A Wyoming Winter Visitor

The cold continues at 60 miles North of Nowhere.  A whopping ZERO this morning at 8 a.m.  But at least this morning the wind has abated.  Instead of 40 mph it's only 9 mph which seems like nothing.  Last night when I went to bed the wind was clipping along indicating a new front was moving in.  I guess the cold was the new front as the wind is out of the north instead of the usual southwest.

I've read accounts of how the wind would drive people insane in frontier Wyoming.  I believe it.  It's darn near had me there a time or two.

One of the perks of living here is the wildlife and now we have somewhat of a mystery on our hands.

I first became aware of our winter visitor when Bob, the stock dog, began throwing barking fits in the morning.  When I went to investigate, I found this:

Can you spot the visitor in this photo?

Oh here he is!

A fox! He was sitting intently watching for prairie dogs to devour. Hey Bud,

 I wish you great success. Eat all you can.

I think he is a red fox as he is unusually large for a fox. Isn't he beautiful!!!

We also have swift foxes in Wyoming but they are smaller and because he 

is larger and red, I believe he is a red fox (Vulpes vulpes). It took me a

couple of tries to get a photo of him. I had to be sneaky because as soon as

 I stepped outside, he would look over his shoulder at me and move into the 

drainage ditch behind him in the photos. 

He didn't seem very afraid though. The dog did not bother him at all.

Maybe just camera shy? He visited quite regularly for a couple of

weeks but now seems to have moved on to better hunting grounds.

Several years ago, one of the stock dogs, Brookie, would play regularly 

with a young fox. She would chase it, then it would chase her. This

went on for the course of a summer. Since the dog does not bother

this guy, we are wondering if this is the fox who used to play with

the dogs? A mystery we probably will never solve.

Wyoming Winter Hints for the Woefully Under Informed

We are deep into a cold snap which seems to have lasted since well before Thanksgiving.  Christmas Day at Sixty Miles North of Nowhere arrived with snow and temps of 24 below zero.  A nice white cool day....

I feel compelled that perhaps I should explain a few things about Wyoming Winter to you:

My car after a few flakes of snow.........

1.  The term 'breezy' in the local weather report.   This means you will have category 1 hurricane force winds.  Be prepared to experience this from October 15th through April 24th.  Every day will be 'breezy' with sustained winds of 75 mph.

2.  Gusts - here again the weatherman will refer to breezy with gusts.  Gusts are a short burst of wind that will blow you, the dog, and your car into the next state east.  Usually Nebraska.  Sometimes South Dakota depending on your locale.

3.  Chilly - anything below zero degrees farenheit is 'chilly'.  Minus 24?  Your nose instantly froze shut and your lungs won't work? Chilly.

4.  Wind Chill - you multiply chilly with either breezy or gusts to get a minus degree temperature 'feels like' that is somewhere way south of the lowest point your thermometer reaches which is usually minus 50 degrees.  If you bought a wimpy outdoor thermometer.

2 below zero

5. Dress Appropriately - You look like the michlen tire man from wearing so much cold weather gear. Only look like the Pillsbury Dough Boy dressed for a Christmas Caroling?  Put more on, you are woefully under dressed for the 'chilly' weather.

6.  Pacs -  Term used for snow boots with felt liners and worn universally by men, women, children, and Yeti's in Wyolming.You don't need to go to the gym because you get plenty of aerobic just walking with 20 lbs of PAC boots on each foot.

7.  Block Heater - A handy device which attaches to your engine block on one end and your electrical outdoor outlet on the other.  It will warm the engine block enough in 'chilly' conditions to let it turn over and start.  It also warms the heart and pocketbook of the local electrical electrical company.  You make sure your engine heater is plugged in till the 4th of July. AND the horse who 'will unplug it in the middle of the night' is IN THE BARN.

8.  Christmas list - Your Christmas wish list included a new set of tire chains. What, Santa did not bring you tire chains.  Sorry, you are screwed.  Most certainly you will spend the winter 'high-centered'.

9.  High Centered -  Stuck, like up past your vehicle frame in snow.  Never to be 'unstuck' until mid-summer. Proper useage in a sentence: "((&#(&#@!! I'm high Centered!! (*&#@*#@!!!"

