The Hay Wagon

Last spring we unveiled our new hay wagon.  We turned our Wagonmaster Ted loose on the project and were delighted by the results.  Here are a few photos from the maiden voyage down the lane in late May:

 Ted put his considerable talent to good work creating a unique masterpiece.

 Ted stands proudly by the new wagon before climbing up and taking the lines.

 The grass is green, the horses lively and the riders excited to be aboard.

A beautiful May evening, the perfect setting for a hay ride.  All photos are copyright Blair Hunewill 2013.

Toes in the sand, a great booth, and a little mishap...

We certainly have been busy the last few weeks!  The Dude Ranchers' Association Convention was held in warm, sunny San Diego in January, followed by the Horse Expo in Pomona.  All this was happening during the usual winter activities of checking cows, feeding livestock, doing rain/snow dances, and getting ready for the summer.

Megan, Blair, and Jennifer attended the convention in San Diego and came back with a lot of great information from fellow guest ranchers--and maybe just a little bit of a tan!

Are they barefoot or wearing their suits under their clothes?  Blair and Jennifer had a great time at the beach while Megan was behind the camera.

The Horse Expo in Pomona was a huge success.  Dee, Dwayne, and Jennifer went down to set up and man our booth, which looked really spiffy!  It was great to see those of you who have been to the ranch and stopped by to say hello.  If you weren't there, we will be going to the Horse Expo in Sacramento (June 13-15, 2014) and hope to see your smiling faces there!

  

It looks empty now, but it was jam packed when the Horse Expo began!  

In other news, it has been VERY windy in Smith Valley and Bridgeport in the last few weeks.  A few miles from us in Smith Valley, a wheel line (used for irrigating large sections of our neighbor's alfalfa field) blew across the road and up into a tree.  Last week on the blog, you saw the effects of the wind on another neighbor's hay barn, so you can imagine the wind speeds we get here!

Just down the road, our neighbor's office succumbed to the strong Nevada winds not once but TWICE.  Good thing no one was conducting any business in there...

A Winter Escape

During our busy summers, guests ask us, "What do you do in the winter time?"  Last week Jeff and Denise took a few days off and headed south to Santa Ynez, California seeking refuge from seven inches of snow and ice at the Smith Valley ranch.

Why Santa Ynez?  We wanted to see "Early Californios Skills of the Rancho", an event showcasing classical California horsemanship.  These skills were practiced in the 1700 and 1800's on the ranchos of early missions.

A capable team in the alley sorting competition.

A great example of Vaquero gear and attire.

It turns out that we also ran into a lot of guest ranch friends who came to see great horses, ridden well, and decorated with lots of silver (horse jewelry).

Mike Giacapuzzi on his awesome horse preparing to rope in the Sort and Rope competition.

TEMPTATION!  A collection of classic silver mounted spade bits.

A side benefit of our trip was that we missed the worst wind storm to hit Smith Valley since 2001.  Blair was feeding hay to cows from the back of a flatbed truck during the worst of the windstorm.  Blair, 600 pounds of baled hay and 3 dogs were blown off the back of the truck during the powerful wind storm.

Was part of Blair's trouble his driver?

Blair and Haley's dog kennel was blown into their pond, and thankfully, the dogs escaped unharmed. The wind blew a neighbor's hay barn roof over the power line and onto the highway.

The worst windstorm since 2001 and we missed it.

All this happened while Denise and I were hundreds of miles away watching buckaroos (Californian for cowboy) sort and rope cattle while a playful breeze rustled through the Live Oak trees.

Careful cattle handling is the trademark of the this style of stockmanship.

This powerful storm melted the snow in Smith Valley and left many feet of badly needed snow in the Sierra.  Denise and I came home to cows happily eating grass that had been snow covered when we left.  The family members that stayed home handled the weather event fine without us.  We should go on vacation more often!

Jeff on vacation.