Checking cows and Civet Cats

As is my habit in the Summer, I check the "Pot Hole" Field over at the ranch next door for stuck Cows and Calves. The field is a myriad of springs, and for all purposes, they are bottomless. The field is the only thing this time of the year that keeps grass growing that is not "Hay Fields". Of course the Hay is necessary for this winter, but the Cows with their new Calves, need as good a food as they can get to meet the shipping requirements a bit later in the summer. This gives me a reason to fly a bit, and the air is generally pretty nice early in the mornings. A cup of coffee and some relaxing music, and it doesn't seem like work at all.

https://vimeo.com/47196941

The Cows can generally manage to survive for a day or more, but the Calves are at risk from the plentiful Coyotes that this years bumper crop of Rabbits have spawned. Once the Calf tires and lays down, he is helpless.

After checking the field and finding that there were no stuck critters, I decided to check Appendix Point ( named for belly scars of the swimmers.) for water. It is one of my most important Duck ponds for Jessie the Falcon to hunt. Important because it is close to home and I can save on fuel. There is a little bit of water still left and it may hang on until the rains this fall. I can only hope, for if this dries up, I am relegated to the creeks for prey for Jessie. Creeks provide too many escape points and it is hard to get a good flight.

After returning home and putting "Dart" away, I was gathering up my stuff to go have some breakfast. As I was leaving, I heard a clunk that shouldn't have been there. I returned to the main part of the hanger and stopped to look. Out from under one of my shelves a cute little head poked out to look at me. A Civet Cat! Karen had a incident with a "Skunk?" while I was fishing last week. Nothing more had developed since I had returned, so I had hoped that he had moved on. Sigh! no such luck.

Breakfast would have to wait. I went to the house and got Karen, and a shotgun and locked up the Dogs. We went back out to the Hanger and he saw us and made a run behind the air compressor and a bunch of shelving. Karen suggested the air might just drive him out of hiding. It did indeed put him on the run in the right direction. Unfortunately he took refuge in an old Clothes dryer that I had stored for some unknown reason, and wouldn't come out. I tried more of the air, and got nothing but dust. Well, I didn't need the dryer any way, so I drug it outside to where I had a clear field of fire.

Well I waited as best as I am able, then it was time for the water hoses. I managed to water a lot of landscape, but could not get him out. Since Karen was there setting the thing on fire wasn't an option, so I got her to get the Quad and some rope. My idea was to at least get it as far away from the house as I could. Ignoring it was not one of the options available. I have had entirely too many instances of the damage these things can do.

I had Karen drive and I sat on the rear of the Quad to watch. We hadn't got more than 10 feet when the C Cat made a break back to the Hanger. I jumped off and managed to get in front of it and block it. It retaliated by standing on its front legs to threaten me. Bad move! The first shot knocked it back and the second reduced it to a gagging ( for Karen) mess of former Civet Cat. While Karen was losing her breakfast, ( she was down wind and just doesn't seem to tolerate Skunk smells very well) I ran for some garbage bags and a rubber glove. I bagged it, and off we went to a remote area of the property.

I had to leave my shoes outside, but I got by without having to change my clothes.

Haboob, Southeast Oregon Desert Style!

I had gone out to mow the lawn, and even out the parts that the Rabbits hadn't eaten. I had thought earlier that there might be another fire South of where the Long Draw fire had burned, but as I spent more time outside it became obvious that this was ash picked up by the winds out of the South. The forecast had been for strong winds out of the South, and they were coming.

I stopped the mower and went in to get Karen, since the towering ash cloud was becoming spectacular. She decided to go to the top of the hill to make sure that it wasn't a fire. I went with her, and we no more got to the top of the hill than we beat feet back to the house to prepare for the arrival as it was very apparent that it was going to be spectacular to say the least.

Karen started closing the house and I shut the hanger door, and put Jessie to bed. Karen shot still pictures, while I grabbed the Drift video camera.

We were blacked out totally for about 15 minutes. The only thing that you could see outside was a faint walkway light. The wind got up to 31 mph. It finally blew over and things have cleared up. there is very little evidence of the event. I am sure that the ash will end up somewhere, just not here.

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https://vimeo.com/46991711