Morning walk

I haven't hiked around the farm for months. Planning for the wedding took too much of my mind, and walking around in the rough in the middle of August is not something that the sweatiest man alive really looks forward to.

The weather has cooled down, tho, and I recently figured out how to work this digital camera thing. It isn't a great camera, but I wanted to take it out and play with it. First lesson I learned: Wait until there is light.

Still, here are some of the shots, with a few explanations.

I mainly took this one so that I could show the red flowers on the pomegranate bush (in the front, left). We recently discovered the plant while clearing an area close to where a cabin used to be, meaning the plant has somehow managed to live on its own for at least 70 years. Now we can eat pomegrantes all the time. Hooray.

The dead cow.

We have several landmark areas on the farm: The island. The Big Oak. The Camp. This is the Dead Cow. It's been there now for about four years.

We had a guy leasing the property for cattle grazing. A cow died right next to our cabin. She was there for about a month, before my Dad ordered the guy to get rid of it. The dude responded by dragging the corpse about a quarter-mile down the road, where she has been to this day. She's gone from a pile of hide and bones to a slowly spreading out group of bones, according to God's plan.

Here, Ginger takes a nibble.

It's been a dry year. This is the Bosque River. Usually this section at least has a trickle. Now, nothing but rock on the river bed.

Animal tracks

Swimming at the river

The dogs react differently to water. When I first got her, Ginger would take off and then mysteriously show up later soaking wet. She was that determined to swim. Jimbo's always been more cautious.

Base of the old railroad bridge

About the time I got here, Ginger managed to burrow completely into a hole along the bank. I'd been letting her swim without a leash, against my better judgment.

After a bit I hear some barking, and a bit later two critters come flying out of the hole and dive into a pool of water. They were moving too fast for me to be sure what the were. I'm guessing nutrias. Ginger burrows out of the hole and jumps into the water after them.

After much yelling, I manage to get Ginger back on shore, back in her leash. We start walking back. Later I notice she's got a red spot on her side. Somehow, she's managed to get a series of holes on her left belly, in the shape of either a clawmark or a really big bite.

I've been cleaning it and keeping an eye out for infection. So far, it looks OK. Just another mass of future scar tissue that'll make people think I torture my pets with battery acid.

Damn dog.