The cowboys saddled and went to work about 5 a.m.

The trucks are lined up and waiting for their loads.

The scale house is abuzz with numbers as Beau and the truckers average calf weights and estimate how many head each compartment of each truck can hold.  (Yesterday’s calves, and therefore yesterday’s loads, were a little too heavy… and resultantly had trouble at the Sheridan truck scale, which is pretty much an annual occurrence for us.  Sheridan is the main truck port — and notoriously a persnickety one — between the PV and Q Creek Land & Live, which is where the calves are headed.  Can I just say God bless those folks who work for the government regulating cattle truck weights?)

The cowboys patiently wait as cattle are weighed and conclusions are reached.

After they’re weighed, the calves are transferred to pens and await loading.

Almost two inches of rain yesterday and today it’s snowing.  A good reminder for us that ranching, though it does have its moments, is not necessarily glamorous work.

© Tami Blake