Another Lunchtime Mini-Tour

This was my lunchtime pick last time.
Today, I took a stroll down one of the many dirt lanes that wind around the many buildings and extend away from the ranch proper for several miles.
This little stream flows through the property and I believe its source is actually a spring. There are fish swimming here. I tried to get a picture, but there was too much glare.


My destination is beyond this gate in a pasture where the steers are currently grazing. I need to watch my step!


Here is a good spot.If you look closely near the last rail of the jack-leg fence, you will see why I need to watch my step.


This jack-leg fence is very useful because it is movable with X-formed legs that sit on the surface. At this point, the fence is protecting a piece of antique ranch equipment from the cattle.

The steers are actually pretty far away. I doubt that they will join me for lunch today.


This is the beautiful sight directly in front of my fence-rail perch. The willows in the foreground follow the path of the Clark Fork River in its lazy, winding journey through the ranch,


Just to my left is the Beaverslide haying machine (shown below). This piece of valuable equipment was invented in Montana around 1910. The following is a bit of history:
This device for stacking loose hay was supposedly developed in Beaverhead County, Montana in 1910, though there is some controversy over this among local historians. Some feel that it was dubbed "beaverslide" because the hay had to "slide" down a ramp in the stacking process. Most ranches in this area had one of these labor saving devices, as they were fairly simple to make. Early homesteaders soon realized though, that the relentless wind, that swept down the east slopes of the mountain front, raised havoc with loose hay. They slowly switched over to baling equipment and large, square haystacks replaced the loose piles on the landscape. Only a few beaverslides remain on the Rocky Mountain Front today. The old one in the photo is located on a nearby ranch.

I'll be sharing more about the beaverslide when they do the heritage haying in July.

To my right I can see several of the buildings near my last lunch spot.



Behind me a glimpse of the railroad trestle is in view.


You can see fire equipment at numerous spots around the ranch. The threat of fire is present from many sources including wildfires caused by lightning and careless people.





That's it for today. Things have been pretty busy getting ready for "Junior Ranger Day" this Saturday. I hope I'll have a bit more time next week to take pictures.