Gone

Just a short blurb. We were given Official Evacuation Orders as of 3:30 PM yesterday. So, once you're out, no going back in till they take off the Order. We are comfortable and staying with friends where the sheep are. The Border Collies think we are at a dog trial so they are settled in.
They have structure crews guarding the houses so we are fairly safe in that aspect. I don't think we will lose anything to fire. They are more concerned with loss of life so they hustled us out.
Will blog again when I have more news.

Martin Mountain Fire

As most of my friends know, we have been put on Fire Notice for our area. This means that we have to be on stand by to be ready to leave in an hour's notice. Of course I was at the Canadian and Western Canadian Finals and came home as soon as I was done running the second go around. Len didn't tell me what was happening until all the animals had been moved. What a good husband he is. All the sheep have been taken by friends to their sheep fenced place and Clairice, one of the maremmas. Sonny is the younger maremma and at 5 months is too boisterous to send down with the sheep to a small pen and busy area so he would be non stop barking. The horse is gone to stay at another friend's and former owner. My husband and his friends loaded up horse trailers with the "can't replace stuff" and it is gone. So if anything happens I just have to throw Sonny and the Border Collies in the truck and go. We couldn't have done this without our friends and we really really appreciate them.
Here are some pictures that my husband Len took on Friday when the fire started. These were taken from the top of the trial field (above the handler's gate).









You can find out the information on this page:

http://bcwildfire.ca/hprScripts/WildfireNews/OneFire.asp and click on Pritchard(Martin Mountain)

And another month is here

It is very smokey here today. The fire at Terrace Mountain flared up again and the wind is just blowing the right way. Amazing how far smoke can travel. When they had really bad fires south of the Border a few years ago and a long way from us...we had really thick smoke every day.
So went out to graze sheep off the driveway and they decided that fresh cut straight out of the baler was better than grass on the ground...silly sheep.




There isn't a lot to do when it's hotter than hot and so I decided to tackle the large job of getting Sonny's puppy coat un-matted and loosened up so he would shed better. He loved the attention:




Here is our lawn these days on the driveway side...we really need rain, forecast for 3 days of rain at the end of the week. Need the water for animals and such over watering the lawns.



The garden is watered out of the pond at the bottom of the hill by pumping it up through some irrigation lines.



Here is my favorite thing in the garden. It is a solar butterfly that changes colors all night long.

Summer Days

It isn't getting any cooler any time soon. The fires in BC are still burning in places but are under control for now. Let's hope it stays that way. Long range is for the same hot weather and no rain.
I hauled in the round bales out of the grass field today and Kit was very happy to have somewhere to play King (Queen) of the Castle.



I told Len last year we needed to have a water tank in case of spot fires. Something I could throw in the back of my pickup.....so this is what he brought home. Bigger is better...and try and get the old farm truck started when I need it :)



Decided to do something with the dogs. Will and Cole wanted to take the bike but since neither can drive or find the key we went for a walk.



Took the dogs for a walk in the dust....



Then they all had to have a big drink....



Cole who belongs to Norm Sommer is here for a month or so for "manners" training. Here he is doing his version of Lie down and having a drink at the same time....

Should've had a camera

Well the oddest thing happened the other day...and me without my camera. I was grazing sheep and one of the Maremmas (Livestock Guardian Dogs)started screaming, yes it was a scream. When I went running to Georgia, she was holding her foot up so I thought she had been stung. Lo and behold, there was a vole (field mouse) hanging onto her foot. She is the great white hunter and probably stepped on it to catch her prey and it got her. Talk about your elephant and the mouse story. No fairy tale ending here, Georgia ate her attacker.
I am sure we have all complained in the Okanagan about the heat and dry pastures enough, but we aren't done yet. Most devasating are the fires that come with this. Not a good thing. Still remember evacuating sheep in 2003 when we were on alert. Chris and Terri Hanson with stock trailers at 2AM trying to load 200 sheep and lambs. Jill Brodie was here helping. Jill and Lynne Schweb and I had gone to the Kimberley Sheep Dog Trial and ended up racing for home. Best excuse I ever had for a bad run. Lynne had already been evacuated and we were on stand-by. Friends are so great when we need them! We should appreciate each other more some days!

Hot Summer Days

Hot summer days...reminds me of Meatloaf's song...It was a hot summer night....that is really dating me isn't it? So back to the present and some new pictures.

Sonny is growing in leaps and bounds. He is as big as the Border Collies now and knows the command "Go to your sheep". He hangs his head and slowly trudges out to his flock. Makes you feel like the mean one of the century but they need to learn. Ahhh tough love. He got brushed today and loved all the attention. He looks very handsome now.




So not much was done this weekend because of the heat. We put out some electric fence up so the sheep can graze the short barley before it burns off. It is dry again even after all the rain.



The tomatoes and peppers in the greenhouse are doing fine though.

Hilltop Trial

Well after along day of doing nothing, not that I had nothing to do, I decided to at least catch my blog up. Had a great time at Wendy and Chris Schmaltz's Hilltop Trial on Friday and Saturday. Drove down on Thursday to a field on Hwy 21 in Alberta about 20 minutes north of Strathmore.

Stayed with Lee in her new trailer..a 29'footer that is awesome inside. Brought Rosie and Kit for their travelling experience and Will and Mirk were entered.

The sheep were tough but interesting to work. Friday I was very happy with the boys handling of the sheep even if we weren't in the money. Saturday, well that makes one go home and work on a few things. Mind you the wind howling at 90 MPH is not a fixable thing and anything weather wise can happen at a trial.

It was great to see everyone and have just have fun!!!

Since I forgot the camera (what else is new??)Bev Sommer took some pictures and sent them to me. Here is Mirk and I on Friday...