10. Gurneys - A gardening catalog every Wyoming household received about October. The Gurney people know ALL ABOUT impluse buying in the winter.  You are obsessessed with the Gurneys catalog beginning in January knowing they don't sell anything neat for a zone 3 climate zone. But you will order the zone 4's ever hopeful......................

11. Goals  - You don't dream about anything other than moving South, anywhere south as long as it's at least 2 climate zones.

12,  Native - Someone born in Wyoming who never achieve their goal of moving 'south' as they are still froze to the ground.  Here's my native when I snagged him 45 years ago.  It was both 'chilly' and 'breezy' when this picture was taken.  We are still frozen to this spot even though I'm not 'native.'

And that's my handy tips and definitions for the Woefully Under Informed about our Wonderful Wyoming Winters!  Hope you enjoyed.

Norm the bull

I wanted to share the tale of Norm our bull.  We acquired Norm as a young bull when we leased him as a two year old.  We liked him a lot, mostly because Norm stayed home!  A highly desireable trait in a bull who tend to wander over to the neighbor's (or further) on a regular basis.

So we purchased Norm.  He wasn't known as Norm in those days, we called him 'Little Bull'.  But he really did not stay little much longer.  And he did not stay home either.   He did not wander off as much as some bulls we had in the past; but he tended to leave once he had all 'his' girls bred.

Hubby would have to saddle up and go find him.  Sometimes it took days and days of riding.

Since the one pasture just north of us contains 10,000 acres that could involve a lot of time to just locate him.  Hubby tried to shorten the time required by first locating Norm with the pickup and then going after him with a horse.  See the rope on the saddle?  Well Hubby 'pops' Norm on the rear end all the way home with the end of this rope.  Understandably, it stings and Norm is NOT fond of this. Hubby thought it would reinforce to Norm he was to STAY  HOME.

Last summer we discovered it worked better than we could have ever hoped.  It pickup broke Norm.

After driving around for HOURS, trying to locate Norm after he had missing for a number of days, we declared defeat and went home.  Only to discover Norm was HOME and back with his cows!  We think he heard (or saw) the pickup and not wanting to endure a butt popping return home, came back on his own!   Well that was success!

Why do we call him Norm?

Norm's normal spot is right where the buckskin mare is standing.  He is standing in the middle in the back waiting for her to vacate HIS spot.  The chestnut standing next to him is the same horse Hubby is riding in the photo above, Melody.  

Remember Norm in the sit-com Cheers?  He always sat at the same spot at the bar.  Well Norm is always at the same spot at the feeder 24/7.  Unless one of the horses ursurps it when he goes for water.  Which is what happened in the above photo.

And now you have the complete story of Norm our bull.

Some Days are Diamonds and some are

Lumps of Coal.  Today was a coal day for me.  STUCK both vehicles trying to get out.  Hubby even plowed at 5 am but the road drifted shut right after he left for work......

Sigh!

This was the road last Friday ... before the most recent snowstorm this Tuesday.  Me thinks we need to relocated our road elsewhere (like maybe Florida??? ROFL)

Tonight both cars are at the highway.  I will WALK out tomorrow morning.  

And what's crazy is the temperatures are in the 40's and upper 30's and I've been stuck....

Having FUN now!

How High can it GO?

Well I THOUGHT it was a good plan.  Do an end run through the pasture, around the drifts, and then JUMP THE HUMP and voila! I was back on the road at the Gate, and at the Highway......but I did not have enough steam going and FAILED .... slid to the fence and was stuck......

Know what the say about close only counts in Horseshoes?  Its TRUE!

Here's the road after it was plowed .... I stuck the car the day before this picture.

You can see it in the distance at the end.

Are we having Fun Yet???????

Fun on A Cold Wintry Wyoming Night....NOT!

6 pm - Dark out, snowing like crazy, wind blowing.  Animals are all fed and watered.  Hubby & I enjoy stew and homemade bread for supper.  Watching streaming TV on the Roku....fire merrily blazing in pellet stove.

7:04 pm - power flashes 2 times, goes out.   Hubby groans, pellet stove automatically switches over to back-up battery.  No TV, No radio, I forgot to charge my kindle, so no reading either.  Hubby says mild swear words.  Calls power company so we are on the call back list with updates on power status.  Told power will be on at 11 pm.  We sit and stare at each other in the dark, and sleep .....

