Wife's old place

[Dave]

Yesterday's travels took us by the ranch my wife use to own. So we turned off the pavement and drove up the 14 mile long driveway. You are in Nevada where you turn off and about 10 or 11 miles up there you cross into Oregon. It is a pretty nice place but mighty secluded. Not for a lot of people. It is 25 miles to a one pony town. Just a post office and a tavern. Good solid 2 hour drive to a town with grocery store and gas station. The present owners weren't home but we talked to their hired man. I took a couple pictures from a few miles back up the driveway. The first from a mile or so back. That clump of trees is at the house, barn, and shop. The second is from the state line looking toward the ranch. The clump of trees was visible with the naked eye but didn't show in the picture. Third at the state line looking south into Nevada.

 

[Ky hills]

Sure is different country from what I’m used to seeing.
On some level’s I think I’d like that.
After I started counting vehicles passing our driveway yesterday evening while I was waiting to cross the road with the tractor to get hay, I counted 12 atleast and then 10 before I could pull out on my way back across.

 

[Dave]

Yesterday I counted vehicles while driving east on Highway 140 from Lakeview Oregon to Denio Nevada. It is 117 miles. We had 12 assorted vehicles pass us going west. I figured 4 of them were ranch vehicles, one was some sort of maintenance, and the rest were tourists. Break down on this road you might have to wait a while. However open your hood up and anyone coming by will stop. Zero cell service is pretty much a guarantee.
We also saw 6 deer, one herd of pronghorns, assorted cattle, and one shady looking character walking a long the road carrying a couple bags 10 miles from the nearest anything.

 

[GoWyo]

Is that a hay meadow between the sagebrush and the trees in the first picture?

 

[Dave]

Is that a hay meadow between the sagebrush and the trees in the first picture?

There is a smaller pivot that direction. Not sure if that is it. Seems like the pivot is to the left. The wife said there is a well for water to the pivot but not much water. On up passed the house etc is a smallish reservoir that waters a meadow up that way. They actually do a lot of winter grazing in this country which weather permitting allows them to get by without much winter feeding.

 

[GoWyo]

I have been in that country north of Winnemucca. Long way between places, but the meadows with good water can put up nice hay. The winter grazing can be a good advantage for a cow-calf operation.

 

[Named'em Tamed'em]

Thats about 100 miles from the ranch where I picked up Roy. Very desolate country.

 

[Dave]

Thats about 100 miles from the ranch where I picked up Roy. Very desolate country.

I remember you got Roy up around Burns Junction. I thought about that when I flew through there yesterday. Desolate is a matter of perspective and opinion. I love the "Big Out There" but it is no country for old men. And I am not as young as I use to be.

 

[Named'em Tamed'em]

I remember you got Roy up around Burns Junction. I thought about that when I flew through there yesterday. Desolate is a matter of perspective and opinion. I love the "Big Out There" but it is no country for old men. And I am not as young as I use to be.

Arock Oregon

 

[Dave]

Arock Oregon

I was thinking Burns Junction but Arock is in the same neighborhood. Just a bit farther north. Actually heavier populated than Burns Junction.

 

[greybeard]

I'm guessing "neighborhood'' canbe anywhere within 200 sq miles...

 

[wbvs58]

Yesterday's travels took us by the ranch my wife use to own. So we turned off the pavement and drove up the 14 mile long driveway. You are in Nevada where you turn off and about 10 or 11 miles up there you cross into Oregon. It is a pretty nice place but mighty secluded. Not for a lot of people. It is 25 miles to a one pony town. Just a post office and a tavern. Good solid 2 hour drive to a town with grocery store and gas station. The present owners weren't home but we talked to their hired man. I took a couple pictures from a few miles back up the driveway. The first from a mile or so back. That clump of trees is at the house, barn, and shop. The second is from the state line looking toward the ranch. The clump of trees was visible with the naked eye but didn't show in the picture. Third at the state line looking south into Nevada.

View attachment 62140View attachment 62141View attachment 62142

A bit like a lot of country in Australia. Some of our herbage makes great feed.

Ken

 

[Dave]

A bit like a lot of country in Australia. Some of our herbage makes great feed.

Ken

That is sage brush. Cows don't eat it. I use to have a lot here but the fire took care of it.

 

[CowboyRam]

Am I seeing some greasewood in there as well?

 

[Dave]

Am I seeing some greasewood in there as well?

Could be I didn't look that close. Probably some Rabbit brush too. The majority is sage. It is the grass between that is important.

 

[Travlr]

It is 25 miles to a one pony town.

Denio?

They used to have a bunch of vehicles that were either abandoned or were warehoused and forgotten, parked there. Several old fire trucks, a bunch of old international pickups with AT&T boxes instead of a p-up box, and I also remember a duelly model T with a camper built on it, probably abandoned there in the depression. And other interesting stuff. Straight-eight cars, etc.

Lots of feral burros on that road too.

 

[CowboyRam]

Looks a bit like the Red Desert here, just not a populated. I have spent some very cold days on the Red Desert.

 

[Dave]

I'm guessing "neighborhood'' canbe anywhere within 200 sq miles...

Arock is probably 20 miles or so northeast of Burns Junction. Just up past Rome along the Owyhee. There is some irrigation so the ranches there have irrigated hay meadows.

 

[Dave]

I'm guessing "neighborhood'' canbe anywhere within 200 sq miles...

There are ranches in that part of the world bigger than 200 square miles. Some much bigger.

 

[Dave]

I did some quick and dirt math on a couple big ranches I know. Two of them are well over 1,000 square miles. The other came out to about 550 square miles. Saturday we stopped at the wife's daughter and SIL's ranch. The SIL told me that in the spring he takes the cows over to the Idaho border (40 +/- miles) and then slowly works them back to the west. They end up back to the ranch in the fall. Big country and certainly different than a lot of the world.