Author Archives: Dayphoto

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About Dayphoto

My name is Linda Brown. I live on a farm on the western slope of Colorado, in the high mountain desert. I’ve lived here all my life, hailing back four generations on my father’s side. Today I blog about our farm, the everyday activities that keep the farm going. I also write about my thoughts and dreams and goals. On Friday’s I always write about TLC Cai-Cai. Our sweet kitty who helps keep the farm safe. And Boo Berry Betty, a breeder dog learning to be a Farm Dog! The lovely thing about blogging it opens the world up for all of us to reach out and meet people from many different cultures and different ways of life. You can find me every day (but Saturday) at https://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com/ Your Friend on a Western Colorado Farm, Linda Brown

Getting to Know You

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When I was in the third grade our teacher found for us pen pals from a faraway place in Washington D.C.  It was something like her brother’s wife taught third grade at  ?????? school.  Each child/student got a ‘pen-pal’ and we were to write (print more like it—-that was a long, long time ago and we were still printing in 3rd grade.  Cursive didn’t begin until 5th grade, way back when). To this ‘other student’ and let them know about life in Eckert, Colorado.

From that point on I was smitten.  I loved pen pals, I have had many over the years as far away as Korea, and as close as the Indian Reservation in Arizona.  But life always has a way of moving people on so pen pals come and go.  

Blogging is so much like pen-pals but ever so much better.  Blogs are full of those visual details called photos, and it is as instant as doing an internet search.  Plus the best part of it all, many of my blogging pals have become fast and wonderful friends.

This weekend, Daryl and Kath  and thier kids,

 Zack, Seth, Clark, and Tessa, invited my DH and me to their HUGE farm in Wyoming. We went and were entertained with the best of home-style hospitality.

The-New-Wyoming-House

We got to see the new cabin they are building. (All the land as far as you can see is theirs)

Checking-the-Wyoming-Hay

DH and the guys all checked the hay to see if it was ready to rake — it was.

Best-Tubs

Played with Tubs…he loves to catch water bottles

We had an amazing time!  Thanks Everyone!

Travel’n Man

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The-Bull

Hi, I’m Sammy’O, Sam for short! 

Pleased to meet cha!

I think we met some time back, back when life was a bit more easy.  Just hang’n out with the guys, drinking beer and having a cigar now and then, talking politics, women just don’t understand politics. 

Boy, does that get the girls all riled-up when I say that, but hey(!) we guys know!  We see how there is a Boss Cow, shoot, she even bosses me around.

bull-pen1

But its summer now, and I’m a work’n feller, and I’m one of those lucky guys…I LOVE MY WORK!  Man, I just love it!

Some of the boys, get all snorty and run and jump and butt heads together, but me? Well, I’ve got this whole thing figured out.  You make it hard for ‘the people’ and you get the hard jobs.  You make it easy, you get the cream.  Heck, my days are full of guard duty, lots of green grass, and hang’n with the chicks.  No beer, or smokes, but that can wait for winter. (Have to set a good example for the kids, ya know.)

My Mom, who is a cow, told me- if you don’t get carried away with yourself, (like butt around the feed trough, or stamp on the waterer), make friends with all the other cows, be a good security guard, and don’t get the human scared, the world will be your oyster.

AND SHE WAS RIGHT!!!

The other dudes, get loaded up and headed out, but I get to stay with the late bloomers, you know the ones who have kids later in the spring. I stay my required 42 days, sometimes more, give or take a week or so. Then my human shows up with the trailer, I wait right at the gate (I know what that means…more pastures, more girls) and as soon as the trailer gate is open and he opens the corral gate, I just walk right in. 

AHHH!  Life is Gooooood!

The-Bull

Crag Crest Trail

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Sign

 For all of you hikers out there, add this to your 100 trails you must hike before you die list.  It is a 10 mile circular trail, traveling over a crest and looping back to the start point.

 Through-the-Trees

When I was young, 11, 12, 13, and 14, we lived on Grand Mesa (Colorado) every summer due to my health. 

Rock-Side

(It is just an hour away). 

Up-the-Craig

Every week for the first two years, Momma, my brother and I would hike this trail. 

Up-the-Crest

 I don’t remember it being such a hard thing to do, but whew! It is!

 Over-the-Top

(Pant, Pant, Wheeze…man the things I do to post on a blog!!! Whew!)

On the crest both sides of the path drop off steeply allowing the hiker to look into Mesa County on the right

Delta-County-Side 

See the bookcliffs in the distance?

 

Land-of-the-Lakes

 and Delta County on the left.  Grand Mesa has 100’s of lakes. 

Down-the-Trail

We gradually get back to tree line.

5-Miles-across

Walking along the lower edge

Around-the-Lake

Until we get back to the cars. 

Down-the-Other-Side

There you have it, a top of the world tour from Grand Mesa, Colorado!

Tom Boy Mine

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Tom-Boy-Sign

On the Telluride side is the remains of an old mining Town, not camp, but a true town.  This town, called Tom Boy once had over 900 residents, complete with tennis courts.  The town closed in 1927 when the ore at the Tom boy mine ran out.

Imogene-Pass-208

(This is the remains of the Bullion Tunnel Mine–on your way into Tomboy from the Telluride side)

More-and-More-Tom-Boy

You can only reach this site, about 2 -3 months out of the year, the rest of the time the road is closed because of weather.

More-Tom-Boy

This looks like it might have been a rooming house or hotel.

Rock-Cabin

Just for the record Imogene Pass is rated a 4 out of the possible 5 as far as 4-wheel drive difficulty and is the second highest pass in Colorado.

