Trapped pocket gopher

I forgot to mention that the day after I set the pocket gopher trap I trapped the pocket gopher.  I then did a quick walk around the usual areas of the south pasture where I usually find the pocket gophers but I didn't see any new pocket gopher dirt mounds.

The yearly total of trapped pocket gophers is now 99 gophers.

Cutting tree trunks and branches, and salt feeder

Today I finished (I think) cutting the tree trunks and branches this year.  Earlier I mentioned cutting the branches off the dead tree in the middle pasture.  I cut off a few lower branches on trees here and there in the pastures when one low dead branch would catch my eye.   Then the big cutting I did was the broken off tree trunk in the south pasture.  I wanted to get that tree cut to make harrowing easier next year.

By now the cattle had eaten all the needles off this downed tree.  I cut off the branches and then cut up the tree trunk.

I then went to the SW part of the south pasture as I had chainsaw gas left and there were three downed trees that had fallen so many years ago and were off the ground due to their lower branches.  Time to cut them up.  But wait... what do I see.  A newly fallen tree.  This was a tree that had died in the past - I don't remember when.  It stood among other trees and its side branches were small and short for such a tall tree.  So I forgot about this tree.   But since it just fell, and would impact my harrowing next year, I need to cut it.

I had half the tree cut when it got too dark to cut safely anymore.   Then I had to wait a few days as the next day it began to rain.  Today there was no rain and I went out and finished cutting this tree.

Here is one of fallen trees I had planned on cutting up.  The fallen tree initially was long enough that it went past the trees on the very left.  I had trimmed some of the tree last year, and now I was able to trim some more of the tree up to where it had fallen on another tree.  Then I ran out of gas for my chainsaw.  So I am done for the year unless I later change my mind.

My earlier chainsaw cutting went slower than expected before I got to the tree trunk cutting.  My chainsaw chain had stretched and I needed a new chain.   Getting a new chain went around between Amazon then Walmart then Lowes.  The chain I got at Walmart said it would fit the model of chainsaw I have, but it didn't, and I had to take the chain back to Walmart.  Once I got a new chain then the chainsaw had trouble starting and running.  At one point I couldn't start the chainsaw.  Before taking the chainsaw to a repair shop I had my neighbor Curtis look at it.   The chainsaw started for him.  Of course. Now, today, the chainsaw won't keep running when it idles and I have to restart it.   An issue to solve in the future.

When walking out to cut trees in the SW part of the south pasture I saw what looked to be fresh pocket gopher mounds.  When my chainsaw work was done I set a trap for the pocket gopher.  Now to see if I am correct and a new pocket gopher moved in this area where I had trapped a pocket gopher earlier this Fall.

I also noticed the wooder salt feeder was tipped over in the middle pasture.  Why the cattle like to tip this salt feeder... who knows?  I had metal posts around the feeder but several posts were also knocked over.   Then I discovered that one of the feeder's legs was broken off.

 

I fixed the feeder's leg.  Then moved the feeder further away from the tree - but still under it - and then pounded in a few more steel posts around the feeder.  Now to see if this holds the feeder in place.

Walnuts and rain

After a few days in a bucket for the first walnuts I had shelled, a few days ago I finally got all of the walnuts out of their green shell. I laid all the walnuts on a board out in the sun.  A few of the first walnuts I had shelled and had in a bucket already had a little mold on the brown walnut shells.  Maybe the sun would help stop the mold while I tried to get other stuff done before the rain and cold temperatures came this afternoon.  This morning, before the rain started, I gathered up the walnuts back into a few buckets.  While rain is in the forecast for the next few days maybe I can get around to getting the walnuts out of their brown shells.

The walnut trees are now quickly losing their leaves now that the overnight low temperatures go below freezing.

With the colder temperatures today, late this afternoon I fired up the woodstove for the first time this season in order to warm up the house.

Middle pasture tree trim

 I finished with the tree branch trimming on a middle pasture tree.    I have things to do before Winter arrives but this tree annoyed me.  There is another tree in the middle pasture, but that tree is among other trees so it's dead branches are smaller and not as noticeable.  The tree I just trimmed is bigger and stands alone from the other trees and is quite noticeable when I am out in the pasture.

Here is the tree in the Spring before I cut up the downed part of the tree.  As you can see the tree's branches were still alive.  But those branches died as Summer started.

By September this is how the tree looked.

In the Spring after I had cut up the fallen part of the tree, I stacked the cut logs against the tree.   Then the cattle would tip and roll some of the logs.  I would restack the logs and the cattle would tip and roll them again.  Over and over we went during the Summer.

