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 Ranch Hand Dave Helping With the Dutch Ovens Double Circle Ranch has had another intern. Dave from Seattle is spending a month here doing all types of work. Dave has had to be a cook’s helper for our dutch oven meals for almost 40 people, help with horses including pulling horseshoes, feeding, and grooming, help repair ranch vehicles, hunt for well-hidden cattle in some rough and brushy country, and put some needed saddle time on the ranch remuda. And he did it all with an A+ attitude and a smile. I think Dave might have to go back to Seattle to rest – things have been pretty hectic at the ranch.
At any rate we certainly appreciate all the work Dave has done on the Double Circle. We will be losing a good set of hands and a bunch of ideas when leaving day rolls around next week.
 Ranch Intern Dave Riding Fence
 Erosion Contol Workshop Outdoor Classroom Hey – we have a few openings still for the October 14, 15, 16 Erosion Control Workshop.
It is a great deal – free instruction by Craig Sponholtz of Dryland Solutions, Inc., free camping and free food. We have a good time and get a lot of useful work done on the Double Circle Ranch. So far we have built over 120 small erosion control structures. These structures slow water flow, increase water infiltration, promote forage growth, and reduce silt flowing into Eagle Creek. Everything benefits. Plus volunteers learn how to reduce erosion at their homes and properties. This workshop is funded by the Arizona Water Protection Fund Commission and is an important part of the ongoing conservation work we do daily at Double Circle Ranch. Come join us – you won’t be sorry. Please use our contact form to book a spot. We will be Dutch oven cooking good cowboy meals for you and need to know how many mouths to feed. All this fresh air and outdoor work builds some pretty hefty appetites.
 Cowboy Karl Gatherin the Longhorns Our friend Karl was back to the Double Circle Ranch last week. He drove in from Los Angeles. Karl wanted to get the feel and spirit of ranch life. So we put him right to work. Karl and I rode picking up remnant cattle and herding cattle on the NO Bar Mesa – long hours in the saddle. Plus Karl spent a whole day with our Apache fence crew building fence in our high country. I think sore bottom and legs from riding all day and a sore back from carrying barb wire and pounding T-posts pretty well gave Karl the feel of ranch life.
I felt a little bad about working Karl so hard and decided to work on the spirit side of Karl’s request. There is no feeling in the world much better than riding a good horse in wide open spaces with not a care or a person around you. The freedom of loping thru tall grass, splashing across creeks, and trotting up hills can’t really be described. When you rim out and see nothing but mountains, canyons, and mesas as far as the eye can see with no roads, power lines, or houses in sight, your spirit soars. It is a unique feeling. Karl came back from two days of riding alone smiling ear to ear and with his face glowing. I know that feeling. It is one of the things that makes ranching a great lifestyle.
So Karl when you read this, I hope you got the feel and spirit of ranch life. Do come back and see us again at the Double Circle. I’ll catch you a string of good horses.
 Resident Bat on Ceiling We had another visit with Dan Taylor from Bat Conservation International. Hopefully the Double Circle Ranch will be doing a “Water for Wildlife” (including bats) project. Basically, we would be cleaning out and fencing a dirt tank. The fence keeps livestock out of the water so it stays clean for birds, bats, and other critters. Then we run a pipeline and trough outside of the fenced dirt tank to give the horses and cattle clean drinking water. It is a win-win situation. We hope to partner with Arizona Game and Fish and the US Forest Service as well as Bat Conservation International to create a good, clear source of water for all wildlife.
Plus we do have lots of bats. Dan had his night vision goggles along for the visit. It is a blast watching the bats drink and catch bugs. Dan also has an electronic gadget that records bat calls and makes them audible while you watch the flying bats. Bat watching is great fun. Bats really are fascinating and important parts of the ecosystem. Plus they eat most of their weight every night in bugs. Some even love to eat scorpions. Gotta love any critter that lives on scorpions and mosquitoes.
 Mickey Harrison and His Experimental Airplane I was standing at the kitchen window this morning and heard what sounded like a go cart heading my direction. I was trying to figure out what I was hearing when a small plane flew right at the cabin. It circled us about 3 times and flew towards our driveway. Doug had seen this plane land and take off on the driveway before but couldn’t get home quick enough to see who it was.
Doug had been emailing on the computer – still in his boxer shorts and t-shirt. But he was determined to see who was in the airplane and what they wanted. So he grabbed a pistol and took off up the drive – still in his underwear!