Cabin

Whenever I see old mining towns, camps and mines in these hills mountains I am reminded once more….living here is not for the faint hearted.

Surprise!

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The canal ran over its bank last night!  This is the road into our house.  The nice part about this road is it is lower than where we live.  My DH told me I can “just go slow, you can still make it to work!” 

Our-Road

After many loads of dirt everything was under control again.  It made for an interesting drive to the highway, at any rate.

Ouray to Telluride, Colorado by Way of Imogene Pass

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Starting in Ouray, Colorado ( I took 239 photos, but you will only see a few of them, around 14)  In the beginning Telluride was called To Hell You Ride, from this pass you can see why.

Imogene-Pass-044

The way is narrow and steep

Imogene-Pass-050

With a few four-wheeled drive vehicles, nothing like the Telluride side.

Imogene-Pass-060

For some reason the flys were thick

Imogene-Pass-065

This part of the road is pure rock

Imogene-Pass-077

That is an old Miner’s house

Imogene-Pass-100

We are headed to the top of Imogene at this point

Imogene-Pass-104

Almost there!  I always feel like I can truly say I am in the middle of the Rocky Mountains when I get here.  Nothing but peaks and peaks of other mountains.

Imogene-Pass-128

Looking down on Red Mountain.  The major highway from Ouray to Durango goes through these mountains.  Million Dollar Highway, Red Mountain, Molas, and Coalbank, all big passes and beautiful and dangerous in the winter.

Imogene-Pass-145

The TOP!  Elevation 13,114 feet

Imogene-Pass-210

Starting down into Telluride

Imogene-Pass-221

Down is always worse than up.  No I do NOT do any of the driving!!!

Imogene-Pass-225

We started to meet lots of people on this road. See the ski slope way over there?

Imogene-Pass-228

I’ll post about the Tom Boy Mine next time.  We are almost down at this point.

A Cloud Full of Rainbows

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Working in the yard last night I looked up into the sky and saw….

Rainbow-Cloud

A cloud full of rainbows!  Absolutely amazing!

Cloud-of-rainbows

I just had to share this with you.

Second Cutting of Hay

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Hay-Second-Cutting

The weather turned off ever so hot, 104*, making it hard to bale the hay with the ‘perfect’ amount of dew, but it got done! 

Done and stacked and some has even been sold.  What a relief.

After the days and days of heat, lack of air movement, a cold front has started through. Good!

Where Have All the Ladybugs Gone?

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The-Roubidoux-Canyon

According to www.lostladybug.org there are more than 400 ladybug species native to North America, but now are considered rare.

Field-of-Daiy's

The Lost Ladybug Project is trying to find out just how many native species are left.

Rim-Rock

Take a look around your farms, yards, and parks and try to photograph any of these familier insects.  Then send the photographs to the website.  Scientists hope to get a better idea of just how many of the native species are left, which exotic ladybugs are taking over and how this might affect our world.

Where-Rivers-Begin

The photos I have added to this post are from the Uncomphgre Plateau, or 25 Mesa, as the locals call it.  I guess what I am trying to say: if we lose the beneficial bugs we can lose the beauty of our land.

As you are out there taking photo, please look for ladybugs and send them in.

Thanks!

Linda

I Just Have to Tell You Something! Better Yet Let Me Show You!

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This is Honey the Hen speaking…see these three hens! 

Mean-old-Biddies

They are THE ONES!!!

The mean ol’ biddies! 

Don’t they look mean!  Don’t they have the most hatful eyes you have ever seen? 

Awful women! Just awful!

But —– I am now sleeping on the roost with all of them and they are leaving me alone.  No more do I have to stay in the dog pen. (I guess it was alright) But I get to sleep right back where I belong with all the girls.

Mom still lets me go outside every morning, which suits me, just fine.  She told me today that this isn’t going to last much longer, but we will see.  We will see.

Cluck-Cluck's-Head

But since I’ve been gone, THE MEAN OL’ Biddies started attacking Cluck-Cluck.  See her head? 

Cluck-Cluck is an N.E.R.V.O.U.S. bird! 

Goodness, she never shuts-up! Ever!

I think she was the original ‘the sky is falling chicken’ talk about flighty!

Mom has had to let her out side with me, so she can get some feathers back. I told Cluck –Cluck, she isn’t staying with me!!!!!  I’ve had to share with the dog, (the dog says that isn’t true, he had to share with me, ha!),  but I don’t have to share the front of the house. 

Cluck-Cluck

Cluck-Cluck can go live with Dad in the tractor shed!

Sky-is-Falling

Mom told THE MEAN OL’ Biddies they had better straighten things up s.o.o.n. or they were going to have to go the way of Roo. 

I wonder where Roo is? Mom said Roo went to another coop with a whole new set of girls.  I haven’t really been sad about it, except for the ‘snot girls’ of our group.  Cluck-Cluck doesn’t miss him either; this bully thing has been a little too much to think about anything else, if you really want to know.

the-roo

Mom says the new vitamin water will help everyone settle down, (she got it from McMurry Chicken Farms) after which Cluck-Cluck and I can live happily-ever-after with everyone else in the hen house! Although, we get to roam outside when Mom is home and can make sure we aren’t eating the entire garden. She said Every One gets to roam outside when she is home.

I’ll leave you with the same photo of the mean ol’ biddies.  Maybe next month they will have been rehabilitated.(transformed, improved upon)  We will just have to wait and see.  Keep your fingers crossed!!!!!

Mean-old-Biddies