Earlier this week I started to cut the dead branches off.  This would make the tree look better.  I thought it would take me a day.  It took me many days.  Initially I started with the ladder on the ground.  I used my chainsaw.  But as I got near the top of the ladder I stopped using the chainsaw.  Holding a running chainsaw off to the side at the top, and at that height, wasn't safe.  

While the chainsaw cuts faster than using a handsaw, it still was slow going as I moved slowly.  So I switched to using a handsaw.  Slower to cut the branches but I only needed one hand; the other hand I could hold on to another tree branch for stability.  Even so I only cut a small number of branches each day.  The longer I spent cutting the quicker I wanted to go.  That is where one can make a mistake.

I had "topped out" with the ladder on the ground. I still had branches to cut. Then I put the ladder in the pickup's bed to get more height.  I continued to use the handsaw.  I again only cut a few branches each day so I wouldn't start to rush.  I was standing at the top of the ladder and holding on to other branches and reached up to cut the top branches.  Then to lower branches.  That way, if I started to fall I would have a "lower" branch to grab on to.  Fortunately I didn't have to do that.

Once all the branches were cut on the left side I moved the pickup and ladder around to the other side of the tree.  I am left-handed and I only wanted to cut branches on my left side and not try to use my right hand to cut branches.

Once I moved the pickup and ladder to the other side I had no branches to hold on to with my right hand.  The tree trunk is split at the top and I was able to hold on to part of the split.

It took me a day to cut these last 8 branches.  2 on the left and 6 on the right in the photo.

Here is how the tree looks now that all the branches are cut off.

You can see I left a few short branch stubs on high.  I had used them to hold on to when cutting other branches on high.  A few short stubs left on high don't bother me.

Yes, the ladder is fully extended.  The ladder looks like it is fairly doubled up, but not really.  And the top ladder rung was on top of a small branch nub.  That helped keep the ladder top from moving side-to-side. (Yes, the ladder bottom was bungee corded to the pickup bed.  But stand at the top of the ladder and I still had a concern about a side-to-side movement as the tree trunk is round, not flat.)  So the ladder's hooks were almost an inch above the ladder's top rung, but still over the rung in case the top part of the ladder would slip off the nub.

I didn't cut the tree trunk near ground level because I have way more than enough logs right now for my wood stove.  I am leaving the tree standing so it can dry without me cutting and stacking the tree trunk off the ground to dry.  Saves me work right now.

Now that all the branches are cut off the tree I need to cut them into short pieces I can use in my wood stove.  I'm happy I no longer have high ladder climbing to do.

North pasture tree trim

I trimmed off some dead branches on a tree in the north pasture.  Normally I would leave the branches alone on trees in the pasture, but this one was right outside the corral, and is where I place the cattle's salt blocks when they are in this pasture.  So seeing the dead branches was annoying to me.

View from before I had trimmed the lower dead branches.  From this viewpoint they are not that noticeable.

In the second photo you can see where I trimmed the dead branches.  I don't have a "before" view from this point.

You can see there are still dead branches high up on the tree.  I used an extension ladder and this is the highest I could reach. 

You can see the cattle tipped this feeder over onto its top.  When I get my tractor back I will flip the feeder back to normal.

There is another tree with dead branches in the middle pasture.  Today I finally trimmed all of its dead branches.  I'll try to post about it tomorrow after I get a photo of the trimmed tree.  It was too dark for a good photo when I finished.  Trimming that tree was much more of a challenge, and I didn't mention it earlier as I didn't want comments about it looking unsafe and you shouldn't be doing that.  It was slow going but I successfully finished.

Cattle and walnuts

This afternoon when I returned from uptown I saw most of my cattle in my southern neighbor's field.  Once again the cattle had unlocked the gate.  After they had unlocked the gate this Summer I planned on later adding something to better lock the gate.  I hadn't found anything yet and put it off.  When I let the cattle into the hayfield I thought the cattle would prefer to stay in the hayfield as the neighbor's pasture was eaten down and dried up.  I was wrong.   The cattle just had to check the other pasture out.

I waited.  I knew the cattle would eventually come back to the better grass and alfalfa and also water.  A little later I noticed one of the calves in the south pasture.  The fence stopped him from going to the hayfield and then through the gate on the other side of the hayfield and south pasture fence.  I went out to herd him to the middle pasture and then to the middle pasture gate to the hayfield.  As I did this cow #8 came over and mooed at me.   Cow #8's calf was sold at the auction last week.  Maybe cow #8 was looking for her calf?

The rest of the cattle then came to check us out and then go to the river to drink.  I closed the gate to the neighbor's field and put a chain connecting link to hold two parts of the chain together.  That should stop my divas.  I hope.