Hubby is a Master at Sleeping in Place

8:45 pm -  I give up and go to bed with lots of covers.  Hubby sleeps on couch in living room to man the pellet stove, our only source of heat.  Stronger swear words about power company as I go to bed.

Use bathroom and flush the ONE tank of water we have down the toilet and hope power will be on Soon.

11:00 pm - I wake up to flashlight coming through bedroom.  Battery out on pellet stove.  Hubby coming in for some more clothes as he has to go out with battery to charge it up on pickup.  Calls power company, finds out restoration time shoved back to 3 am.  STRONG words about power company.  Hope power will be back on soon.

11:30 pm -  Hubby comes back in with battery partially charged.  Pellet stove back on,  Temps down in middle 60's in house.  Pray power will be back on soon.

3:00 am - NO POWER.  Battery out again.  Hubby looks different and language is barely understandable other than he his MAD.  Refuses to go with battery yet again.  Says power is suppose to be back on shortly.  Curses....repeatedly.  I go back to bed.  Realize we never may have power again----EVER.

4:30 am. -  NO POWER.  Temps in mid 50's in house, it's damn cold.  I put on my coat, and head scarf and call power company.  Restoration  time now 8:00 am.   Check gun locker and make sure it's still locked.  Inform hubby.   WORDS.  Hubby goes out and charges up battery again. I've given up and wonder what my fate will be. Death at the hands of this mad man or simply freezing to death.

5:00 am -  Pellet stove going again.  Still cold, cannot catch up.   I stay in coat, scarf and sit on couch.  Hubby has many many words about power company including 'grenades', pieces of s..., etc.  Plotting revenge.  I say nothing.  One wrong word and this guy will kill ME.

7:00 am - Hubby goes out and gets propane tank off BBQ grill and Little Buddy Heater to help pellet stove catch up.  I turn on gas oven and stare at mound of dirty dishes from supper and guess water is probably froze up.  Don't know, power out, no water. Hubby Struggles with tank, heater for quite a while.  He calls Power company, restoration time now 1:00 pm.....words under his breath, not discernible.

7:50 am -- Hubby has Little Buddy lit up and heating.  56.8 degrees in house.  Still in coat, scarf, and non verbal as threats are flying fast and furious.  Power company will be toast when this guy catches up with them.

8:05 am - POWER COMES ON.  Blessings, water is not froze in kitchen sink, I do dishes, fix breakfast.  Hubby returns to normal and goes to bed.  Cranky, but not a zombie anymore.  

And so goes life without power at 60 Miles North of Nowhere.

Hope it stays on - lows of -4 tonight predicted and -12 Sunday Night........Keeping fingers crossed.

Winter Moon

I Think Fall Was

September 24th this year in Wyoming.  I missed it.

First Snow - September 26th and it was a doozy.

Then in Early October we've had one snow of about 18" (Atlas) which drove east of us and devastated the poor Ranchers in South Dakota.  Our livestock got cold but we poured some hay into all of them and they weathered it okay.

The Beginning of Atlas

Then we've had 2 more snows for about 8" total.....all of which has melted into MUD.

BUT

And WINTER isn't even here yet -- this is suppose to be FALL, where did it go?

Oh, and remember I was going to get laid off and retire?? Like not drive to work from Sixty Miles North of Nowhere and looking forward to it?  Not happening.   The gal who was going to do my job in California quit.  So they are stuck with me and I am stuck with driving.

Maybe I need to get a rig like this and pack my roads like they used to for the sleighs (I do have one).

HEIGH HO, HEIGH HO OFF TO WORK WE GO!

Well I think this should take the drudgery out of a morning commute!!!!  

I have found some interesting information on one of my ancestors and will try to get a post together about him.  Very interesting stuff sometimes!

Drive Safe this Winter....If its bad, I ain't gonna go is my mantra.

WYOROAD Helpful Hints from Heloise aka Nanook of the North

Since you found the previous post so helpful with my marvelous definitions; and since I don't want you to go out unprepared in the Wyomng Weather, I am posting more helpful explanations for you. (Actually my warped mind works overtime and it has to have somewhere to go to relieve the pressure.....)

More Helpful WYOROAD Definitions


Limited Visibility -- This is when you are greatly relieved you can see a black strip directly in front of your hood.  You are relieved because you believe you can see the roadway.  With horror, you realize you are actually viewing the bug screen on your hood.

