Hit a deer with my car last week. First time that has happened. A very large buck jumped right in front of me, in broad daylight, while I was doing 60 mph. I had just enough time to hit the brakes and slowed down to about 40. So instead of hitting him dead on he just glanced off the front passenger corner. Still did quite a bit of damage to the front end, but the car is drivable. I pulled to the side and got out to check the deer. He had already jumped over a nearby fence. He looked at me, stomped his foot, snorted and took off into the brush.



Yes, that is certified deer hair.

I know I must have mentioned the fence at Rocky Branch about a hundred times by now... but it still lacks a little work. It keeps getting pushed aside for other things, but today I hope to work on it some. We want to let the cows into the lake side of the pasture. This requires shutting off a few holes that they might use to access the highway and head north to greener country. I will probably accomplish this quickly and easily with some electric fence and a few cattle panels. Never underestimate the power of overpowered and under-built fences. Simple solutions are simply the best.

This is also Week 19 (or so we think) for those who are counting. Life sure happens in a hurry....

Richard, Amber, and I went on a camping trip in Arkansas last weekend. It all started at the Albert Pike campground in the Ouachita National Forest. We hiked part of the Little Missouri Trail which (surprise, surprise) runs adjacent to the Little Missouri River. We hiked in about five miles to an area known as the Winding Stairs and camped next to the river. It was a beautiful spot with a perfect swimming hole. One of the best things about backpacking in national forests is that typically you are allowed to have fires. Can't do that in most State and National parks. We also love backpacking next to a good water source because that means we don't have to carry in our own water. We filter the water before drinking, of course. Good stuff that Arkansas stream water!

Walking and Sleeping in Arkansas photos