Wind Rivers Camping

 We didn't camp one single time last year, because life was just crazy! It's still crazy, but I was determined to get in a couple camping trips this summer. We pulled the trailer over to the Wind Rivers and set up camp at New Fork Lakes. We love it there!

We saw a cute deer by our campsite when we were pulling in.

The backdrop for this lake is beautiful!

Our cute little campsite right on the lake.

I woke up Friday morning and went out to see the sunrise over the lake.

On Friday we hiked to Long Lake. We have seen this lake from way up above on a different hike, so we decided to hike down to it. It's gorgeous!

From the shore of Long Lake.

So pretty!

We walked around the side of the lake for a while. We can only see a small portion of it from the bottom. From the top, you can tell why it's called Long Lake. It seems to go on forever.

We got back to camp and Jenn showed up. She was staying the night in the trailer, so she could do the long Cirque of the Towers run with us on Saturday. A storm was blowing in, but Jenn and I went out in the kayaks for a short paddle. The storm blew in pretty fast, so once the wind and rain picked up, we hurried back to shore.

A short paddle around the lake.

On Saturday, we got up early, and drove a couple hours to do the 25 mile Cirque of the Towers loop in the Wind Rivers. It's been on my list for three years. It was amazing! There were endless beautiful lakes, and crazy rugged mountains.

You can tell why this is called Mirror Lake! The reflections were awesome!

Tricia-Jenn

We could see the rugged mountains of the Wind Rivers in the distance, but we didn't really start hitting them on our run until around mile 10.

I think this was Marm's Lake. We went by at least 12 of them, so it's hard to keep them all straight.

Lily pads were all over this lake.

We were excited to start getting into the mountains.

This is Billy's Lake. It was one of my favorites.

Jenn-Tricia-Mark

Billy's Lake

Mark going along Barren Lake.

We had to go over Texas Pass, and it was quite a climb!

Looking back from half way up the pass.

The top of the pass.

The views from the top were amazing! This whole section was awesome!

The flowers were so pretty in this section!

Looking down toward Lonesome Lake.

Mother Nature's landscaping.

We had a big, final climb up Jackass Pass.

Going down the backside of the pass toward Arrowhead Lake.

When we got back to camp, Jenn headed home, and Mark and I relaxed, ate dinner, and played games the rest of the night.

On Sunday we did one final hike before we packed up and headed home. We walked along the New Fork Lake and then headed up a mountain to the New Fork Lake Overlook. We didn't go all the way up, because we didn't want that many miles. We scared the crap out of a huge bull elf, who in turn scared the crap out of us. 😅

The trail along the New Fork Lake.

We had a few big rain storms while we were camping, so everything seemed so fresh.

We had a very pretty shy for our hike.

We love the Wind Rivers, and hope to go back again next summer!

Huckleberry Picking

I've wanted to go huckleberry picking for a few years, but I never manage to make the time for it. I eat them when I'm on the trails, but I wanted to gather a bunch to freeze to use in stuff throughout the year. Amanda is a great baker, so I thought she might like to have a bunch too. We went to a very crowded Kelly Canyon, and did our best to find a spot that didn't already have a ton of pickers. We picked for a couple hours, and did pretty good. It was a solid first attempt for all of us. Sawyer was hilarious with all his sound effects. He's not big on bugs, so when he reached into a bush and came out with a daddy long legs instead of a huckleberry, I about died. 😂 We all had a great time, and I think this will be a yearly tradition for us now. It's hard to walk away. We kept saying it was like a puzzle when you say just one more piece. We would say, "Okay, let's go back to the truck." Then we'd find a good patch on our way back, and spend another 20 minutes picking. Amanda has already made some yummy goodness with her berries. 

Amanda

Mark

Sawyer

Tricia

Purple fingers are a sign of a successful day of picking!

Cider Bend-July

 Summer is in full swing on the farm, and we busted out some big projects in July!

We kicked off the month with a great thunder storm, and a pretty rainbow that went over the farm.

When we have guests in the Airbnb apartment, we bring Reeses to the garage or the house. She barks too much in the barn. She has adjusted well going back and forth, and the kittens love having her around. Reeses likes them, but sometimes they pester her. They always want to lay down with her, and she doesn't necessarily want to cuddle. 😅

We had a cute, but unwelcome visitor on the back patio. We have marmots all over the property, but this is the first time they have been brave enough to venture up to the house. They are destructive, so we want them to stay in their own area. 

We also had a cute driveway snake while I was walking the animals. I actually don't see many snakes on the property, which surprises me. This one was long, but skinny, and I just left him alone.

One of the big projects we got done was to double the size of our barn corrals. The animals have a big pasture, but they needed more space to run around in the corrals because that is where they are the majority of the time. It turned out so good, and the animals love it!

Getting the posts set.

The fence when it was mostly up.

Adding the hog paneling, and the finishing touches.

Another big project we got done in July was to get our landscaping done around the house. We were going to do it ourselves, but sometimes life gets a bit overwhelming, and something has to go. We hired it out, and I'm so glad!

