My Ford F350 truck with the Blue LED's installed

Just before we left for vacation I had a few minutes and TWO hands to put the lights on the bottom of the truck that I purchased back in April.  Tonight I was hauling the excavator that I used for the cattle waterer installation today.   I went and helped out a fellow coworker at his house to dig a trench for a new waterline as well.  I had just got back and thought it looked pretty cool so I snapped a few pictures.  I need to have my wife take some with her good camera so they turn out better.  

2005 F350 with Blue LED's

I already had the ones in the grill but I added two more under the cab directly under the front seats.  I also put two more directly over the rear mud flaps at the back of the truck.

2005 F350 with Blue LED's

They look pretty sweet.  However, I want to get three more.  I need to add two more in between the back wheels and the cab and one under the front bumper.  I think it is a little too dark in those areas yet for the effect I want.  

2005 F350 with Blue LED's

I will post more pictures once I get the additional lights installed so you can see the difference.  I may get a little crazy and put them on the trailer as well.....that would look even sweeter!!!!

On a great note, our little heifer calf is getting up and down on her own now and eating like crazy.  Her momma is still coming to check up on her and once she gets strong enough to walk around without falling down I will put her and her momma together in the barn a for a while till she gets the hang of eating from her like she is supposed to!  In the mean time we are bottle feeding her two to three times a day to try to keep her filled up and growing and getting stronger!

On another great note, I got the cattle waterer installed today and regraded the boar lot and moved the boar lot fence.  I am now just a few posts away from being ready for concrete!  It is so awesome to see an idea I have had for so many years finally coming together.  It is going to be great and should work very well.  I also am excited to see the cattle use the waterer once they realize it is there tomorrow.  They didn't come up till it was dark tonight so I am pretty sure they didn't even see it yet.

I still have waterlines to run for my dad tomorrow and some other misc. items to take care of and also mow down 40+acres of hay to hopefully make into dry bales later this week.....I will not get my hopes to high on the dry hay part.  I will take pictures tomorrow morning if I get a chance before I get rolling to post tomorrow night whenever I get back to the house.  

Quick pics of the progress I made today.

As I said in my last post I had the day off due to the rain.  However, the site for the heavy use pad is all sand and gravel and drains extremely fast.  So withing an hour I was able to start working.

This is the corner where the manure will be stacked and stored to compost it and have it available to apply in the fall when it is needed the most and will have the lowest risk of runoff.   I am leaving gaps in the boards for the water to drain out of the pile while holding the manure and other stuff in.  

Rails on corral around manure storage area

Here is the south side railing/fencing.  There is still one more 2"x4" to go on top yet.  For now I am just concentrating on getting done what I need to to get the concrete installed.   

Here is the offset for the pig alley.  I had to put this in while I still had the longer boards from back when I built the pig shed. 

Here is another angle.  I will get better pics from higher up once I get it done so you can actually see what it looks like.

Cattle waterer  is getting installed this weekend!!!  Lets hope it doesn't rain much!

Kenny

A few vacation and wedding pictures.

Well, even I need a break once in a while.  This year we headed back to our favorite beach on the outer banks.  It is at Frisco National Park Campground.  We take the truck so we can take it out on the beach with our food and campsite grill and we camp in the campground while there. 

Campsite at Frisco National Park Campground

The view from our campsite this year was absolutely awesome.  We could see bits of the ocean peaking through low spots in the main barrier dune by the beach. Two years ago we went here for the first time ever and stayed over the 4th of July.  This year we decided to go a little later and see if it was less crowded and we were happy to find there were very few campers.  

  

This was our first morning at camp.  We were getting ready to eat breakfast before heading out.  We drove straight through on Saturday leaving at 5am and arrived at 9pm......very long time in the truck with two kids and the dog but, we made it!  On our first morning we had to go get a ORV permit to go out on the beach.  While we were there the kids completed their projects and got their Junior Ranger Badges!  

