Take heart, May promises to be hot and dry

It certainly wasn’t feeling much like spring on Monday.
One of my fellow farmers told me we’re going to continue to be cool and damp this month, but once it warms up in May, we are going to be hot and dry.
We can only hope! Besides the risk of fire and the difficultly if plays with our pastures, droughts can be very successful years.
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On Saturday morning after feeding my cows, I headed down to the sales barn in Stratton. We have our annual spring cattle sale this coming Saturday (April 25), so we decided to calibrate the scale this past weekend.
Things went very well and, of course, the boys will be working there all week, but things slowly are falling into place. The work bees have resulted in further upgrades so be sure to come and check out everything.
We understand many farmers would like to see an earlier sale–possibly in March. The boys are working on the logistics of this (the main problem is water, but we are hoping we can provide this for our producers).
We understand that we’ll never be able to keep everyone happy or meet the needs of everyone, but we are working hard at providing a good service to the good producers of Rainy River District.
• • •
I took advantage of the cool weather to start checking my fence lines. It is a bit early, but I have to do this before the snakes come out.
I do not like snakes, and I work hard to avoid seeing them. In fact, I’ve never forgotten a spot that I’ve seen them right from my childhood days.
I use to enjoy picking berries, but then the snakes appeared and that was the end of that (I was a good person to have picking berries because I do not eat them–I don’t like berries at all).
When my dog was much younger, she would kill a snake and then like to run over and show me. But after me running and screaming away from her, she realized that wasn’t the right thing to do.
The fence was not so bad. I was expecting more trees down because of all the winds we had but I didn’t find many at all. The trees are a problem for me if they are too big since I only have a hand saw!
My dad would never let me run a power saw (he told me it was too dangerous for a girl!) I always thought that was funny. I was capable of doing everything else (baling hay, cutting hay, shovelling poop, etc.) but no, not a power saw.
Luckily, my boyfriend/partner has lots of experience in that department so I know where to find some good help.
There were a fair amount of staples that needed to be replaced as the deer catch them and pull them out. I find that on the top and bottom wire both (they seem to jump over or crawl under, and both result in the loss of staples).
It is nice to get into the bush and check out how things have changed over the winter. I like to watch for deer sheds, but I had no luck this weekend.
I still have a few sections to check (places that you cannot drive the four-wheeler, so maybe “Karma” (my dog) and I will come across nice shed yet.
I’ve had elk around my place so I’m always hoping to find a shed from them.
It is nice to see all the spring animals–even if it is a skunk. I have seen two bears already and the wolves seem to be moving around. And, of course, the hard-working beaver is on the move and looking for any puddle of water to turn it into a full-blown pond!
If you have a chance, get outside and enjoy the view—we have lots to see in Rainy River District.