We’ve had some extreme weather over the last couple days. Friday night saw freezing rain as the temperatures climbed. Saturday and Sunday the farm was encased in THICK FOG. Saturday night we drove down to Hanover to see Dartmouth’s Big Green men’s hockey team defeat Harvard’s Crimson 3-2 in a great game (Peg’s first ever hockey game). The clouds were so thick on the drive down Jericho Street even I had to slow down considerably behind the wheel. People who know my driving style can only imagine how thick the fog had to be to cause that.
So this morning, we woke to a heightened cloud ceiling, with cloud remnants in some of the valleys. We could actually SEE the hills and fields that were missing for two straight days. With temperatures climbing into the 40s, we decided today the flock will head back to the fields. Much of the snow we got the week after Christmas has melted and the brown grass is exposed across the hill.
First we took the ladies out to the north slope of the west field. The combination of troughs and grain (and us?) motivated them to trudge through the deep snow still in the barn yard and follow us out. Once they were chomping on the grain, Peg stayed with them while I brought out the field feeder and some hay from the barn yard. When we left, they seemed content to stay where they were and even eat some grass.
Next, we took the boys down about halfway in the east field, using the same routine. They, too, seemed content to stay out after we left. We’ve found that both the boys and the girls will congregate at the top of their respective fields by the gates that lead back to the barn yard. Later in the morning, they did it again.
About an hour after moving the girls, I looked out to see them jostling the hay feeder, and YEP over it went on its side. I walked out to get a bag of rocks from the shelter to keep that from happening again. As I got into the field, the girls all rushed over to me. I started trudging towards the feeder with the rock bag, only to look up to find Louise – on her back in a snow drift with her four legs pointing straight up. She must have slipped in the rush and flipped over. It was so cute and so funny. She didn’t look too upset, but she also didn’t look like she could get herself back on all fours. I dropped the rock bag, walked over and gently pushed her legs to one side so she could get purchase. I have to remember to take my phone out to the fields so I can catch those moments on film.
After securing the girls feeder, I did the same for the boys. By this time the day has turned glorious – mostly sunny, high 40s, and a brisk wind out of the west.
Next, down to Leo’s barn to get more hay. We can store maybe 14-16 bales in the barn at a time, and we were down to the last good one (we had two first cut bales, too). Moby and I drove down the hill and backed up under the door to the hay loft. A Town of Hartford truck loaded with hard pack was parked across Jericho Street from the barn. After I tossed ten bales of George Miller’s fine second cut hay down behind the truck, I came back down to find a second truck, also loaded with hard pack.
The two drivers were out in the road, so we chatted for about 15 minutes. They were waiting for the grader. While Jericho Road is paved, about a mile of Jericho Street is gravel starting right at Leo’s barn and heading towards Norwich and Hanover. The roads that feed off Jericho Street – Wallace, Sugartop, and Joshua – are also gravel. Quick thaws can wreak havoc on those roads – ruts can quickly get so deep and gunky that even Subarus have trouble (according to one of the truck drivers). I noted that we encountered mud season last March when we first toured what was to become Savage Hart Farm. That weekend is the reason we now have Moby.
The grader came down Jericho Road, and we all went our ways. Before I loaded the barn with our new hay, I took the two first cut bales (not all that popular with the sheep) out into the fields – one for the boys and one for the girls. Just set them out on the ground – they can pick through and find what they like, or not.
The last chore to make sure the sheep are well cared for – mineral feeders. It was easy to move the covered feeder for the boys – I only had to carry it about 50 yards. For the girls, I took the small feeder (which is not covered) from the barn and dropped it by the water bucket in the west field. By this time they were back over close to the gate, but they were mostly grazing – a good thing.
The string of lights and garland are off the rail fence at the top of the hill. I’ll take the large wreath off the garage wall later today. If the weather stays this nice the rest of the day, we’ll probably leave the flock out in the fields tonight. The weather forecast looks like it might stay above freezing during the day through Thursday.
Todd
NEWS ALERT! I almost forgot! Birds have finally found our bird feeders. I set two out the week after Thanksgiving before the ground froze and filled them with sunflower seeds, mixed seeds, and suet blocks. No activity at all. The birds are out there. I hear them in the fields and the woods. But they apparently don’t bother coming by the house because there haven’t been feeders here in the past?
Anyway, I’m in the laundry room yesterday and I see a large flock of small birds (finches? chickadees?) flying past just outside in the fog. I run into the kitchen to see them by the feeder just outside the kitchen window. But they fly off immediately. Run over to the other feeder outside the dining room and there they are. They flitted back and forth between the trees at the top of the west field and the feeder for about ten minutes, and flew off. Haven’t seen any since, but at least now there is cause for hope before the winter ends.
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