Big Horn Basin Wyoming

Big Horn Lake

2011-07-23T15:37:00.000-07:00

Just a few shots of Big Horn Lake...

A large pond nearby...

And sunset over the lake with a view of the Absaroka and Bear Tooth Range

More coming soon....

Cottonwood Canyon and Absaroka Range

2011-02-15T19:45:00.000-08:00

There is just no good reason for not posting for so long. Why does the time go so much faster as we get older! I hate this! Then I had a conflict with my new camera and my super slug computer. I am finally getting my act together and plan to get back to posting here again.

This was taken last summer. Looking right up Cottonwood Canyon. No way do pictures do this justice. Cottonwood canyon is at the base of the Big Horn Mountains western side. This is the big canyon we see from our place. You can see it on some or my previous posts from a distance.

Sunset looking west (of course) from the base of Cottonwood Canyon

Looking across Big Horn Lake at the Absaroka Range and the Beartooth Mountains.

I promise to be back with more pictures...soon!

Autumn in Wyoming

2010-10-12T19:58:00.000-07:00

Sykes Ridge Road (that wild and rough road from an earlier post) is on the left side of that large orange tree, it looks like a pointy ridge. That road...if you can call it a road, followed that ridge and then plunged down on this side.

If you click on the image you can get a good look at the ridge.

I have a ton of pictures to post from this summer if I can find the time to get them out of my camera. Hopefully soon!

Wyoming Longhorn Cattle

2010-08-10T17:22:00.000-07:00

I get a kick out of these critters....photographed on the eastern side of the Big Horn Mountains near Story, Wyoming

Is it an albino moose?

2010-07-02T08:56:00.000-07:00

We came across two moose while in the Big Horn Mountains. I wonder if this dirty white moose is an albino moose? I've never seen one before, not the best photos but I was still learning how to use my spiffy new camera at the time and I had to move quickly as these guys were not standing still!

Short trip up into the Pryor Mountains

2010-06-11T08:28:00.001-07:00

We took what we thought would be a short few hour trip into the Pryor Mountains. We went up by way of Cottonwood Creek Road which is a trail interesting enough on it's own and we have been on several times. This is a one lane dirt road going through scrub cedar at first and eventually into pine forests.

As you get higher it becomes straight up on the left side and straight down a very steep side on the right. Once we got up into the mountains we came across these little guys. Their mama's were up the hill on our left, the young ones stopped long enough for us to get a few pictures.

We wanted to go back a different way and this was a road we had never been on so why not! The sign says "Recommended" 4 wheel drive road. This is Sykes Ridge Road...can't be too bad if it follows a ridge and we should have fantastic views!

This was the first rough part. The photos in no way can show how steep it is but it was very steep and rocky. I took very few photos as I was using the movie camera to get most of the trip. As we went downhill we said we aren't going back up that road! Hope there isn't anything any worse...can't be! Well...we were in for a big surprise! This is most of what the road did, up and down extremely steep hills with literally hairpin turns.

There is NO WAY anyone could do this in a 2 wheel drive and if you didn't have high clearance...forget it! Full size long box pick up with 4 wheel drive....no way! One of those 4X4's with the lift kit and the monster wheels would be more like it!

On one hairpin curve the right rear wheel stayed on solid rock while my husband steered the truck around the curve. We just pivioted around. There was no way a long box would have made that turn. Thank goodness we have a trusty 1989 Chevy 4 wheel Blazer or we would have been spending the night there. Thanks Diane for selling us your truck!!!

This short little trip was only 12 miles long from our place and back...It took us 6 hours!! And we never stopped for very long anywhere especially as we could tell we would be lucky to get back before dark. We did but just barely.

Yup...that's the truck parked on a flat spot...not many of those on this road. This would have been the best ad for Chevy Blazers back when they were made for this. I love that truck!!!

This is one view overlooking Devils Canyon. About the only way to view it unless you are in an airplane. The Big Horn Mountains are across the way.

This was the most fun I have had in ages! I want to go back but my husband says only if we take the ATV's and go up this time and only as far as where the truck was parked....bring a tent and camp for a day or two. The views are to die for and not a soul around.

