Cattle Drive to Diamond~Day 2

~I think love is the answer to a lot of things.

Like feeling lonely.~

~Lessa Kurry 1882~

Day two of the drive starts early again; on the road by 7 AM. It's my turn to drive (sharing fuel costs), so Pat drove over, and we put his horse in my trailer with Colt, and we head down to the hay lot where the cows and calves spent the night.

We knew that there would be at least one newborn. As soon as we got to the hay lot the day before, one cow headed for a corner and proceeded to have her calf. We checked all the other cows and calves, and she was the only one that had calved.

The lil' guy got put into the trailer to ride for the day. Momma was concerned, but she went back to the herd and out the gate we headed...in the right direction again...that's always good!

The weather wasn't nearly as nice as the day before, but it wasn't too cold...just threatening rain clouds. After about 2 miles we got a pretty good soaking, but after that the rain held off for the rest of the trip! When we got into the Diamond Valley the wind whipped up pretty good, and the cows at the back of the line got ornery, but that only lasted for about a mile and a half, and they lined back out again.

Just like the day before, any of the calves that were getting tired got heeled and put into the trailer. Remember the newborn? Well, he turned out to be a sneaky lil' feller...while the next calf that got put into the trailer, he saw daylight out the back of the trailer door and made a run for it!

And run he did...in the opposite direction of the herd! I kept the herd going while Pat and Bossman Dan went after the lil' runaway. He had shot through the fence along the road and took off over the lava beds. I had the herd about two miles down the road by the time they got caught back up. The lil' feller was unharmed and safely locked into the front section of the trailer with the middle divider closed!

The last half hour of the journey...comin' home to McCoy Creek.

These meadows will produce chest high meadow grass hay this summer.

Checkin' the head count...yep...we got 'um all!

Calves are let out of the trailer to mother up...everyone's happy!

Checkin' the herd...makin' sure everyone's mothered up.

Well, that's it...the end of the story, but not the end of the work. Branding comes up next, then moving the herds onto summer pastures, gathering them up in the fall again...the wheel keeps turning.

I'm so lucky to be able to help neighbors. I learn something every time I go out...as does Colt!

Thanks for comin' along for the ride!