Campsite at Frisco National Park Campground

 As you can see daisy was taking full advantage of being on vacation.  As a matter of fact I think she got to relax way more than I did!  This is the best part about camping and staying at the OBX, we get to take Daisy with us.  She simply needs a leash and we are good to go.  She doesn't like to get in the water but does enjoy meeting other dogs and eating some of the local treats that are available.  Most of the time at the beach she just lays in the shade under the truck relaxing and watching the kids play!

Daisy taking at nap at Frisco National Park Campground

I managed to take a panoramic picture of the sunrise just before the sun came up.  This does not do it justice at all.  

Sunrise at Campsite at Frisco National Park Campground

These pictures were taken at dinner our last night at the campsite.  Daisy got up on the bench of the picnic table and was checking out what was for dinner.  She was fully expecting to get to eat all of this...

.....and she was not pleased when Mom ate a piece instead of giving it to her!  She is truly part of this family and acts just like a combination of me and the kids!

On Tuesday morning we had a massive thunderstorm move trough starting at 2am and lasted till 10am.  We ended up going down to Hatteras for breakfast and the weather finally broke around 11am.  While we were in town we stopped at our favorite fish store "Risky Business" and got some delicious fresh tuna and some very large shrimp for dinner.  After we got back wife headed back to the campsite to dry everything out in the sunshine and I took everyone else to the beach.  

On our last day at the beach we packed everything up before leaving the campsite so we could leave in the afternoon.  We got to the beach just in time to watch the National Park Service rangers excavate a sea turtle nest to check for any babies that were still stuck in the nest.  

There were 87 eggs total.  Of them, 20 never finished developing, 8 started to hatch but didn't make it, 7 were still alive and trying to get out, and the rest were already in the ocean!  The kids got to see the babies as they came out of the nest.  If you look they are sitting at the edge of the black fence right where they were digging the nest up!

Sea Turtle Nest excavation at Frisco National Park Campground Beach

 After the excitement was over we all went down to the end of the beach where the fishing is best and set up for our last day.  We ended up catching enough fish for my wife to make a stew with the last of our leftovers and from the night before and the fish.   It was delicious!  Leaving this view behind was harder than you can imagine.  My dream is to either grow the farm business large enough to have a second farm in North Carolina near the OBX or to just move down there.   I think I would rather have a second farm as I could never fully depart from the state I am so completely attached to!  Another option, and one that is probably more feasible is to charter a small plane to take us there where we want.  There is a small airport at the entrance to the campground that can handle a plane just large enough to fly us from home to the beach!  That would make visiting much easier and more enjoyable at different times of the year!

View of the beach at Frisco National Park Campgrounds

We headed for home on Wednesday afternoon.  We stopped for a night stay in a hotel in Charlotte NC. before driving the rest of the way home.  We were supposed to leave for the OBX on Friday and head back home on Saturday of the following weekend.  However, I had another mission that cut our stay shorter than we wanted.  I was the Best Man at my best friends wedding and we were not going to miss it!

I had to be back on Thursday to pick up my Tuxedo.  Then Friday we had rehearsal and then the wedding was on Saturday.  

The most expensive thing I have ever worn, a Vera Wang Tuxedo!

The wedding went awesome and the Jason's bride Brandy looked Phenomenal!   I was so happy to be a part of this and I am very excited to see them start their new life together!  Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Jason McNamara!

The entire wedding party!

So, now here we are back to reality.  School started for my daughter yesterday, I started work on Monday, and my wife's school schedule is back to normal again.  Where did summer go so quickly.  I try to occasionally stop for a moment and reflect on what has been going on and make a mental note to not waist a moment of the day.  Once a moment is gone it will never be again.  No matter how hard we try we cannot get back lost time.  