Well, the pilot turned out to be Mickey Harrison, the preacher at The Church of Christ in Morenci – just a super nice guy enjoying the beautiful country at Double Circle Ranch and the Apache-Sitgreaves. He had landed on our driveway before while trying to get our attention so he could introduce himself as a friend of Fred’s. The go cart noise was his Xair experimental airplane’s Rotax engine. Doug was quite taken by the airplane. He has wanted some kind of plane since we bought the ranch – which is OK as long as I can up his life insurance amount. I have no idea what the pastor thought about Doug in his boxers- sometimes you just don’t want to ask. But Mickey was gentleman enough not to mention the unorthodox attire and they had a good visit. We’re looking forward to his next arrival…
 Cowgirl Stacey Herding Longhorns Under Monsoon Clouds Stacey was here visiting – all the way from St. Louis. She had never been on a ranch – I think she had a little culture shock. Fortunately, Stacey is a good rider and she wanted to ride a lot and herd cattle. Since I was in the middle of moving cattle to a new pasture, she sure did get her wish. Apparently it is much different riding for 30 minutes in an arena, and riding all day in mountains and canyons gathering longhorn cattle. Nothing around Double Circle Ranch gets ridden for only 30 minutes except maybe a greenbroke colt. Unless your horse gets hurt or throws a shoe, it is ride ’til the job is done. Actually, last week we had to quit early everyday because of the heat. Cattle shade up and won’t move when it is sunny and hot as Hades. But since we fed at 4:00 am and were riding at 5:00 am or so, quitting at 2:00 or 3:00 pm is still a day of riding. Stacey did make some comments about understanding why cowboys got bowlegged.
 Cowgirl Stacey Canters Brumby But I have to give Stacey credit. She did a pretty darn good job. And she never complained about 4:00 am alarm clocks, 100+ temps, lots of sweaty horses, quite a few hard-to-find steers, or low branches and thorns. She is a trooper. Not having a ladies room was an issue for a day or two before Stacey figured out that trees make good hiding places especially when the cabin is 10 miles away. City folk have to do a little adjusting out here in the wild country. But Stacey adapted well and we enjoyed her company.
 Cowgirls Headin' Out On Horseback Julie from Tucson came to the Double Circle. I put her right to work herding cattle. I am still nursing my broken collarbone (see “Goin’ Steer Crazy”), so Julie got to be the gate person and even had to throw my saddle on for me. To her credit she never complained. We rode all day and through some rough, steep canyons. Julie hung in like a trooper. The only comment she made was “Holy Cow (I am paraphrasing a little) – you mean we rode down that!!!”
We had a good visit and moved a bunch of longhorns. Julie didn’t complain, but I was pretty darned tired myself. Even the horses were slowing down. We got a lot of work done, but the best part is Julie came to Double Circle Ranch as an acquaintance and left as a friend. Hope she comes back soon.
 Brown Water in Eagle Creek Well, we were worried that Eagle Creek would get filled with silt after the big Wallow fire – and unfortunately we were right. The creek, usually clear as glass, has run the color of a 10oz cup of coffee with a tablespoon of milk – not quite black, but almost. The silt deposits are thick enough that the county had to grade the road crossings to keep vehicles from getting stuck.
I doubt any fish will survive. The silt clogs their gills and the creek smells like dead fish. I guess anytime you have a hot fire like Wallow that destroys so much ground cover you will have runoff and water degradation. It is just nature. But I still hate to see Eagle Creek brown. It will clean itself. Really, it is amazing how well everything rejuvenates itself in time. The fish will move back in. I will be thrilled to get back to my favorite swimming hole.
 Antelope Habitat Improvement Fence Workshop We just got the figures from the Arizona Antelope Foundation habitat improvement project held here at the Double Circle Ranch. There were 30 people here from as far away as Albuquerque and Prescott, and as close as Clifton. The volunteers drove about 10,896 miles at their own expense to come remove the bottom barbed wire and replace it with antelope-friendly smooth wire. They worked 264.5 hours all together – and that doesn’t even include the Arizona Game and Fish employee who really worked hard – on the weekend.
Volunteers like these folks working for wildlife make a huge difference in our ecosystems. They belong to groups like the Arizona Antelope Foundation, Sky Island Alliance, Great Old Broads for Wilderness, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Turkey Foundation, Park Service camp hosts, Gila Watershed Partnership, New Mexico Wilderness Alliance, Friends of the San Francisco, and more groups than I could ever remember. The volunteers come from diverse backgrounds and probably would not agree on all issues. But, they do a tremendous amount of good for water, wildlife, and sustainable recreation. Seems to me we need a lot more of the people getting dirty and sweaty working on the land and a lot less people all slicked up suing each other in court. Everyone would benefit!
 Antelope Viewing
 Fixing Ranch Fence For Antelope We have had the best weekend. The Arizona Antelope Foundation came to the Double Circle Ranch and replaced bottom strands of barb wire with smooth wire on some of our pastures that have lots of antelope traffic. The Arizona Game and Fish Department provided smooth wire, a 4 wheeler, and tools and hauled the old wire away for recycling. We had two gas-powered wire rollers complements of Clifton Ranger District of the US Forest Service and the Az. Antelope Foundation. The rollers, combined with 30+ hard working volunteers, made short work of several long stretches of wire.
Now the antelope can cross under the fences easily while heading to Eagle Creek. It was a useful project that will benefit antelope on the Double Circle for years. The Game and Fish personnel and the antelope folks are definitely dedicated people. They are true sportsmen who put their time and money into improving habitat for wildlife. Hats off to the AAF and to AZ Game and Fish for using their weekends to benefit wildlife!
 Antelope SlideShow Smilebox Jodi Stewart, from the Arizona Antelope Foundation, made a nice slideshow from pictures taken this weekend. Be sure to leave some nice comments, and consider joining the AAF!
And as they say in Tennessee- y’all come back now.
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