Wet -- Its wet now sucker but by the time you get to your destination it will be ICE as in SLICK.

Strong Winds - When you see a small dog with a brick tied to his collar blow past your vehicle, you know the winds are STRONG.

Oh man, now I have to walk home with this brick!

Windy -  The dog blows by you WITHOUT the brick on his collar.

I cannot win. Either way I walk home!

Drifted Snow - The highway department realizes the drifts are tall enough to bury a cow in; but you are on your own.  A word of caution - if you pack that drifted snow Clear Back to the Firewall on your vehicle while you are busting the cow-sized drifts getting to your destination; once you shut off the ignition it won't start.  It will take TWO DAYS with a hand held blow dryer to melt enough packed snow out of that engine compartment to get your vehicle operational.  Voice of Experience.

Day 3 of the Melt Ice Operation

Dry - Unless its the fourth of July, don't get too excited.  It's a brief temporary condition.

Closed - If you read this as the status of the roadway you just became stuck on from your new smartphone; prepare to die like Hatchet Jack in the previous post as you will be very frozen and most stuck before the highway department finds you.

Hatchet Jack, stuck in 1823 and found by Jeremiah Johnson two months later on Hwy 192

Sand - What the highway department claims they have put on the hill you just slid off of....and as you climb out of your vehicle you find it....in microscopic amounts.

Chain Law - This means put the chains on the vehicle AFTER you have become stuck and BEFORE you call the tow truck.

Fog - Snow that hasn't landed yet.

Landed Fog

Next time we will learn Weather Conditions.  Study hard.  Test later.

We Interrupt Winter to Bring You.........

Some definitions to help you survive the season.

What's it mean when WYOROAD says the roadway is 'slick'?  You ain't in for a good day of driving.

Slick as in no visible roadway for two states over

What does it mean when the WYOROAD website says the road is "Slick In Spots"?  It means that darn spot runs for about 60 longggggggggg  miles before it has a brief interruption of dry road.  Most of which you will be gripping the steering wheel in sheer terror.

Slick in spots with the brown spots being unslick but very muddy.

What's it mean when someone says they are 'high-centered?'  Now this is a very regional term for Stuck, like as in you ain't gonna move without either a shovel or a pull.

When it the last snow in Wyoming?  Usually late April or Early May.  In 2010 - it was May 6th.

May 6th, 2010

Okay so when is the first snow of the season?  Anytime after Labor Day, in 2010 it was October 26th - which can be called a little late.

October 26, 2010

Do you ever just slide off the road in 'slick' conditions?  Frequently.  In fact there was joke that was emailed around 60 miles North of Nowhere folk where in other places people scream before they slide off the road.  Sixty Miles North of Nowhere, we usually hand our drink to the passenger, grab another gear on the four wheel drive pickup and yell, Watch THIS!

When do you put on 'chains?'  When you are High Centered usually.  Nobody 60 Miles North of Nowhere in their right mind would put on tire chains until they are High Centered.  It's a cold, wet, muddy, nasty job at it's best.  And that if the sun is shining and it's not snowing hard.

So do you have other seasons in Wyoming?  Sure, we have spring, summer and fall all packed into about 120 days.  The other 245 days of the year vary between SLICK and SLICK IN SPOTS.

Upcoming in 2012 --- Spring.

Warning: Don't blink or you might miss it!

Was this ANY WAY to start 2012?

Photo is actually January 2008 - but its pretty similar now except MORE snow.  We started 2012 out with a snowstorm and howling winds which equals huge drifts.  Now that isn't so bad, that's typical of Wyoming in January.

What wasn't usual (well maybe more than he would like to admit) is that Hubby was walking BACK from the gate because his truck was stuck.  In the ditch, in the snow, up to the bed on the rear wheels.  But get this: he wasn't STUCK.  Nope, his definition of 'stuck' is you don't survive the incident.  Like in you DIE.

He'd been turning around in the plow/feed truck to after clearing some good sized drifts and backed into the 'well' alongside the road we have to catch the snow so the drift isn't so deep on the road and well he got (say it softly) 'stuck' temporarily detained.  My first clue was all the geldings standing the road looking at the fiasco like they were wondering, "What's he gonna do? We ain't been fed yet."

