A Week to Celebrate
#bfrdpwy #aginternship #RightRisk
Monday was spent farming. The majority was dedicated to irrigating for me, since our side rolls drain a little awkward where they sit, but I did get to take a break and learn how to use the rake, which is a fairly easy task, though I did manage to make a massive plug and also tip it on its side. Fortunately, nothing was hurt, so I finished raking and went back to irrigating until the day’s end.
The next day I went to my educational event, which was hosted by the Sheridan Research and Extension Center, an outcrop of UW. There, I was able to spend the morning learning about the innovation and research going on in farming, which ranged from new crops being bred to fight alfalfa weevil to cold weather peppers to a bird laser (which does not disintegrate avian pests, just shoots light in a way that mimics predators to ward them off). They hauled us around a field on a flat bed with hay seats and a people hauler, which meant there was plenty of opportunity to talk to the people around me.
Wednesday was our branding here at the ranch. Here, they prefer to head and heel, which allows for more people horseback and fewer people on the ground. It does tend a little more chaotic for newbies, and definitely requires your head to be on a swivel, but once you get the hang of it, it turns out to be a blast. I got to rope in the first round, but I had to go rake a field that morning to stay ahead of the baler, so I took my leave after roping to run the rake. I finished the day off mowing one of our mountain trails, eagerly looking forward to the next branding, which will be this Wednesday (stay tuned!)
The whole of Thursday was dedicated to mowing (and the side task I had set myself of watching the local pronghorn herds), taking me from streamside to mountain trails to open pasture. The old Wyoming adage of “if you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes” came in to play as the day went on—the day started at a boiling temperature, with not even a breeze to provide solace, but by noon had rained twice good enough to soak my shirt through. The sun came back out to play between rains, drying me off, so I bounced between soaking wet and frying. The bouncing stopped around three o’clock, which is when rain dropped so heavy that I was soaked completely through in fifteen minutes, head to boots, which forced me to stop for the day, since wet grass won’t cut.
Friday was the Fourth of July, so we were technically off for the day. That said, it was driving me nuts that there was still mowing to get done, so after sleeping in for a bit, I took off on the tractor to knock that out for the day. To top the holiday off, I was invited out to dinner with Cade’s family before the whole crew and their families got together for fireworks that night, which, in true American cowboy fashion, was done in an arena, answering neighbor’s fireworks with volleys of what I’m pretty sure (in my infantryman expertise) classified as small scale artillery—exactly the way America’s birthday should be celebrated.
Submitted by: Leigh Stockton
Edits by: GrowinG Internship Team
