Where Did They Go?

So when I last wrote a blog we were still in Jamaica celebrating Lacey and Clayton's marriage, and now that they are old married folks it is probably time for me to get this journal updated. We did manage to get out of Jamaica, but I had a tough time explaining to the US Customs and Border agent why my passport wasn't stamped each and every time I had been in and out of the States over the last year. She told me I needed it stamped and I told her that I made it a practice not to tell Border Crossing folks how to do their job and that policy has served me well over the last 60 odd years of crossing the Medicine Line. Usually when you fly you get a stamp, but as I drive, can't fit the horses on a plane, you don't usually get a stamp. They just scan your passport and we all have heard how the computers are working now and they are keeping track of our movements much better. Well, maybe you guys, but apparently not me. I finally convinced the nice lady that I had no intention of becoming an illegal alien and had kept a good record of my comings and goings just in case the government needed them and she let me on through.

The last year has been an interesting experiment, what with Brenda's knee replacement not going so well, but we have discovered one, maybe the only, benefit of her plight. When we travel we usually get a wheelchair to get from the check-in to the gate and back. Most airlines also supply a driver for that conveyance. And those folks know how to get around those big places in a hurry. It means no waiting at the Security Check and priority boarding. Big benefit entering Jamaica, our lady driver knew the ropes and we were through Immigration and Customs quicker than you can blink. And coming back out of Montego Bay there was at least a thousand people in the line and we scooted right to the front. And nobody even gives a lady in a wheelchair and her bodyguard a second look.

It was an interesting winter from a horsepersons point of view. Arizona had an early outbreak of a critter disease called Vesticular Stomatitis which meant all our horses were going to have to be out of Arizona for 21 days before they were allowed to cross the border back into Canada. So we made a plan to wander our way home slowly after sprinting for the Arizona/Utah border to get the clock ticking.

As it turned out the outbreak took a break and the Canadian government allowed horses that had not been in the county in southern Arizona with the problem to head for home without the 21 day condition. But we had some plans made and decided at least part of them needed to be acted on.

Hard to believe but in all the miles we have driven around the United States and the many years we have been to Arizona, we had never gotten to see the Grand Canyon, except from 35,000 feet as we flew by it. This time we combined it with a trip to Dave and Linda Modahl's ranch in Northern Arizona.

Ben and Beauty were enthralled by Dave and Linda's gate guards

Ken enjoys the riding and seeing new country.

Ken, Verna, Linda, Dave and Penny in the foreground

Not sure what kind of snake that is but it is a sign that we are not far enough north.

 After enjoying Dave and Linda's "Lazy D Ranch" for four days we headed for the big ditch.

Words really can not describe this place, it is truly a wondrous place, and I will let the pictures do the talking.

 Through the wonders of the internet we knew folks who knew folks who had scouted out a site we could camp with our horses and and still be within riding distance of the Canyon.

Ken, Verna and Penny

Blue and I, Blue was happy the Canyon was behind us and not ahead on the trail.

Ken and Beauty

We finally made it

You can see the bridge across the Colorado down there.

At the bottom of the photo is a roof at Phantom Ranch a way station on the ride across the canyon

This fellow was looking at me like, "I ain't hauling your big ass down into Canyon, not to mention back up"

It was a great place and we will be back. But once I got done riding over and having another look down from horseback Brenda and I loaded up and headed north. The next night we were in Dillon, Montana and heading for the border the next day. All our worry over the border crossing was for naught, the fellow just took copies our horse papers and sent us on our way. Not much excitement there but a little farther along in our journey our Pressure Pro sent us a message telling us that things were going to get a little more exciting if we didn't find a tire shop pronto. As luck would have it we were a block from a great little tire shop in Nanton and they quickly pulled off the flat and put the spare on for us. They checked out the tire and discovered that the wheel had a crack in it. After talking to my tire expert and favourite tire selling cousin I decided to change all the wheels on the trailer from the cast aluminum mags to plain jane, but strong, steel. While we were at it we also switched the tires to a set of Goodyear G114's.

Since we got back here down the road from Dogpound we have been to a couple of birthday parties and visited a few folks but have been sticking pretty close to the ranch otherwise.

I always tell folks that wondering what to do to keep busy is a non-issue if you have a farm and Brenda and I have been busy cleaning up after our early snow last September, fixing a water leak in our outside system that developed over the winter and general yard maintenance, including replacing our crumbling retaining wall. Just another century or two and we'll have that "to do" list whipped.

Now in a blast of information you are caught up and maybe, just maybe I can keep a little more abreast of things in the future.

Heading to the Farm

We are all hooked up and ready to roll north and east to the "farm"

I know it sounds like we live on a farm here at Dogpound North, but the "farm" for us has always been the place where my Grandfather and his parents homesteaded over 100 years ago. It is halfway between Vermilion and Wainwright in East Central Alberta. My Mom and her brother were born and raised there and my uncle and some of my cousins still call it home. Uncle Brent has a bunch of land up there and a couple of my cousins still live on his home place. Blair lives in the house on the Buffalo Creek Ranch and Mike has built his own new home just a half mile west of there up on a hill with a view of the whole country.

A view off of Mike's deck to the SE

A view from the same deck looking SW

We didn't really have an important agenda to keep, we were just up to have a look around and maybe give Mike's new digs the once over. We took my Mom along with us and drug our trailer with a couple of ponies along for the ride. Long term readers will remember there is some great riding up here on the Buffalo Creek ranch and we never miss the opportunity to reacquaint ourselves with this beautiful country. This is where I learned to love to ride and it is always refreshing to drop down the trail into the coulee and watch as the cell service drops off and the world gets left behind. Below the coulee hills nothing much has changed in 50 years, and I think if my kinfolk have anything to do with it nothing will for at least another 50. I hope that works out.

This is an old photo but it gives a good look at the bottom of the coulee

The coulee from Mike's deck

Heading down into the coulee

Another view from the top down into the coulee

Although we didn't plan it that way we did stumble into a Father's Day celebration at the farm and enjoyed visiting with family who came from farther away to celebrate with my Uncle Brent.

Mom and Uncle Brent

Uncle Brent is a pretty active guy and spent the morning before the party fixing fence and helping some beavers move on, off of his pasture. A good mornings work after all he is only 82 and in his family that is just a little bit on the long side of middle age.

My youngest Macnab relative, Braxton, first cousin, twice removed

And of course I got a chance to get my camera out and wander around the machinery yard. Some of this old equipment makes for great photo opportunities and your imagination can tell their stories.

An old horse drawn manure spreader

The head of a horse drawn hay mower

The steel wheels are neat but the rock caught my eye

Cousin Mike gave me strict directions that there were to be no photos of him on Facebook and being as how I always listen to my subjects I thought he might not mind an appearance on my little blog. I mean nobody reads this thing anyway.

But luckily I was able to use photoshop to remove the numbers across the bottom of the shot.

And you just knew I couldn't leave you all without another horse shot. Here is Brenda and Mike enjoying the view back into the coulee after scrambling up the hill.