Weldman from SE Montana

[Baymule]

Welcome from east Texas! Seldom get snow here, north of me is getting snow, we got ice. So lots of wrecks because we don’t have the equipment to deal with it. People don’t slow down and drive too fast, body shops will be bust for awhile. I’m 148 miles from Galveston Island and the Gulf of Mexico, so winters are fairly mild. Tomorrow it will get above freezing and things will get back to our version of normal.

I raise Katahdin sheep. I have 30 ewes right now, 3 rams and 8 lambs with 15 ewes due in March and April.

What part of Texas are you from?

 

[Weldman]

Welcome from coastal VA. I'll assume that "pond" is full of snow right now

Last I chipped at yesterday, there is about 4 to 5 inches of ice on top before I hit water. Been getting down to -40°F/C with -65°F wind chill. About to drop a foot and half of snow here in next couple of days on top the six. inches we already got.

Welcome from east Texas! Seldom get snow here, north of me is getting snow, we got ice. So lots of wrecks because we don’t have the equipment to deal with it. People don’t slow down and drive too fast, body shops will be bust for awhile. I’m 148 miles from Galveston Island and the Gulf of Mexico, so winters are fairly mild. Tomorrow it will get above freezing and things will get back to our version of normal.

I raise Katahdin sheep. I have 30 ewes right now, 3 rams and 8 lambs with 15 ewes due in March and April.

What part of Texas are you from?

I'm from Beaumont, TX born on the bayou out in the boonies so I know thereabouts of where you are. I remember the ice storm of 97' down there it was demolition derby. So what do you raise Katahdin sheep for? I see you can possibly do something with the fur, if I got goats or sheep I'm going for the fur. Not much into the milking or meat processing since fur for warmth up here seems to be going thing.

 

[Baymule]

I raise the Katahdins for meat and sell them. Moving into registered breeding stock. I know Beaumont. Never lived there, but been there a lot. Lived in Baytown a few years. Loved the fishing and hunting.
Why did you move to Montana?

 

[Weldman]

I raise the Katahdins for meat and sell them. Moving into registered breeding stock. I know Beaumont. Never lived there, but been there a lot. Lived in Baytown a few years. Loved the fishing and hunting.
Why did you move to Montana?

More freedom, and the climate in Texas triggers problems from war so had to learn to live again and Montana offered that with its ways and climate. I know Baytown as last I seen I don't know where it starts and ends and where Houston starts and ends now.
I'm forty miles from any town, 30 plus miles down gravel/dirt road to any pavement, out of cell signal by about 20 miles, off grid with not one power pole to see, no buried phone lines here, nearest full time neighbor is 2.5 miles away at the bottom of the ridge and I'm on dead end road butted up against over 700 acres of land locked BLM land. Lastly where the house will go I have the highest property over 50 miles in a circle. Mail runs 3 days a week at most in which mailbox is 3 miles away at the bottom of the ridge since they can't get up here.
Hence the ranch name, Sequestered Ridge Ranch LLC
My view of where the house will go when I build it, BLM is on the right of that fence line. Right now I am in a pole barndominium I built that's on my avatar, I call it Pole Bindominium

 

[Mini Horses]

That's truly a "be prepared for ANYTHING" location.

 

[Baymule]

What kind of grass does your place have? Any ponds? Creek? Or totally dependent on rain and snow? You could build swales to catch snow melt and rain run off. The C.C.C. built lots of them in East Texas back in the 1930’s. I had a place north of Tyler that had a couple of swales, sure helped with erosion and slowing down the water run off so it could soak in.

 

[CLSranch]

More freedom, and the climate in Texas triggers problems from war so had to learn to live again and Montana offered that with its ways and climate. I know Baytown as last I seen I don't know where it starts and ends and where Houston starts and ends now.
I'm forty miles from any town, 30 plus miles down gravel/dirt road to any pavement, out of cell signal by about 20 miles, off grid with not one power pole to see, no buried phone lines here, nearest full time neighbor is 2.5 miles away at the bottom of the ridge and I'm on dead end road butted up against over 700 acres of land locked BLM land. Lastly where the house will go I have the highest property over 50 miles in a circle. Mail runs 3 days a week at most in which mailbox is 3 miles away at the bottom of the ridge since they can't get up here.
Hence the ranch name, Sequestered Ridge Ranch LLC
My view of where the house will go when I build it, BLM is on the right of that fence line. Right now I am in a pole barndominium I built that's on my avatar, I call it Pole Bindominium View attachment 103957

A dream spot for me, minus the cold. You may need a clothes line from the barn to the house in case it goes from nice to I can't find the house after milking the cow. I've heard stories of that in MT, WY in the old days.
Wing turbines??

Welcome from North East OK

 

[Weldman]

That's truly a "be prepared for ANYTHING" location.

Wife asked one day, what if SHTF where do we go. I looked at her and said, hun, we are already there, this where we make a stand and fight the hoards off!!!

What kind of grass does your place have? Any ponds? Creek? Or totally dependent on rain and snow? You could build swales to catch snow melt and rain run off. The C.C.C. built lots of them in East Texas back in the 1930’s. I had a place north of Tyler that had a couple of swales, sure helped with erosion and slowing down the water run off so it could soak in.

Was building a pond till the loader blew a torque converter seal last summer, need to get it in the garage and repair it this spring. Though I can take the excavator and pick up where I left off if push comes to shove. We have ravines here, and I plan on doing the swales too, cause when this rain comes down I have seen 2' deep gully washers coming down the ridge. As for grass, well there is so many types it's hard to say what is what, here is a comprehensive guide to them as we are in SE Montana so that should help. https://fieldguide.mt.gov/displaySpecies.aspx?family=Poaceae

Here is the pond as I left it last summer, I need to wait till I can get my dump truck down there so I'm not moving the dirt twice. Need to build up a spot for the house with it.
My time the past three years has been devoted to 16 to 18 hrs a day building this pole barn to move out of a truck camper, I finally succeeded and now time to balance a life between building the ranch and building a house we now have comfortable place to call home.

 

[Weldman]

A dream spot for me, minus the cold. You may need a clothes line from the barn to the house in case it goes from nice to I can't find the house after milking the cow. I've heard stories of that in MT, WY in the old days.
Wing turbines??

Welcome from North East OK

Thanks, Yes they started about 5 years ago 80 miles to the north of us and working their way this way, thankfully I don't want to look to the north so I won't have to see them "yet". The west and east coast energy companies coming into mid west using our farm and ranch lands as wasteland for their power then telling us how we should live. Sad times ahead as they just completed phase 2 of 5 phases and are going to line from Colstrip, MT to Glendive, MT along the interstate and in various places in wind turbines to sell to Puget Energy in WA state.

 

[Baymule]

That’s insulting. Wind turbines, but not for Montana. Need to hit your governor with a cattle prod.