Do not attempt this road without the proper vehicle in good working order, tools, food and water!!!

The only damage was we blew one shock (correction...there were 2) we didn't know that until we got home.

Be sure to click on the photos, at least the 2 scenery ones. You'll get a much better feel for what it looked like.

Well Water...at last

2010-05-10T19:05:00.000-07:00

I know, it doesn't look like much, but after several years of hauling water from the neighbors...which we really appreciated, it's soooooo nice to have our own water. My husband finally put a pump in the well last summer (2009) and hooked up the electricity so we have running water! It may have to come out of a garden hose for now but I'm so happy to have water!

So that means now I can do laundry the way I like to do laundry! I still prefer the old Maytag wringer washer. My husband spotted the double laundry tubs with the lid at an antique store in Missouri for cheap! We grabbed it without hesitating. It's a prefect set up! As long as I don't drop the wet laundry on the dirt floor!

The tub lid is leaning against an old mangle...the old electric things that pressed clothing. My mom had one when I was a little kid and I've never seen one since until in Byron, Wyoming at a sale a couple of years ago. The woman was so happy someone was interested in it that she insisted I take it for free! I think it will make a great plant stand on the porch of our house that is not built yet! My husband was not happy about this but he loaded it up in the truck anyway! I think it's so cool!

There is a second washer in the background. For all of these years I have saved both my Grandma's and my moms washer. I grew up using my moms and they still do the best job over any automatic and talk about "going green"...this is way more green than any modern machine, to me anyway.

Old Corrals

2010-05-08T18:24:00.000-07:00

I just love the old gates and corrals that came with the place. I know this gate was posted earlier but I just never get tired of them. I like how they used old horse shoes for latches and post holders.

I like that door handle on the old barn too. Someone did all of this many years ago.

Moon over the Mountain

2010-05-07T18:52:00.001-07:00

A couple of shots of the full moon, one rising over the mountain.

Big Horn Canyon

2010-05-05T14:20:00.000-07:00

Our place is south of the entrance to the Big Horn Canyon. We took a day trip as far as we could go. I thought I'd add a few photos. This would be where the Big Horn River enters the Big Horn Canyon which then runs into the Yellowstone River in Montana.

Horseshoe Bend is the first stop, a place to launch your boat to do a little fishing up the canyon.

A shot of the Big Horn Canyon

We came across a couple of Big Horn Sheep along the roadside.

A floating outhouse on the river. Check it out!...no guard rails, one slip and you are in some pretty deep water! (Yes, there is a holding tank)

Wild Horses

2010-04-30T10:06:00.001-07:00

It's about time I got back to this blog. I'll be adding a batch of photos from August 2009 during the next few days. We're about ready to run out again to move a pile of logs from two old cabins given to us by our good friend Joan. I'll write more about that after we get back and I have photos ready to post.

This is from the same time we were up in the Pryor Mountains as the previous Wild Mustang shots. This is a view looking at Wyoming, pretty close to the Montana/Wyoming border.

Wild Horses Pryor Mountains Montana

2009-10-08T11:59:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't posted for a long time. I've been swamped! We were out working on "The Dirt Ranch" in August. This is a day trip into the Pryor Mountains which are just a few miles away from our place. I have a ton of pictures to post so will add them every so often.

These horses are incredible. This was just before the round up. They were to capture about 60 wild horse to be auctioned off for adoption. Our neighbor has 2 from several years ago and was thinking of getting 2 more. Haven't heard what she did yet. They actually have all the wild horses accounted for, named and which ones they will capture specifically.

It's a rough road to get here but well worth the trip. I will post pictures of the wild road back down the mountain (we took a different way down). It was the wildest road my husband or I have ever been on. 3 hours to travel 10 miles! No kidding! Slight damage to the truck but nothing that can't be fixed!

If you click on the photo you will see a much nicer image but be sure to click the back button to get back to the main blog.

