Our oldest granddaughter and her best friend came over one afternoon…and bummed a ride with Grandpa
How lucky we are
To be have the blessing of our grandchildren so close…just ten acres away. It’s nothing for them to walk over…stay a while (a long while or a short while) and then when they are tired of being here…to walk back home.
In the reality of life…Terry and I could not ask for more.
Your friend,
Linda
Spring is the time all the cows are removed off the farming land, onto ground that isn’t being put into production. To the DELIGHT of Fuzzy and Boomer (for sure Fuzzy) we see many of the different herds being shifted from here to there.
The cows will stay on this new section of land until the summer pastures open up—sometime the first of June. By opening up I mean all the snow is melted and the BLM has given word that the ground is stable enough to support hooves. 🙂
Not all the cattle head to BLM ground, some head to their owners very own summer ranches. Ranchers are very good caretakers of their spring and summer pastures. The cattle are usually moved to what is called the “Spring Pastures” first.
This is the first ground that dries enough to support hooves…these Spring Pastures are owned by the ranchers….remember the word is OWNED! The cows are trailed up the roads and then onto the new lush green food, where they will graze and their calves will grow stronger. As the early spring moves into early summer the cows will then be trailed up to the SUMMER place—where ever that maybe for the rancher.
Our head gate is on another farmer’s land…when we started the water, for the first time the first year, the heifer’s had not be moved to the corrals and then onto the spring pastures.
They always ran over to see what we were up too… if you could understand cow language you just know they were say’n: ‘What ya doing?’ Just like any curious little kid!
Off now to get some stuff done. The day is going by fast and here I sit chatting away to you!
Your friend,
Linda
Many of you have read about, or heard of the Bundy Ranch take over by the Feds…and some of you are even aware of the huge water issues that face our part of Colorado (I get emails from you letting me know that you are following the water cases evolving all over our part of the state), and some have asked me to explain or at least give you my opinion.
First off…I am NOT a water lawyer, nor am I an employee of the ditch company, nor do I have credentials that make me any sort of an expert on the ‘water issue’ in Colorado.
I do know that it is against the law to save any rain water, ever…no barrels under rain spouts, no water barrels with the rich, soft rainwater all capped and waiting for us to use in case of emergency. EVER!
Our water is destined to head into the Colorado river and flow right on down to California and the ocean. The Colorado is the mother of all rivers with its headwaters in the Rocky Mountains and flows to other states.
Right now water in our part of the state (the western part of Colorado has most of the water in the state of Colorado) is a private asset. Meaning that the water system that is in place ….PREDATES Colorado statehood. This system operates on the junior-senior water rights system. Whenever you filed on the water is where your water rights fall in the uses of rights. The oldest filing is first, then on down the line.
For us…the Uncompahgre Valley Water Company is the second oldest water right on the Gunnison River.
There are pressures building to abolish this system (private use) and making it a public asset under the Governance of the Governor of the state. (In a nutshell —as far as my meager brain understands— this means if Denver wants our water then the governor can take if from here and give it to them.)
Only somewhere around two percent of Colorado’s population are farmers, 98% or not farmers. Also, somewhere around 80% of the population is on the Front Range of Colorado. Our area, the Uncompahgre Valley has 80,000 acres of farmland….of which we are a part of that acreage. I really don’t know how much farm land there is on the eastern slope so I’m not going to give you any figures for that.
So, unless you have a crystal ball, I really don’t know what is going to happen here with the water. You know as much as I know right now. Every day we just rejoice with having the water to irrigate with, watching the rows fill up with the water and flow on down to the end of our field until it reaches the canal again, flowing onto the next farm and the next until it reaches the river. We will vote to keep our rights here and we will wake up every morning, head out to change the water, and we will plant and harvest and give thanks for that day!
Your friend on a Western Colorado Farm,
Linda
Wishing you joy and love from now and forever!
Your friend,
Linda
Mom says everything has been a roller coaster ride…the last three weeks! Boomer and I talked about a roller coaster and decided we don’t know what a roller coaster was. Since we couldn’t figure it out we decided it wasn’t important.
As for riding…heck! We haven’t really ridden on anything that was really bad…we’ve gone to do water several times, rode to town several times, laid under the pick-up lots, but as far as anything else…I guess we just don’t understand.
GUESS WHAT!!!
