After the frantic, last-minute packing that always goes with our annual get-away, we finally left the farm about 1:00 Friday afternoon. We left everything hot and dry, with the stock tanks hardly more than puddles. By our calculation, our farm has received less than 10 inches of rain so far this year. This is the third year in a row that we have been far behind the average 31 inches of rain per year that we usually receive. We can only hope and pray that the El Nino period we are entering will bring more this fall and winter.
We also left behind the speargrass and beggar lice, and the dogs are glad to be rid of the T-shirts that prevent some of the burrs from getting tangled in their coats.
Before leaving we had a chance to return to Austin (which we hardly recognize any more because it has grown and changed so much) for a short visit with John's sister, Judith Hightower, who was visiting from her home in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
We also had an opportunity for one last practice session at Allen and Kay Mills' place in Goldthwaite. John Lewis and one of his dogs worked,
We left four heifers and our B1 cow and her calf, Miracle, in the house pasture, with the remainder of our small herd utilizing the creek pasture and recently-cut-and-baled coastal field. (We got 52 bales this year; thank You, God!)
We are also grateful that our #602 cow presented us with a healthy black baldy heifer calf the day before we left.
We had hoped that we would leave behind some of the scorching heat that has plagued us for the last several weeks. Kota hopes so, too, because we didn't bring the fan she likes to use when we are on the back porch at home.
It wasn't to be, though, at least for our first few days out. The first leg of this year’s trip brought us to the Cactus Rose RV Park just off I-20 near Gordon, TX. When we pulled in, our car thermometer read 109 degrees. It wasn’t much cooler at Gary and Kathy Young’s place nearby where Dutch, Bo and I would participate in an Open Ranch and Nursery sheep dog trial. It was good to see our friends, though, no matter the weather. We ended the evening with chilled beverages and supper with Charly Kronberger at Mary’s Cafe in nearby Strawn.
Day 2, Saturday, July 15
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The day started very early. The first dog was off and running by 7 a.m., and all 30+ dogs had finished their runs before noon. Gary must have a special in with God, though, because he had asked for and received slightly cooler temperatures and cloud cover in the morning. Gary and Kathy and family again provided a scrumptious lunch of make-your-own burritos with several memorable desserts.
Dutch was the first of my dogs to run, and he did an outstanding job.
We scored a 79 out of a possible 90 points to take third place in our open ranch class, and I couldn’t be happier with him. His only “miss” was that Tommy Hefner’s nice bitch, Mo, was friendly, but not ready for a more intimate relationship. We will try again in the next several days to get them together.
Bo, on the other hand, seemed to be on another planet. He started off well, running clockwise on a “come-bye” outrun. Halfway to the sheep, though, in spite of my frantic whistles to try to change his course, he crossed in front of them (a very bad no-no) and his run went downhill from there.
His handler shares the blame for the poor run, but regardless, I retired, and we will hope for a better outcome tomorrow.
Dinner was a small potluck with amazing T-bone steaks provided by Tommy Hefner and sides put together by John and me, Charly Kronberger, Les Hale and John Lewis.
A good time was had by all and we headed home for an early bedtime and 5 am wakeup on Sunday.
Day 3, Sunday, July 16
I thought yesterday’s weather was good, but today's was even better. The morning started with a nice cloud cover and a few raindrops. It held until just before we completed the trial at mid-day. Not at all typical of Texas in July…but it didn’t last. By the time I got back to the rig to pack up, the thermometer read well over 100 degrees.
Dutch again had a very nice run. His score of 75 earned a fourth-place finish.
Our pen wasn’t as clean as on Saturday, but we finished the 7-minute course with almost a minute to spare. Bo and I had several conversations about his performance on Saturday, and he took them to heart. His score wasn’t as good as Dutch’s, but it was a very respectable 67 and we penned our sheep. Unfortunately, I didn't get a video of his run.
My camera battery ran out of juice before I took many pictures, but here are a several from the weekend.
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| Jerri Lynn Pierce's Vonnie waiting for her exhibition run |
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| Tommy Hefner and Earl |
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| Kathy Mazzola and Spec |
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| Jennifer Anderson and Lace |
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| Lace cooling off |
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| Lindsey Williams and Mo |
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| Cindy-Lou-Who Kronberger |
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| Chris Thompson and Tick |
Sunday we overnighted in Snyder, TX, at Country View RV Park. We started calling for reservations as soon as we left Gordon, never dreaming we would have to phone half a dozen places before we found one that had room for us. Workers in the oil and gas fields have apparently taken most of the available spots, so we will need to call sooner to be sure of having a place to stay. Normally, we would boondock, but with the temperatures well into the triple digits, that’s asking too much of our batteries and generator.
Day 4, Monday, July 17
Monday was an easy trip from Snyder to Friona, TX, where we camped at the City of Friona RV Park. The power is good, and there are trees and grass in front of the rig where we can tie out the dogs and sit in the shade while the RV cools off.
We had a short visit Monday night with Tommy Hefner at his beautiful Frio Draw Ranch, while we again tried to convince Mo that she and Dutch would make a nice couple.
There was no coupling in the cards, though, at least not today.