Fawn

2009-08-15T17:01:00.000-07:00

No....this does not belong here. But I couldn't resist. I took this out our living room window in Minnesota. The mother just went over the hill before I took this shot. We are surrounded by deer and wild turkeys here, I will miss this when we move to WY. A few days after this I was sitting in the front yard and I suddenly noticed the fawn again. I sat very still. Out of curiosity he slowly approached me. He dared get as close as 15 feet, then sniffed the air a little and slowly walked away.

Heart Mountain

2009-06-27T06:44:00.000-07:00

A View of Heart Mountain. This shot was taken on a bridge south of Powell and east of Cody looking west.

Wyoming Rest Stop

2009-06-25T08:46:00.000-07:00

We came across this 'rest stop' in the Big Horns Mountains one day. We thought it was rather amusing.

Lizard

2009-05-30T17:39:00.000-07:00

I caught this little guy catching some sun on a rock. They are everywhere...harmless, I like the little guys.

Trailer of goodies

2009-05-24T18:28:00.000-07:00

I laugh when I see this picture. This is fall of 2005 when we came out for a short time. May as well bring a load! Our canoe, old plow, old cast iron radiator (might use it in the house) and my Grandma's old Maytag. They still are the best washing machines as far as I'm concerned! Yes, I intend to use it again!

Wyoming Friends

2009-05-10T09:29:00.000-07:00

Our good Wyoming friends Doug and Joan at their home on the lake.

I accidently bumped into Doug while on our ATV out on the BLM land when I was looking for old cow skulls. We hit it off immediatly, he led me to a ranchers big pile of old bones (I got 19 cow skulls...quit a find for this old bone collector). Doug met my husband and then I met Joan and we all became good friends. You can't ask for better friends!

Good Neighbors

2009-04-16T19:14:00.000-07:00

I don't how we got so lucky but we have the best neighbors in Wyoming that anyone could possibly have. Here are 2 of my favorites on their Gator, Neil and Ruth.

Before we bought this little piece of Wyoming, we were coming down the mountain heading west towards town. I pointed to a small clump of Cottonwood trees and said to my husband "That's where I want to live, that clump of trees". Well we ended up directly behind that clump of trees and Neil and Ruth are the owners of that clump of trees! How could we get so lucky!!!!

Forest Fire...Summer 2007

2009-04-02T19:51:00.000-07:00

The reason for all of the smoke in many of the photos of the barn. After the crew was finished we took a trip up the mountain and found the source of the smoke! We sat and watched it burn for awhile, it sure does move fast with no wind. Hard to believe this can cause so much smoke for so far.

Pole Barn...Summer 2007

2009-04-02T19:49:00.000-07:00

Getting the doors on. All it needs is the floor!

2009-04-02T19:46:00.000-07:00

It took about 5 days to put the entire building up from start to finish. They were running behind by the end of the week so they brought out a second crew. We had 6 guys busy at work. It was just like watching busy ants, never a dull moment.

This is built by Cleary of Sheridan Wyoming

2009-04-02T19:44:00.000-07:00

I thought this was an interesting view!

2009-04-02T19:43:00.000-07:00

Putting up the poles.

2009-04-02T19:38:00.001-07:00

Getting the barn started. Bringing in the supplies and the crew.

This is summer of 2007.

Mountain Road

2009-03-15T20:40:00.000-07:00

On our way down the mountain at sunset. This is a 10% grade for 10 miles.

This photo and the following photos were taken in July 2005 after the well was drilled....we took a break and headed up the mountain.

In The Big Horn Mountains

2009-03-15T20:36:00.000-07:00

Had to escape the heat of the basin for a day so we took a little trip up the mountain to cool off along a little trout creek.

It takes 3o minutes and we're up nearly 10,000 feet, nice and cool after the high desert heat.

2009-03-15T20:34:00.000-07:00

Fleabane.....not a very nice name for a pretty little flower. One of my favorites.

2009-03-15T20:30:00.000-07:00

Elephant's Head.

I saw these in a wildflower book and always hoped to find them someday... and I did! They really do look like an elephant's head.