The water is now in the canal!
We’ve started the water on the alfalfa fields…I LOVE IRRIGATING! Most of the time I like to stay home and guard the house and the buildings and the yard [now]. But Mom makes me go with her (and Boomer and Dad) sometimes. Boy, am I ever glad I go!
You see—IT’S IRRIGATION TIME!
Hank even comes over from his house and helps out.
We had to stop…irrigating, I mean. Dad’s main ditch…the one that leaves the head gate and enters onto the farm washed out. A huge hole washed into the bend, the side caved away with Dad standing on it, and everything went splash!
The splash part was sorta neat, I rushed right over to see if something cool was in the water…nope, no water rats, or mice, or snakes…but there was DAD! I skedaddled out the way when I saw it was Dad. 😦
Mom and Dad put 300 pounds of cement into the ditch, worked on the sides, and created a whole new bend.
Just as soon as the cement cures the water will be back on and we will be IRRIGATING!!! YIPPEE!!!
We have had rain and the snow and sleet and ice. We went from a HOT day to several days of very, very cold.
Boomer and I are still sleeping inside. I’m not sure if I’m going to move us outside at all this year. Old bones really don’t like cold, you know.
Dad and Mom have the water back on and in the alfalfa that didn’t get watered yet.
You know something, I just thought of this, our lives(Dad, Mom, Boomer and I) are all governed by the irrigation water! Now THAT is cool!
Here I am just a swing’n. I like to sit in this swing and feel the breezes on my fur. Now days I have to have Mom put me up here. I get really close to the swing and look beseechingly at Mom until she comes over and picks me up and sits me on the swing.
AHHHHHHHHH!
Life is good!
Fuzzy
A blog friend from Texas… Run*A*Round Ranch Report … has started a Thursday “Good Fences” series. Everyone is asked to participate, if they would like. I decided ‘I would like’… so here is my fence for Thursday 
We had a very cold, nasty, rain and sleet filled storm one day last week. While Terry and I were out on the canal bank we both happened to look up and see this really cool site! So for Thursday’s Good Fences I give you a typical fence on our property and the first rainbow of the season! Life is good, isn’t it?
For stunning fences and gates head on over to The Good Fences feature of The Run *A* Round Ranch Report.
You friend,
Linda
Finally, I’m back! I hope! Fingers and toes crossed!!!
They had to take my computer back to a completely clean slate…reload everything…I do mean everything—then Carbonite had to down load the rest. (I am so thankful I have Carbonite…THANKFUL!!! That download took THREE DAYS!
Okay, lesson learned from the Carbonite experience…I must get an external hard drive and put all my photos on it. The forever download was because of the pictures. More than once I almost panicked and its fore sure I cried (just a little bit).
Anyway, I’m back. Lots happened in those 2 and half weeks—the water came, we had a nasty freeze, we got all the way in, and we started the water on the farm only to have to turn it off again.
I’ll get you all caught up soon. I will also be able to get caught up with all of you again. 
Since the apricots are now all frozen I’ll still leave you with a lovely evening photo of the memory of their blooms!
It’s good to be back! See you on your site soon!
Your friend,
Linda
A blank computer…that is where things are now. Back to square one. What a sadness!
My computer lady reloaded all my operating software, accept my printer and my camera…I will have to do so myself.
I have Carbonite (THANK HEAVENS!!!) With the help of Christopher (who works for Carbonite) the download of all my documents—farm stuff…everything you can imagine I am getting closer to getting back online.
At this point the Carbonite download site says everything will be back an in place in three more days. (Yes, I have lots of ‘life’ on the computer).
So by Tuesday…I hope… everything will be a go ahead.
Thank you for still dropping by and checking in on me. It’s been a huge long stressful time.
Linda
I am so upset I could just cry. I am still having trouble with my computer. The computer lady assures me it wasn’t a virus…just so you know. It was a download from Microsoft….everything has been corrupted. The only thing I have (right now) is the internet…of course.
Please stay with me. I hope this gets resolved soon!
Linda
My computer refused to load yesterday. So I had to take it to the computer hospital. The computer doctor said she is seeing lots of this sort of problem. Something to do with a download from Windows into the profile.
Typing on an IPad is rather tedious —one finger at a time. I will be back with regular blog posts as soon as I can get my computer home!
Linda