The other news is that I finally picked all my walnuts off my tree.  They don't fall off ya know.  We have not had a hard freeze yet this Fall so most of the leaves are still on the tree.  That makes finding the walnuts hard as the walnuts are still in their green shell which blends right into the leaves.  It took me two afternoons to pick the walnuts.  And over and over I would find another walnut where I had looked earlier.

The walnuts were on the tree top to bottom.  The very top.  I first picked walnuts I could reach standing on the ground.  Then I used the orchard ladder to reach higher.  Then I had to climb the tree to reach high and then to the very top.  Fortunately the top of the tree did not break off due to my weight.

I filled two five gallon pails with walnuts.  Some green shells I could split by hand, but the rest I will have to work to get the brown walnut shells out of the green shells.

Here is the small walnut tree.  It is not old enough to have walnuts yet.  Two photos to show how the leaves are turning yellow.  October 1 and October 11.

Here is the larger tree with walnuts.  October 1 and October 11.  The large tree's leaves are not turning yellow as fast as the smaller tree.

Into the hayfield

This afternoon I let the cattle into the hayfield to eat.  I wanted to wait until after we had a big freeze as I thought that may make alfalfa safer for cattle to eat. But I just read...  maybe not.  Anyway, the pastures are eaten down pretty good and it is time to let the cattle go into the hayfield.

After giving the cattle a pail of apples I let them into the hayfield.  When I first opened the gate they stood and watched me.  I think they thought it would just be me going through a gate and not them.  But when I opened the gate wide and stood there Panda and Speckles realized what was up and came over and through the gate.  Then the other cattle came quickly.  I wish I had my camera then as some cattle came running.  Fast.  So fast their front and back legs were far apart.  Just like a horse when it is at full gallop.

The cattle are very happy.  Most calves are still in the corral.  When the cattle are just outside the corral fence the calves call out for their mothers.

Initially before letting the cattle into the hayfield, they looked "off".  I counted and recounted as I thought maybe it was because not all were there.  They were.  Then I realized why they looked "off" was because Mama was not there.

I got the initial auction report.  Mama weighed 910 pounds and sold for 65.5 cents a pound.  Not the highest amount as cows are now selling - roughly - from 60 to 90 cents a pound. Some sell for more and some sell for less.  But a good amount for Mama as she is not the best breed or weight for hamburger.  Last year when I sold the two cows I got 57 and 59 cents pound.  And that was at the high end as the top price back then was around 65 cents a pound.

The heifer sold for a good price of $1.90 a pound.   The heifer was a touch over half the weight of Mama, but then sold for over $300 more than Mama did.

One steer - at 510 pounds - sold for $1.90 a pound.  Two steers - heavier at 633 pounds - sold for $1.77 a pound.  One steer - I think Mama's steer - did not make the sale list.  So it sold for less.  I will find out once I get the check.

Calves and Mama to the auction

This morning Donna and I took five calves and Mama the cow to the livestock auction in Missoula, MT.  I had prepared Wednesday afternoon.  I got Mama and the five calves into the loading corral, and I parked the pickup and stock trailer at the loading corral gate.

This morning I woke up a minute before my alarm clock would go off at 6 am.  After a bit I went out and got Mama and the calves into the loading corral runway.  I would have had them all loaded into the stock trailer by the time Donna arrived but one calf stopped halfway down the loading corral runway and didn't want to move any more.  I had my sorting stick, but the other calves were in the way, and I couldn't reach this stubborn calf to encourage him to move on.  I was getting annoyed.  I had the barn light on and also had a small flashlight to help me see in the dark.  Whenever I put the end of the flashlight in my mouth to hold it, the flashlight would start blinking on and off.  I had to turn of the flashlight and then turn it back on to reset the light to be a steady light.  Once Donna arrived she stood outside the loading corral runway fence and helped move the calves along towards the trailer.

We were on the road by 6:48 am.  Things went smooth and we were at the auction a quarter after noon.  Usually when I unload the cattle an auction employee would stand on one side of the trailer and I would stand on the other, one of us holding the trailer door open.  That way the cattle wouldn't turn around and trying to run out of the corral by running on the side of the trailer.  This time the employee stood on the other side of the fence and not in a spot where he could reach the trailer door after I swung it open.  The door, after I swung it open, would then swing back to close.  Mama and a few calves got out of the trailer before the door started to close.  I couldn't stand on both sides of the trailer, I swung the door back open and it then would start to close again.  I tried getting the rest of the calves out before the door closed.  I tried watching that smart Mama wouldn't notice that she could run on the side of the trailer to make her escape.  Donna said the guy on the other side of the fence, when he saw Mama, looked concerned and tried to move where Mama couldn't reach him. Donna also didn't come back to hold the trailer door open as she was afraid Mama would come after her if Mama saw her.  Finally Mama and four calves went through the gate.  One calf left who didn't want to get out of the stock trailer.  Number eleven.  The calf I always had trouble herding as he preferred to rub against me and be my friend.  Finally I got him out of the stock trailer and over to Mama and the other calves.