So first thing I asked him, what are you stuck?  Him: No.  Me: Looks like you ain't moving.  Him: Not yet.  Me:  Do I need to pull you out?  Him: Would be nice, saves me from walking back again.  Me: First you gotta say you are stuck.  Him: Nope.  Me: Yep.  Him: Okay I'm stuck.

Feed Us.  Feed Us!

So being gracious I pulled him.  And he rescinded his stuck temporarily detained statement.

Hmmmm, for clarification I give you He Said, She Said:

The Definition of Stuck

HIS - Hatchet Jack in Jeremiah Johnson, although of sound mind and broke legs, was definitely STUCK and most Frozen.

HERS - Anytime you are wallowing around in a snow bank putting these puppies on, you are STUCK.

HE WAS DEFINITELY STUCK on January 1, 2012.  I Rest my Case.

Global Warming? WELL at least Statewide Warming in Wyoming.........

Hooray!  Its warmed up to almost 40 degrees ABOVE zero.............boo, the wind is blowing like a banshee, really ripping out there.  I saw on a blog where the guy does not believe in WIND CHILL. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised at that, he lives in South Texas.  He's never SEEN wind chill.  But I tell yah, if you've ever been outside at ANY temperature below zero even with a slight breeze, you will become an ardent believer inWind Chill and it's effects.  It can be BRUTAL.


Remember I said Hubby had probably been able to plow our road for the LAST time as the plowed piles are now a lot higher than his snow blade?  Well here is an interesting 'experiment'.  Let's see how long it takes for ol' man SOL to decrease those piles.

Please NOTE I have inserted a sun.  I am being optimistic that WINTER will end one day, and the sooner the better for me.


So today I trundled out in the wind (and it was only about 30 degrees when I went out this morning so with the wind, that made the wind chill minuz mega zillion degrees BELOW comfortable).


Here's the road --- it has already melted some from yesterday and has dirt peeking through.

Starting to warm --- dirt peeking through but No Mud yet.  Hints of Possible Mud.

Wow is the snow deep like that all over?  Nooo - we can thank the Wonderful Wyoming Wind for it's work.

There's a hillside under here somewhere...

Where did it all come from?  Probably from here...............

And the 4' pvc pipe marked in 1" increments.  The pile along the road is 41" tall here......

Updates to follow................................

PS I got the idea from Far Side over HERE and her 'snow stick'.  But I do believe her winter in Minny-Soda is colder and rougher than ours because their snow stays alllllllll  damn winter.  At least we get a reprieve from a for a few days at a time, like now.

In fact, a lot of ranchers in Wyoming are seeing these arrive.

None of ours will hit the ground until April when it's a TAD warmer.  You need pens and barns for Momma cows to calve this early and we don't have them for our small herd-let.

I have decided I am tired of trying to haul my lard-ass  butt up on my horse so am starting a low carb diet today.  As of 5 pm, I am SURE I have lost at least 45 pounds because I am hungry enough to eat the south-end of a north-bound skunk--but at least that's low-carb! so I would not be breaking the diet.

 So that's my challenge, lose enough I can Hop Up on the Ol' Pony by Summer.  Now it's a boost, heave HO up.  Not pretty, no not pretty at all.

Okay Mr. Sun - here's your challenge.  MELT THAT SNOW, MELT THAT SNOW, MELT THAT SNOW.  C'MON MUD, BRING IT ON!  I'M READY.

ENOUGH ALREADY!

Came home from work tonight find Hubby trying to plow out our road.  Notice the Trying Part - he did manage one lane but it's drifting so bad with the wind, I do not dare to drive my car in to the house or it will be here till spring.

We probably have six inches of snow on the ground.  This photo is from two years ago and shows the drift our propane tank creates.  We did NOT consider drifting snow when we put our road in ten years ago.  We just went from Point A to Point B.   I guess we get the Bears of Very Little Brain Road Builders Award.

I haven't filled our propane tank this year hoping to get it down to 50% so we CAN MOVE IT.

Hopefully the warm temperatures (40's YEAH) predicted later this weekend and for several days later will reduce the snow enough Hubby can get the lane plowed out.

Don't feel too sorry for me.  The gate is where the two trees are in the distance in this picture with the road leading up to them.  Yeah, I can walk that in the am when the wind chill is -15.  Done it before.   Sigh.

I am SO OVER winter..................................