2009-03-15T20:26:00.000-07:00

White Phlox

Drilling the well

2009-03-06T10:27:00.001-08:00

Summer of 2005. We had Dave Newton of Worland WY drill our well. His daughter 'witched' for the water. I never really believed it was for real until I watched her, then she had me try it and and yes, I can find water too! The rods really do move on their own, what a strange sensation that is! She said it was 75 ft. and flowing east to west and knew how wide the underground source was. Yup, they found water at 72 ft. and plenty of it!

Cattle Drive

2009-03-03T11:29:00.001-08:00

We heard some noise and looked out to this view. Just a small herd. But the cowboys were having a good time. Just when they got near, a couple guys held back and then took off in a race to see who's horse was the fastest. The sun had already set.

Fall Round Up

2009-03-03T11:26:00.000-08:00

Every spring the sheep are herded up into the Big Horns for the summer via a different route. In the fall, they are herded right past our place. Was I surprised! I just got there the night before, ran to the grocery store in the morning and when I came back this is what I found. There were hundreds. I could hear them the night before not far away and the coyotes following them.

2009-03-03T11:22:00.000-08:00

I found out from the herders how they keep count of the herd. They only need to count the black sheep. If any are missing then they know they need to go back and look for them. About 100 got into our place and of course were ripping out every plant by the roots. There was no black sheep with them, I decided to go find the herders to get their sheep. I tried to get them out...what a joke! Sheep are not the brightest critters in the world.

Cottonwood Canyon Sunset

2009-02-26T11:34:00.001-08:00

This is for real, no adjusting. It's just they way it looked when the sun set.

2009-02-26T11:30:00.000-08:00

Globe Mallow. A photo from a few years ago. These cover the ground after a wet spring. They are weeds but I still enjoy them. Tough little plants though.

Pryor Mountains

2009-02-22T17:20:00.000-08:00

The Pryor Mountains. Home of the Wild Mustangs. The black stallion was photographed in the mountains you see in the distance.

Wild Horses

2009-02-21T12:07:00.000-08:00

This was taken in the Pryor Mtns. We came across 4 black Mustangs so we shut off the ATV and just watched as they walked past us one by one. This was the 'leader'. he stopped to pose.

Spring Time in Wyoming

2009-02-18T11:42:00.002-08:00

We bought the place during a dry spell so we saw it at it's worst. One spring we came out and the place was solid white primroses! And did it ever smell good! We could hardly believe our eyes! This is the way it's suppose to be in spring.

2009-02-18T11:42:00.001-08:00

More White Primroses

2009-02-18T11:35:00.000-08:00

This is really an odd flower. No leaves at all. It just popped up out of the dirt and is real low to the ground. I still haven't found this in a flower book.

2009-02-18T11:31:00.000-08:00

A light rain one morning and a pretty little aster.

2009-02-18T11:29:00.000-08:00

I've never seen these before. My wild flower book calls them Scarlet Gaura...not a very pretty name. There were just a few clumps of these on our land but they sure are pretty!

Getting started in Wyoming

2009-02-13T14:58:00.000-08:00

Wyoming sunset. And they are beautiful! Every evening we keep turning our heads from west to east as we watch the sun set on the Big Horns. It changes so fast. Who needs TV with this to watch!

2009-02-13T14:56:00.000-08:00

Spring time when it's all green. It's a small shabby barn but the roof doesn't leak and it's a place to store stuff for now. This is 2005. Not sure why the tall pole is there. I suppose someone was going to put a light there. The owls use it at night.

2009-02-13T14:53:00.000-08:00

What ranch is not complete without a cow skull? When we bought the place I told them the skull had to go with the place.

2009-02-13T14:51:00.000-08:00

An old hay feeder. I'll use it some day as a flower planter near the house.

2009-02-13T14:49:00.000-08:00

There are some old corrals that came with the place. They used old horse shoes for gate latches.

Wild Mustangs

2008-12-01T16:57:00.000-08:00

Wild Mustangs in the Pryor Mountains of Montana.

Sunset over the mountains

2008-12-01T16:34:00.000-08:00

View to the west, the Gallatin Range.

Big Horn Mountain Range

2008-11-09T08:30:00.000-08:00

View to the east. The northern range of the Big Horn Mountains.