked at some two year old colts he has, my oh my, they sure are nice. The price wasn’t bad but after buying the bulls I felt a bit broke. I got home about 5pm after stopping and chatting with Don and Jeanie along the way. The storm was pretty tough on their cattle. They lost one cow and the coyotes got her calf.

It was a kinda raw day, mostly cloudy with some snow showers when I got home about 5pm.

Hi 40 lo 19.

Thursday April 8, 2004

The day started out with big thunderheads looming about and the sound of thunder rumbling in the distance. After chores I headed to the wood lot to mark some tree for cutting to use building the new night corral fence. The thunder got louder and the lightning flashed. A bit later it got me scared and I headed out of the trees to the house just as heavy snow started to fall. It snowed about two inches really fast then quit. I went back out to the woods and soon the rain started. I worked till I was soaked through and headed home to lunch.

After lunch it cleared a bit and got windy as could be. I went up and started tearing up the old boardwalk and worked till about 4pm when it started raining again. It is so muddy you cannot think of driving any vehicle any where around here and walking is just exhausting. Maggie came up about that time escaping her studio for awhile and we started cleaning a couple cabins. We found they all were leaking and one had some serious water damage to the ceiling as did both shower houses. They have never seen so much moisture and just couldn’t take it. More stuff to add to the list of things to do before May 2 nd.

I went to bed worried about just how I’d get it all done. Not really sure I can.

Hi 40 low 26 ….3/4 inch of rain.

Friday, April 9, 2004

More rain over night another 1/4 inch. I headed to the woodlot and started cutting rails. Maggie and Lyndsey took advantage of the frozen driveway and headed out early. Maggie went to Silver City for a dental appointment and Lyndsey headed to Santa Fe to spend the holiday weekend with her mom.

The morning was pretty nice, mostly sunny but chilly. I cut till about noon then headed in for lunch eyeing some clouds building up to the south. Back in the woodlot after lunch the wind really began to blow making it a dangerous situation for felling trees. The timber in there is really thick making for great rail trees, tall and straight with not too many limbs. But it also makes it hard to get trees down on the ground without hanging up in other trees. With the wind blowing it becomes even more difficult. I hung up five or six making some “Widow Makers”. When this happens you have to move to another area till the wind moves the trees enough for them to eventually fall on their own. About 2pm the rain started falling. It wasn’t too heavy at first so I kept on working. Being under the thick trees helped a bit. But as time went on it got heavier and heavier until I was soaked through. The trees would collect water in the tops and when a good gust of wind came along it was like someone threw a bucket of water down on ya.

Finally about 5pm I was cold, wet and tired so I headed home to change clothes and get a cup of coffee before chores. The corrals are just a mess of mud. The working horses have to be fed way out in the pasture on any high bit of ground you can find. The laid off horses I am now feeding along the edge of the driveway. Besides the mud in the corrals the usual two foot creek is about twenty feet wide so I can’t get across it with the hay wagon. What took about 45 minutes before at chore time now takes almost an hour and a half just because of the extra effort dealing with the mud. I have never seen so much water here. With all the mud and water I worry the horses may develop a thrush problems in their hooves.

During chores the rain just poured down as hard as any summer rain we have ever had. I checked the rain gauge, another 3/4 inch for the day. About dark the rain changed to snow and then tapered off. Maggie got in about 10pm after a long day in town, dentist, laundry, groceries, to the feed store for a ton of salt. The mud had frozen up a bit by the time she came in the driveway or she would never have gotten home.

The elk have been thick as fleas on an old dog. There have been over a hundred every evening in the horse pasture by the house. I send Jack after them but they have gotten over him, they just run up in the trees and then right back out about the time he gets back to the house.

Hi 40 lo 23. 3/4 inch of rain and 2 inches of snow.

Saturday, April 10, 2004

Just like yesterday the morning started out clear and beautiful.

And like yesterday I spent the morning in the woodlot cutting more rails. The wind was calm so it was much easier. I cut till lunchtime then put the chain saw away. I have about 175 ten-foot rails cut but still on the ground out there.

After lunch I decided to try to get the Dodge which is loaded with the boards I cut for the boardwalk to the guest camp and get some of them nailed down. I got about fifty feet then buried it up to the hubs in the middle of the driveway.

Choosing another job that needs to be done I started reseeding the shipping pens corrals. That took a couple hours of slogging through the mud back and forth with a hand crank spreader which you wear over your shoulder. It was the perfect ground conditions for setting seed. I had to cover the seed or the birds would eat it all so I made a drag by taking two pallets, turning them over and bolting them together. I set some stones on for weight and with a chain attached them to my Japanese Quarter Horse {Honda four wheeler}. It worked great smearing mud smooth over the seed. As I was working along I watched thunderheads pile up again and heard them start rumbling and saw the lightning flash. Hoping to get done before it got here I kept at it. Soon hail started, in a matter of minutes dime size hail was pouring down covering the ground. I took shelter in the scale house as the lighting sizzled all around. I stood at the window and watched the show. It was a center stage seat as a bolt struck one of the steel overheads of the corrals and hot blue streaks spread out over the entire support system of the corrals. A pretty amazing sight! Within fifteen minuets it was over leaving and inch of hail.

I started back to dragging and worked another hour when another storm came in. More lighting and more hail, a repeat of what we had just been through. I unhooked the drag and headed home for a warm up before evening chores.

Just as we headed out to feed the snow stared with lighting still all around. It was nerve racking being out in the middle of all that electricity. As I write this at 10 pm the snow is still coming down really hard with three inches on the ground. I never thought I’d say it but I really wish this would end. I have too much work to get done and too little time.

Hi 40 lo 22.

Sunday, April 11, 2004

Grey, clouds, wind, cold and snow all damn day…again. Five inches of snow fell over night.

There really wasn’t a thing that could be done outside so I spent the day getting frustrated trying to get all my old email address into my new server book. Just can’t figure the stuff out so all those 1189 folks who use to get the cowboy log are still out of luck.

I talked to Don And Jeanie on the phone today, they got their truck stuck on Elk Mtn yesterday and had to spend a long cold night camping in the cab. It’s just gotten to be where they is no going any where in any vehicle. We use to call mud around here “shoe sucking mud” now it’s called “truck sucking mud”.

I am afraid those folks coming in May will find the place a total wreak. Fences half built, boardwalks torn up, and ditches everywhere. There just won’t be enough time to pull it all together.

Hi 27, lo 19 wind chill 10.