Tag Archives: hydraulic muscle

Atmospheric River Repairs

The grass has turned while we’ve been busy repairing our fences in order to sort and ship our calves to town. Because the brush catchers upstream failed to hold all the debris, our pipe fence across the high water channels when the creek was flowing 8,000 cfs (cubic feet/second) collected what leaked by until it was overwhelmed.

It’s been a slow process, but neighbors and friends brought their hydraulic muscle to stand it upright Sunday morning in a couple of hours.  We had to cut it in sections and finished welding them together yesterday.  

Thanks to all concerned.

CAT SKID STEER

 

 

The jobs I’d rather do

crowd first in line

to steal my mind away

 

from the more mundane

and routine responsibilities

to climb inside the Cat

 

skid steer, feel its hydraulic

strength pump to load

a ton or more or move

 

a five-ton stump

closer to the coals—

clean-up the tangled mess

 

Edison left to cover

their derrières

beneath the wires.

 

Seven-day burn,

4-foot thick eucalyptus,

I scoured the pasture

 

for fallen-limb kindling

to keep the flame

alive inside me.