The weather has not changed a bit since about this time last year.  We continue to have rain every few days and we just had another 4" again over night and this morning.  This makes everything very difficult.  Dry hay this year seems to be out of the question for me.  The neighbor has gotten some but very little and I have heard of a few other people getting some but usually it is rained on or is very old hay and lower in quality.  Looks like I will be making the last cutting of my hay this year as I have done the rest.....as silage.  

On another note, we our last calf born while we were away.  Unfortunately, due to the wet muggy weather, the flies found here before we did.  She was very weak and in very bad condition when I found her but she is almost able to stand on her own again now.  I am really hoping she pulls through and makes it as she is Frosty's first daughter and Sally Shorthorns first Grand daughter.  

I have some more news to report.  Pearl's little girl "Montana" got her brand over the weekend.  

Dam; Shorthorn x Charolais x Angus   Sire; Longhorn

 I have mentioned before and I will explain again why they need to be branded.  Out west cattle run the large areas the feed on in groups.  They are not all kept separately like they are here in the east.  So, branding is the only highly recognizable way to be sure who belongs to whom!  It cannot be erased, it is highly visible to the naked eye unlike a tattoo, and cannot be removed like an ear tag.  This is the only way to stop/slow down cattle rustling and be sure that when you purchase a cow it is not stolen.  It also makes sorting your cattle from a large herd incredibly easier!

Conser Run Farms & Dave N Robin brands

 Here is my buddy David holding her to get her brand.  

This picture was them roping her to catch her.

Sadly I must report that we have to put one of our two new Berkshire to sleep today.  She contracted a rare disease called Mycoplasma hyosynoviae.  Please click on the link to learn more.  In its most basic explanation it is a micro-organism that attacks the joints in the pigs legs and causes severe crippling arthritis and complete lameness.  We have tried for 6 weeks to help her get over it but as we have now found out there is nothing we can do to stop it once it passed a certain point because the damage is already done within a week of the disease starting.  She will be missed but we cannot bear to see her in pain any longer.  

I have just noticed that while I was typing the rain has stopped and the sun has come out.  I cannot waist this opportunity....even if it is muddy I am going to go out and try to accomplish something!

Talk to everyone soon!

Kenny

Updates and pictures!!!

Ok, so I knew I was pretty sick when the cows decided they needed to come see me!!  On top of the broken finger I also contracted an intestinal virus a couple of days after surgery that rendered me pretty much useless till yesterday.  I was sitting on the back porch the other night trying to relax and they entire herd came to the corner of the pig lot. 

Cows coming to say hello to me!

Once I noticed them I realized they were not leaving right away and one in particular was staring right at me.  It was Black Eye.  She stayed there for 20 minutes watching me till I finally came over and said hello and told her I was getting better.  Then she went back to eating and left to go with the rest of the herd.   It is amazing how sometimes we realize that the animals care for us as much as we care for them.

Black Eye checking to make sure I was ok!

Now, I haven't had a chance to tell everyone much about the project I got approval for so I will talk about that shortly.  The picture below is of all the pigs and piglets headed out to the pasture for some food.  I was working on the new project and was there to get a picture of them all headed out.  It was quite cool to see.  

Pigs and Piglets headed out to the pasture.  

 Now, for more about the new project.  This is a trial run of a hopefully successful future nutrient trading program being done by the Electric Power Research Institute.  In its simplest form, this is a program to eliminate pollution.  For a power company to spend $10,000 on upgrading their pollution scrubbers on their Coal powered plants the actual impact would be almost pointless.  However, If they spent the same $10,000 on pollution control measures in rural areas where funding is tight or non existent they impact is enormous!  Now, this isn't free money.  The program covers 75% of the project costs up to a $10,000 cap.  I have to put in 25% and anything over the cap myself.  After designing the project it totals about $25,000.  My labor and equipment counts toward that cost so actual moneys I have to pay out are not $15000 but they are not zero either!!