We picked out all the plants, and the landscapers planted them all.

They hooked up all the drip system, and put the ground cloth down.

The finishing touch was to put all the landscaping rock down. It turned out so good! I'm thrilled to not have mud and weeds! I can't wait until the trees and bushes mature and start filling in.

Mark also planted six fast growing, windbreak trees. Slowly but surely, we're checking stuff off the list.

We love our summer sunsets.

We've had some pretty skies at the farm this summer.

We started letting the animals all out in the pasture together, and it has been hilarious. We started with the donkeys and cows. I was hesitant, because I didn't want the donks to be mean to the cows. Turns out the cows just want

 to be friends, but the donkeys are scared of them. 😂 Opal wanted to play with them so bad, so she just chased them around the pasture. So funny!

Watch Opals little  jump on the dirt hill toward the end. 😂

Then we added the goats to the mix, and things got interesting. The goats pester the heck out of the donkeys. Willow tries to be patient, but Clover just kicks them if they bug her. 😅

Airbnb:

The Airbnb was completely booked for all of July! We love how much we get to interact with our guest when we show them the animals. We've met some really awesome people. We've gotten really great reviews, and a lot of our guest say they are gonna come back and stay again. It's been really fun so far. We had no idea it would do this good. I made a little advertisement reel of Yellowstone, so people would want to come and stay to visit the park.

Kittens:

The kitties are as cute as ever and are doing great.

They love to sneak into the pantry.

Floof loves Reeses so much, and always wants to be right next to her. Poor Reeses isn't quite sure what to make of it. And enjoy Mischief watching TV. She loves Sally McRae as much as we do! 😀

Savage! They are hilarious when they play.

Sawyer and Amanda bring Bean over on Sundays, but he isn't a big fan of the kitties. He tries his best to ignore them, but just like with Reeses, they are a bit relentless. They just want to be friends. As you can see, poor Bean doesn't stand a chance. 😆

Mischief was so happy to be snuggling with her new buddy!

Poor Bean just wanted them to go away. 😄

Goats:

The goats are great, and just doing their typical goat things. I think they really like having the cows around.

They still love their daily walks.

Cute little Ginger.

We went on a walk and had such a pretty sky.

I think Ginger is tired of being a goat. She tried to be buddies with all the other animals. She wants to walk with Reeses, graze with the donkeys, and pal around with the cows. 😆

😂😂😂

Chickens:

I'm having so much fun with the chickens! They are a lot more entertaining and friendly than I was expecting. They have been a big hit on farm tours and with our Airbnb guests too. 

I love giving them new foods to try. They usually wait until one brave chicken tries is, and then they all dive in.

We got our first egg! It was from Lola!

I have a lot of chicken stuff pinned on Pinterest, and since it was so dang hot, I decided to try this one. It was a big hit.

Me and Fern! 😂

It's so fun gathering eggs. They aren't all laying yet, and the eggs are still pretty small, but we get a few more each week.

Tillie is such a sweetheart, and a big hit with all of our guests. She loves to be held, and usually falls asleep within minutes of getting picked up. 

Tillie and Jeni

Emersyn rocking Tillie to sleep.

We redid the bricks their water sits on, and they had lots of fun eating all the bugs that were underneath.

Donkeys:

💙💕💙💕

We don't get flies as bad here compared to some parts of the country, so I've never had to do fly masks or fly boots on the donkeys. But, there are always a few weeks of the year that they get pretty bad. Fly spray would do the trick, but the donkeys are terrified of it. Even if they smell it, they freak out. I've been working with them a lot this month. I could finally spray it on my hands and wipe it on their face and legs, so a little bit of progress was being made. I would tie them up and spray them a few times a week, and they slowly started getting better. I made a reel of one of our fly spray sessions.

One of the donkey accounts I follow came up with a super fun idea. Film your donkeys in some kind of Olympic capacity during the 2024 games in Paris, and hashtag #olympicASSletes. There were some dang funny ones! I made a couple of Clover and Willow.

Unfortunately Clover and Willow were cut from the 2024 Olympic relay team. They couldn't quite get the timing of the handoffs correct. As frustrating as that is, they are in good spirits and will be trying out for other events.

Clover and Willow barely missed making the Olympic really team, so they regrouped, made a few changes, and went out for the volleyball team instead! Sadly, they had trouble returning the serves, but what they lacked in skill, they made up for in style. Keep at it girls!

Cows:

I love these little cows! They are so cute and so sweet! It seems like I'm filming them nonstop, so enjoy all the cute cow videos.

Ace loves napping in the sunshine.

They are the cutest little besties!

I love watching them eat! Opal is constantly walking around with half of her breakfast on her head. 😅

Bailey found just the right spot to scratch. 😁

I found the spot too!

He's so dramatic! 😂

I love this sweet face!

July was a busy, and very productive month on the farm. Each month it looks better and better. I hope August is another good one!