Quick trip to my farm to shift the cows across the road.
Even though we are inside the Gator, still got my hunter orange so as to be more visible.
Yes, i was just there yesterday, but discovered that I had grossly overestimated the amount of forage the cows would have, so they had to be moved today.
Ready to shut off the valve from the pond.
Turned off – notice the grove in the head of the bolt – it is now turned perpendicular to the water line – this tells us it is turned off.
The overflow pipe will just pull out (the white one).
Once it is out, then if the hole in the bottom of the tank is not plugged, the water will flow out through the buried pipe.
Water rushing out from the tank through the buried pipe into the ditch about 20 feet away from the tank.
Tank drained as low as it will go.
The system has a leak back design, so the water in the pipe with the float will drain back and not freeze.
Took Dallas with me just in case my temporary netting decided to take flight in our 33 mph gusting winds. But all went well; he wouldn’t have needed to go, but sure gave me extra peace of mind. Taking out mineral,
Always keep out mineral for cattle unless it’s just raining everyday. We use Redmon Natural mineralised salt. You may know the company as Real Salt.
shutting gates, and draining a water tank took us 55 minutes. Driving up there and back takes 1 hour 15 minutes. Obviously, I usually plan to spend more time up there to justify the trip.
Waiting patiently for me to get out of the way!
And moving on! Took about a minute for 210 cows, replacement heifers, and 130 calves to move across!
Oops! focused on my tattered 100% wool trench coat. It wasn’t tattered when i picked up for $2 at a second hand shop some 4 years ago. Probably 60 plus years old, but still good. Have been shopping for a ‘new’ one since it’s practically ruint from snagging on brush I’m clearing.
Cold, blowing, gusting northerly wind making it feel like 12F (-11C) at best- deep snow bottomed out by 2 inches of mud – i trudged/hiked nearly 3 1/2 miles (round trip) to shift my cows to a paddock with fresh stockpile which they would need to fill their bellies in advance of the bitterly cold temps to come this week. Glancing up occasionally to verify my position resulted in shards of blowing snow to my eyeballs. Goggles would have been a good choice today! Too muddy and snowy to drive in any closer. Glad i had a trusty hickory shepherd’s crook to steady my steps whilst slipping around in rutted, muddy Cotton road. Took me 1 hr 20 minutes to make that hike back to the pickup. My hips were burning so badly, i could barely lift my feet above the snow for the next step – but step i must – there was no other option. Total time from leaving the pickup to arriving back – 2 1/2 hours. I certainly had my alone time for the day.
Morris Chapel Cemetery – 1 Feb 15One of the small creeks (cricks) along the way back.Sheep don’t even know it’s cold!The road ahead!Queen of the Log!