Due to my rapid growth and location I am high risk this winter to excessive stream erosion and non-point source pollution.  I will be housing around 50 cattle here this winter and next winter will be approximately 65.  My pastures are not large enough to support this many cattle without some changes.  First of all, to protect the stream that my farm is named after, and is 50% of why I purchased this place, we are fencing on the stream to limit access for the cattle to only times when they can eat there without causing damage.  I  put in a stream crossing yesterday for the cattle and I to use to get to the other pastures.  This is simply a specific spot of the creek that is based in with Limestone gravel that will be lined with fence to use as a crossing.  The limestone allows the cattle to cross but is not comfortable to stand on for long periods of time.  So they will cross but not lounge.  The limestone also helps balance the pH of the water and pull some pollutants out of the water.  

New crossing installed in the creek using limestone.

The second control measure is a buffer strip between the feeding area and the bottom ground by the creek.  This is a mixed grass and legume strip on the hillside bordering the entire barn and new heavy use pad that will stop any runoff coming off the pads.  The plants will trap and use the nutrients and then I can graze the cattle on this as needed to keep it eaten down and keep the plants healthy!!!  This will be great for feeding the cattle as the area will get fertilized naturally and I will basically be getting free feed for the cattle.

  

Cows eating the grass on the new buffer strip

During construction I had to open the area back up to the cattle till I can get the new fences installed.  I had it temporarily fenced off starting in the spring to get the grass and stuff established.  After the winter we just had and the extremely wet spring this hillside was nothing but mud.  It looks so much different with grass growing again!

Cows eating and relaxing in the new buffer strip.

The third portion of the project is a heavy use pad to feed the cattle on during wet weather and the winter when there is nothing to eat out on the pasture.  This new pad will also have room to store the manure in the corner for composting and also will have a waterer in the NW corner for the cattle and larger pigs to drink out of when they want.  By piling and composting the manure during the winter and the wet spring I will be able to break it down and before applying it so I have less large residue on the permanent hay fields.  The nutrients will also be readily available to the plants as it will already be mostly broken down during composting.  Furthermore, this will allow me to time my applications in the fall and maybe in the spring after first cutting so that there is far less chance of runoff and the plants are getting nutrients when they need them the most.   

The area for the new 90 'x 46'  heavy use feeding pad.

 The new pad is 90' long and 46' wide with an exit ramp and small area of concrete outside the corral fence where the waterer is to keep it from getting muddy when they drink from outside the new feed pad.  

The area for the new 90 'x 46'  heavy use feeding pad.

The pig lots will be changing a little as well.  Because we put a swale in to catch any rain water coming off the hillside I had to rethink the layout of the lots for the pigs.  The swale is to catch the water before it gets on the pad where the cows will be eating.  This will keep the chance of runoff from the pad to a minimum and help keep it drier during heavy use.  The water is diverted to the property line between my father and I and will disperse out over his pasture.  This will give the grass in his pasture the chance to benefit from any nutrients washed off the pig lots by a heavy rain and keep it from getting into the stream as well!

Water swale on the top side of the pad to divert water away from the feeding area.  

Where you see gravel spread out is where the exit to the pad will be located.  There will be a 14' gate mounted on the right hand post to close to keep the animals in during flooding or extreme weather or for herd checks and cleaning the barn and such.  Between the corner and the left side of the gate is where the waterer will be installed.  The cattle will have access from both inside and outside the fence.  This will allow me to separate the cattle if needed and still allow everyone to have access to fresh water as needed. 

To the right of the gate is the corner where the manure will be stored.  I will probably add a few more shorter posts in between the tall posts to help add support to that corner to be able to stack the manure a little higher.  I am planning on putting a semi solid wall on two sides to hold the manure and allow the moisture to bleed off for better composting.  The posts are currently on 10' centers, this is too far apart to give good support to the boards.  I am thinking 4-5 more posts will do it.  

Another angle of the heavy use pad.

