Child Labour...

is a good thing!  This allowed me the time to clear out the raspberry canes from last year and to do a few odd jobs around outside. At 12 (Sunday), he is getting old enough and big enough to take on more responsibility.

When his thumb got sore (hand throttle), little sister took over. They both have been dying to run the quad for quite a while. It is my acreage work machine, so is not a toy. With 2 diamond harrows on back and flat terrain and strict instructions to keep the speed way down, it worked out OK.

There are only a couple of spots that need to be touched up. It is surprising how much green stuff was hiding under the horse poop. Another month and the horses will be back in this field munching away.

It Seems Spring Riding may Be Delayed a Bit.

 Just when I was getting ready to ride, down it came and is still coming. It took two hours of plowing with the quad and snow blowing to clean up the worst of it.Alpine needs some exercise. She is carrying 100 pounds more than when we first got her, but was overly thin then. Somewhere half way is probably the right weight Currently she weighs in at 1100 pounds.

 Tucker is sitting at 1150 pounds and is a little bulgy also.

 I figure we got about 8 inches of snow (20 cm) and like I said, it's still coming down.

I think I will wait a few days before digging out my truck. I probably won't need it until Wednesday. By then maybe the white stuff will melt. Ha, not going to happen. Then again, why do today what you can put off 'till tomorrow ( or the day after).

A Little Ride

It went up to the freezing temperature today, and being as caught up as I ever get around here, I decided to take Alpine out for a bit of a ride. She knows all the tricks to prevent a rider from mounting. We worked through that.

She really did not want to leave to the herd! We worked through that too.

All in all, a good hour or so  well spent.

It was a busy time yesterday and today. We went over to Edson and picked up a new (well, new to us) SUV for Elaine. The all wheel drive is great in the snow and on the hills around here. It appears that I might have banked some "Atta boys" for future need.

I also managed to strip 4 teeth out of the main drive sprocket on the quad. That required about an hour's worth of work in the field doing enough repairs to get back to the garage. Now I have to re-do it when the new sprocket comes in. I guess when the sprocket comes in, that will eat up one of the "atta boys". Or maybe more than that!

The next 10 day forecast is all around the freezing point which is good as I plan to wear off some of the fat on the horses.

Only 54 days 'till spring!
Bring it on!

Too Hot, But the Work Goes On.

It was stinking hot today 25 C (78F) and very high humidity. I got the gallon of raspberries before the temp maxed out, so that was good. I figured I would toss in a picture to make some folks hungry. It looks like a gallon per day for the next 10 days. No, I didn't eat any. They are all in the freezer.

 Today was mow the driveway day. To do that i needed to run some fence so the automatic mowers didn't go visiting at the neighbours. They have been known to do that in the past.. Below is the rig on the back of the quad trailer for running the wire. It works extremely well.

 I gave strict instructions to the mowers to start at the roadway and work their way down. So much for listening! Tucker is hiding behind a tree in the shade. Alpine is well away from the driveway.

Then there is Biz! She did what she was told and ate near the edge. You know it's hot when Boots is in close and laying in the horse' shade. Brooklynn stayed on the deck, in the shade and was  king  Queen of  her domain.

Yeah, you! I'm watching you! Now get back to work up at the roadside. I mean it!

More Things I've Learned!

Being new to quads, I've got a lot to learn! This doesn't look much like a hill, but it is! When you decide to take a short cut, see if the quad will go through it first without the load.

The poplar blocks are still relatively green, and heavy enough that i could just barely lift one. The quad is high pointed on the belly pan, and the trailer is jack knifed aginst the rear wheel.

I hated the thought of off loading the trailer, so I got my rope, chain and come along , unhooked the trailer and drovethe quad out. I rigged up to the trailer tongue and used the come along to straighten the trailer around. Then, I went and got the 4X4 and rigged to it and popped the dude out of the hole.

Things I learned:
1. What appears to be solid ground is not necessarily so.
2. Taking a short cut does not save time.
3. A fully loaded trailer pushes a quad downhill no matter what you do with the brakes!
4. A fully loaded trailer really likes to jack knife.
5. A come- along takes a lot of levering to move a trailer 20 feet
6.I'm getting too old for this stuff
7. Horses are more reliable than quads. I've never got one stuck yet!
8. Don't apply power to a quad pulling up hill. They tend to want to flip over backwards.
9. In future, people who want firewood, get it where it falls.
10.You don't get this sort of learning curve living in the city!

Today was better. 23C, sunny and no wind. I saddled up Biz and gave the new resident dog the learning curve of trying to keep up with a horse. Her butt was dragging! It was a great day! Nobody got tossed (me)! Nobody got stepped on (Brooklynn). And Biz got a handfull of her favourite apple flavoured horse treats.

Life is GOOD on the acreage!