Lazy Recap

I'm sorry, so sorry. Please accept my apologies.....oops, I think that's a Brenda Lee song! We just haven't been doing much that's exciting and worth reporting. When we stay in an area this long, we don't feel the need to rush around and see everything. So, we take several days just to relax.

But, we did take a day ride up the Sacramento mountains to the tiny town of Cloudcroft. It's a ski resort in the winter and a tourist trap in the summer. The drive was relaxing and beautiful.


We left Cloudcroft and saw the signs for Sunspot. This is the home of the National Solar Observatory. Our visit was too late in the day for the tour, but we still enjoyed the views and learning a little about the facility.

Then, yesterday, Doug wanted to check out a rockhounding area near the Three Rivers Petroglyph site. It was a fun afternoon and we found a few pieces of jasper and some other neat looking rocks. All of a sudden we realized it was 6pm and time to head home. We started back south on the two lane rough road, crossing numerous cattle guards when we noticed a mama cow and her calf coming across the range. We slowed and admired them until we saw a few more. Doug proceeded cautiously, not wanting to injure the skittish calves accidentally as they came close to the car.


We started across a cattle guard in front of a large wash and there were at least 50 cows and calves standing in the road! When we approached them, instead of backing off from the car, they kept coming right at us. I guess they thought we were there to feed them. As they started to surround us, I got scared (I'm a city girl) and Doug quickly backed the car across the cattle guard which they refused to cross. (Yay!!!!) And there we sat. And sat.


Doug got out, much to my dismay, and tried yelling and shooing the animals away from the road. They didn't even flinch.



So, he took off his flannel shirt and waved it vigorously while shouting and they backed off at least 6 inches. Then he tried walking down the fence line along the wash, hoping they would follow. Nope.


So, we waited. After close to half an hour, we decided to just go forward carefully. We opened our windows and started driving very slowly. Yelling out the windows and waving our arms, the herd gradually and reluctantly moved aside. Success! Once past the bawling, drooling, slobbering bovine roadblock, we took off like a shot.

And that was our excitement for the day. They sure look a lot bigger in person that they do in pictures.