 If I keep the pig lots the same as before the pigs would be walking right in the swale to get to the sow lot where they spend most of their time in the winter and spring.  To eliminate this I added a walkway to the north edge of the heavy use pad.  The pigs will be able to walk on concrete from the pig shed all the way out to the lot through this walkway.  The short posts to the left will have electric fence on the outside of them.  The walkway will end with the last short post and the pigs will exit to the lot right there.  The entire are between there going back toward the pig shed to the pig waterer will now be part of the Boar lot.  This will balance the lots out much better and allow me to keep the sows and boar in that lot for breeding and weaning if necessary without limiting their space too much. 

The corral fence will follow the taller posts on the inside.  I learned a valuable lesson on the first corral.  I had the posts too short to begin with and once I was done with concrete and had a manure pack I quickly realized that the wooded fence was not nearly tall enough to keep the cattle in when doing a herd check or trying to pen up a cow that needed veterinary treatment.  So, once I am completely done with the concrete and the fencing is all finished and high enough I will then trim all the posts to the final height.  

Future walkway for pigs to get to the sow lot. 

I put the picture below in to show how I am going to change the height restriction for the entrance to the pig lot.  The old gate and height restriction will be coming out.  I am going to mount a 14' gate on the barn wall that will lock to the first tall post of the corral fence.  This will allow me access to the pig barn from this side with the tractor and the skidsteer.  I also will be able to use this to clean the pig barn and put the manure in the compost pile without having to drive all the way around the barn to do so.   The height restriction will be built into the section between the first and second tall post of the corral fence.  The new concrete will angle from the first short post up to the existing pig waterer concrete.  When I install the new cattle waterer I have to tie into the water lines in the boar lot where the pigs are standing in the picture.  While doing that I will regrade the boar lot to catch water and take it to the new swale to keep it out of the pig shed.  

Old gate and height restriction for the pig lot entrance from the new heavy use pad.

My last picture today is of the hillside that was so drastically changed when the excavator harvested the sand and gravel to build the site for the new pad.  I had some misc. seed in the barn and scattered it all over the disturbed areas to get a cover crop to keep it from eroding.  It is starting to pop up!

As I have been typing this it is raining again.  This weather pattern has been sticking around since last fall.  We have had measurable rainfall here on the farm almost every other day for three months.  The longest span we have had without rain was 4 days.  Several people tried to make dry hay during that time but because the ground is so wet it just wouldn't dry all the way.  Would be nice to send some of this water out west where they really need it but I will take this wet weather over a drought any day of the year!!

Update on my hand and health.  I was finally able to get a doctors appointment Friday.  They believe I have an intestinal virus.  This normally puts a person in the hospital so I am going to consider myself lucky in that I have still been partially functional for this time.   I am starting to get better slowly.  I have days that are worse than others but on the whole I am getting better.  

As for my hand I have been in a cast since the surgery on July 11th.  The cast started coming apart this week at work and while working on the posts for the heavy use pad yesterday I managed to get some animal manure on the cast and sand inside of it.   I tried for a while to clean it and get the sand out but nothing worked.  So, I ended up taking the cast off.  It was coming off this week anyway so I will contact the doctors office in the morning and see if they want to put a new one on for two days or just leave it.  In the mean time I am being ultra careful with it and being sure not to bump it or bang into anything till I talk with the doctor.  

The good news, as I am sure you can tell by the length of this post, is that I can once again type with both hands!  I had no idea how important that simple task was to me and how difficult it would be with only one hand!

Hopefully my luck is turning back around and it will be another 36 years and 3 days before I have this many bad things happen at one time.  Furthermore, I have learned a lot from being completely out of commission about planning for the worst and hoping for the best.  The one thing I never planned for was me being completely out of commission for an extended period of time.  I have had to rely on other people for a lot of things over the last month and will have to continue to rely on them for a few more weeks.  I thank everyone who has helped and continues to help.  I will be sure to have a back up plan moving forward in case something like this should ever happen again.  

Have a great day everyone and hopefully we can get a little dry and sunny weather soon!

Kenny