Power Out - Wind Storm

Joan and I arrived at the same time as the storm - about 6:00pm on Friday.  The wind was just starting to howl, the sky went black, and the power went out before I could get the barn door open.  I had to go in, find a ladder in the dark, release the door from the opener, and push it up manually.  We got in before the worst of the storm arrived.

It has been over 100 degrees lately.  We haven't had rain in weeks.  I was happy to have a storm but...

it blew down the fence at the orchard...

it only delivered about 1/8" of rain...

it knocked the power out and we had to cook dinner on the grill (we had been planning to reheat some stuff in the microwave)...

The storm passed quickly so I went out to check the cameras.  

The power stayed off all night but at least it had cooled off and was comfortable for sleeping.

I never really got out of my gym clothes.

When I got up at 6:15am Saturday, the power was still off.  Another wind storm ripped thru but dropped no rain.

I hooked up our portable generator and had enough power to brew coffee (whew).  I was hoping to get the fridge/freezers running but apparently it wasn't enough power.

I was amazed that the fruit was all still intact in the orchard.  These trees were leaning over sideways in the storm.

Since there was no power for a/c, hot water, or the fridges, we decided to consolidate & clean out the freezers and head home to Mason before it got too hot (going to be 100 again).

We packed as much as we could in coolers and consolidated all the rest in the chest freezer.  It was still frozen solid and I put 4 bags of ice in it too.  I think it will be good for a couple days and hopefully the power will be on before then.

We packed up and left by 8:30 - it was already getting sticky and the power was still off.  On the way out, we found our neighbor's trampoline in the treeline.  It must have been picked up by the wind, blown thru their yard and over our fence, across the field and into the trees.

Here's a few of the shots from the cameras.  They  are looking good. The food plots are all scorched but they seem to be doing fine.

Well, I didn't get anything done.  Couldn't water the garden (need power for well water).  Still haven't put the deer barrier up on the sunflowers (but they're barely growing due to no rain).  Maybe next week... And I have to get ready for a prairie dog hunt in South Dakota - haven't even fired the 223 yet.  The elk mount is supposed to be shipping right now.

Another Quick Visit

Joan and I ran out Saturday night (after golf) and came home Sunday afternoon.  I finished planting pumpkins but there has been no rain for weeks and there isn't any in the forecast.  The garden is getting by on the watering that I've been doing.

Zucchini

Beans

Peas

Cucumbers

Melons or gourds

Pumpkins

There are about 15 rows of pumpkins - most of them not up yet.  I sure hope that we get some rain.  The food plots are dry, the pond is low, and the pond aerator seems to have quit. 

There's still two months of antler growing time left.  Looking good.

Making the camera spin on Saturday night when we arrived.

A Quick Visit

I ran out and back on Saturday because I still have pumpkins to plant.  I also need to get the deer barrier fence up around the garden and the sunflowers.  I made some progress but there is still a lot to do.  Amy arrived in Mason on Saturday evening so I wanted to be home for dinner.

I'm pretty sure that these are zucchini.  It as been terribly dry and I'm surprised that we got germination.  I watered last weekend and this weekend.  I hope it's enough.  This fabric must help.

Some peas in the foreground and beans behind them.

Cucumbers.  You can see how dry the soil is - amazing that they germinated.

Pumpkins, gourds or melons - not sure which.  I planted some of thems in mounds and they have a hard dry crust on them.

This is the sunflower plot - dry as dust.  The one sunflower in the foreground is about the only one that came up this week.

Some soybeans in the orchard field.  They germinated a little better than the sunflowers but we need rain desperately.

Soybeans at the driveway stand.  Real spotty germination.  If we get some rain, I expect these fields will fill in.

The main chore was to get some more pumpkins planted.  Here's a row that I hoed for planting.  You can see other rows that I watered with a soaker hose.

Seeds in and then cover them up.  About 1/2 the pumpkin patch is planted now.  I hope to get the rest in next week.

I got the "Plotsaver" deer barrier up around the pumpkin patch but I ran out of time before I could do the sunflowers.  Since there aren't many up yet, it can wait till next week.

There are lots of these blooms right now in the fields.  I think Mom told me that these are Indian Paintbrush.

The wild rasberries aren't quite ripe yet.  We've never really picked many of these.  It's kind of like the cherries - you have to be there to race the birds and critters once they start to ripen.

The does should be about ready to drop their fawns.  This doe looks healthy but I can't tell if she's pregnant.

Picture quality isn't great but this one looks pregnant.

First fawn of the season shows up on camera.

Mom cleaning up her fawn. Can you see all the flies on the doe?  They drive the deer nuts in the summer.

These guys like the fawning season. A newborn fawn is easy prey and a delicacy for a coyote.

I can't figure this photo out - do you think it's a meteor landing behind this buck?



2002 women's swim team shirt.  Obviously, rejects go to the farm.

Minerals for the deer.  The bucks need it for growing their antlers and the does need it while nursing.

Can you tell that I've been working in the dustbowl fields?