Category Archives: Ice Storm at Medicine Spirit Ranch

Winter At The Ranch

Animals on the ranch, Clearing Cedar Thickets, Great Blue Heron, hopefulness, Ice Storm at Medicine Spirit Ranch, Live On The Ranch January 30, 2022 Comments: 2

Winter at Medicine Spirit Ranch moves at a slower pace than  the rest of the year. The fields no longer require fertilizing, cutting grass, baling, and hauling hay. Likewise major repairs of the barns, major fencing changes, and replacing gates or cattle guards await better weather.

A few jobs increase during the winter. The feeding of the stock requires range cubes be fed daily to the cattle rather than  only a couple of days a week when the grass is green. We also provide large bales of hay typically three times a week via a tractor that requires a little time.

Two Black Baldy cows with their calves

Otherwise cedar chopping increases during the winter as the green cedar is easier to spot among the brown grass, and fences always need a bit of mending.

Otherwise winter tasks are largely determined by what most needs to be addressed. Some items simply are stumbled upon during morning rounds. For example today I stumbled across the carcass of a dead Black Baldy cow located at an infrequently traveled portion of my ranch. I had missed her late last year but never found evidence of her. I have no idea how or why she died but am especially perplexed because of losing two other cows last year. Only once before have I lost a cow and that was when her hind legs became paralyzed while attempting to give birth to a particularly large calf. She unfortunately failed to respond to the passage of time and treatment. Three cows dying in a year made for a very bad year indeed.

Last year also saw dreaded ice storm Uri from which we are still recovering. It was amazing the number of downed limbs and trees that resulted and that continue to litter parts of my ranch. I had hoped we would have the freakish mess cleaned up within a year, but my hope will go unrealized. There simply remains too much damage for us to clean up anytime soon.

Ice storm Uri left downed trees and limbs across our ranch

I remain hopeful that 2022 will prove better than last year. Surely the problems encountered in 2021 won’t recur. Reasons for hope are abundant. I have some outstanding calves ready to go to market and prices are good. We also are making good progress clearing the new land purchased last May. Hopefully, we will replace the previous bad fence along the county road, will have re-seeded the land, and have sufficient rain to grow a nice stand of grass. I also remain hopeful that we may finally see Covid-19 in the rear view mirror. Here’s hoping for a better future!

In addition the Great Blue Heron greets me almost daily. As previously noted in several blog pieces, the Great Blue Heron promises good fortune, and its presence adds to my optimism about the coming year.

A Great Blue Heron. Not my heron but representative

I wish you a wonderful 2022

Ice Storm Uri Hits Medicine Spirit Ranch

Animal Cooperation, Dogs and Humans- A Special Relationship, Ice Storm at Medicine Spirit Ranch, Texas Ice Storm March 30, 2021 Comments: 4

As if Covid-19 wasn’t bad enough, an ice storm hit Texas with the worst arcing around Fredericksburg. We were clobbered at our ranch and had to leave our home for two weeks due to lack of power and water. We were more fortunate than some in that neither we nor our animals were harmed. Others we know were not so fortunate. But what a mess the ice storm left with downed trees and branches strewn everywhere. I am told by those who have lived through hurricanes that the damage is very reminiscent of a hurricane. Below are a collection of pics taken following the ice storm.

A major challenge arose in keeping the horses and cattle with food and water. The ice storm dumped several inches of ice and snow on the pastures such that the animals were unable to get to the grass beneath the ice pack. The temperature dropped so low that the diesel gummed up such that the tractor would not run. This made it impossible to pull hay out of the barn. Instead we tied a strap around the hay bales and pulled them out of the barn with my pickup.

Water became a challenge as well, as the lines from the well to the water troughs froze. The water in the trough also froze but by using a sledge hammer I broke up the ice enough for the animals to drink. Eventually no water was left in the trough, but by then we were able to open the gates, allowing the animals to get to two creeks that had flowing water.

The ice on the road to the house became treacherous. After two harrowing trips slipping and sliding down the hill, I realized that the danger was simply too great to repeat. I began to leave the pickup in the pasture below the house and hike up the hill, entering the yard via the back gate. Such were a few of the novel challenges we faced.


Since weathering the ice storm and regaining power at our home, I’ve been spending much time chainsawing and hauling branches to our dump site or to various burn sites. Generally I also have taken a day a week to vaccinate folks at our vaccination center. To do so, required I update my medical license. Doing so turned out to be a pleasant surprise, as the State of Texas made it extremely easy to re-activate my license for the duration of the pandemic and at no cost. I never knew the State could move so quickly as my license update took only a couple of days.

Gradually the labor is returning the ranch to a more normal state. Regrettably we have lost many, many Live Oak branches and of less concern the junipers (what we call cedar). Both of these had foliage that collected up to an inch and a half of ice, followed by snow, breaking many limbs and entire trees. Am extremely grateful for my ranch hands who have worked hard ever since. One of the few benefits is that I’ve pretty well worked myself back into shape and have had to tighten my belt two to three notches. Anyone else out there wish to try the Hutton exercise plan and diet? You can join the plan at no cost!

Admittedly, the ice storm diminished my spirits big time. Seeing a beautiful piece of property become so terribly damaged was a blow to my equilibrium. Since then my spirits have oscillated but  are now on an upward trend. Thank goodness for good neighbors who took us in (the Norris’s) and kept us warm and well fed. Their mighty generator along with a clever addition of their diesel tractor adding to the generator kept us and the Davies’ family warm. It was like a prolonged sleepover and Happy Hour.

One of the most memorable events occurred for after we lost power in our home. The power line broke due to massive ice collection. Heck, I thought, we’ll just move into our guest house that still had power and water (the wells are powered by electricity). But after two days in the guest house and experiencing nothing worse than rolling blackouts, we lost power there as well. In fact the entire valley went dark that night. The temperature in the house fell to 40 degrees Fahrenheit. We piled on the blankets but were still cold. To keep our dogs Bella and Jack warm and to keep Trudy and me warm, the dogs were invited into the bed for a group cuddle. Did you know the normal temperature for a dog is 101 to 102 degrees Fahrenheit. It was like having two heaters in the bed with us. The following morning, we accepted the gracious invitation from our neighbors and left our very cold guest house.

Knowing we have such good friends, willing to take us in is a very good feeling. The catastrophic weather event ended up bringing three families much closer together than would ever had occurred without the storm. For family and friends we are most grateful. We now have new resolve to repair the damages at the ranch and strive for an even better future.