The drive home went smooth and we were back to Kalispell by noon.   Hopefully cattle prices remain at a good level and I get good prices for them.  I'm not expecting much for Mama as her bone structure and breed means her amount of meat is less than a typical cow.  So we'll see.

Earlier this week Donna got a puppy for a pet.  A toy mini Aussie dog.  He is so small and is very cute. Donna brought him along with us.  He behaved well and mostly slept.  On Donna's lap, or next to Donna, or next to me on my coat.

A photo of Rusty, Donna's dog.   So no typical photos of the mountains or the lake this time.

Mama and her calf.  Mama has a brand.  Her bill of sale listing the brand shows I bought Mama on April 26, 2012.  So I had Mama almost 10 1/2 years.  She had her first calf that year so that would make Mama around 11 years old.  Yesterday I was thinking about missing Mama and I started to think about keeping her until she dies.  But since she was already in the corral and ready to go, I decided to let her go.

Eleven

Septic cleaning

I finished cleaning my septic tanks Sunday.  This Summer my drains started to drain slowly when I took a shower.  It has been almost 11 years since I last cleaned the tanks.  It was past time.

First I had to find the tanks as - I now know - they are 15 inches below the ground.  I forgot where they exactly were, or how far below the ground they were.  My old photos didn't show where they were.    I remembered they were low.  I started digging.  And digging.  And digging.  I dug about 10 feet to the south of where I started.  Finally I went down in my house's crawl space to see where the sewer pipe exited the house.  It turns out the tanks were about four inches north of where I had started digging.

I took photos so I know in the future where the tanks are.  The drain field is south and west of the patio.  That is why I thought the tanks were more to the south.  I forgot the initial pipe to the drain field hooks to the south before turning west out to the hayfield past the patio.

Here is the second of the two tanks after I cleaned it out.

You can't see it in the previous photos, but a few tree roots came in between the lid and the first tank.  Once in the tank the roots expanded and grew lots of micro-roots.   I cleaned the second tank first.  That is why the level was no longer up to the lid when I opened it as liquid in the first tank moved into the second tank as I cleaned that tank.

I removed three and a half wheelbarrow loads of the micro-roots and "manure".  I spread them out in the pastures to fertilize those areas.

Here are the tree roots that were growing just outside the tanks.  The side roots that went into the tank was smaller than my little finger.

Now I can take a long shower and all the water drains immediately.

Weaning calves and Mama

The calves are quieter now.  Still, there are times when they see their mothers in the middle pasture and the calves call out to them.

Anthony came this weekend and picked out the three steers he will buy.  I will keep four of the five heifers.  That leaves four steers and one heifer to take to the auction on Thursday.  

Since only five calves to take to the auction I think I can also fit Mama in the stock trailer.  Early this evening I saw Mama by herself in the middle pasture.  A good time to get her into the corral now instead of waiting until Wednesday to do so.  I wouldn't have to separate her from the others.  Since it is Mama, Donna doesn't want anything to do with her or be around her if I needed help to get Mama into the corral.  I went to the middle/north pasture gate.  Mama saw me and started to come over.   Then Panda, in the south pasture, saw Mama coming over to me.  Panda came running.  I thought Panda may catch up and pass Mama so I opened the gate and called for Mama to hurry up.  Mama started to move faster and got through the gate just before Panda could.  *whew*

I let Mama come in the main corral and put out a bale of hay for her to eat.  The calves are in the south corral.  No need for Mama's calf to stop weaning and drink from Mama again.

The rest of the cattle came to the middle/north pasture gate and mooed at Mama and me in the corral.  So I went out and gave them two pails of apples and also a quarter of a hay bale.  Then Mama saw what I did and wanted back out of the corral so she could join the other cattle.  No, Mama, you have plenty of hay here in the corral. 

I have had Mama longer than any other cow, and she is the oldest cow. And is the smartest cow.  She is my favorite cow.  I will miss her.

Broken tree stump

I have a handful of tree stumps I am keeping so the cattle can rub on them if they like.  Well.. another one suddenly bit the dust recently due to the cattle.  I thought the stump would have lasted.  Especially since big old Toby the bull is not around.  Too bad as I liked the look of this tree stump.

Before... (from 2020)

After...

I thought I was done digging and burning tree stumps.  But next Spring I have this stump to completely remove.