Our pasture on Top is about 1,000 fairly flat acres of brush and rock ranging from 1,800-2,600 feet in elevation, country where wild cattle have all the advantage. A less desirable part of the ranch my grandfather purchased from Fred Ward in 1938, we have been running cows since the mid-50s where they used to run three year-old steers, often having to shoot the remnants they couldn’t gather. Up until the mid-80s, we’d brand the calves on Dry Creek and drive the pairs about five miles up from the 600′ elevation in December, then gather and bring them back down to Dry Creek in June to wean.
In the mid-80s, we developed four stockwater ponds on existing springs that provided enough water to carry 50-60 cows year-round. In that process, we also built some 4-wheel drive roads that allowed us to bring hay, salt and supplement to them in the wintertime. Utilizing the pasture better, the Top becomes their home for a lifetime, as older cows culled are replaced with proven third-calf cows. What was once a dreaded, brush-busting high lope to gather has now evolved into a tamer exercise for both cows and cowboys, the cows knowing the routine.
We will haul their calves down to the Dry Creek corrals this morning.
drycrikjournal 
That’s runnin’ cattle the smart way, John!!!
I notice the old black cow stays in the lead!
Sophie
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Hope all this is going to turn into a book one day, beautifully illustrated with your excellent photographs, documenting a year or two of life on the ranch through the seasons and the generations. These posts sure make my days!
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