The weekend had finally come. We were going to Jack Clarks Ranch with Uncle Jim and Aunt Emmy, my sister, mom and dad! I got everything packed in the car before Andrew got home from work. We left by 8:45 to pick up
Brenna along the way. By 11 o’clock, after pulling into many wrong driveways, we were unpacked and comfortable in Jack’s basement apartment. There was thousands of dollars of taxidermy all over the walls. Bear, antelope, dozens of deer, small game, wolves, and turkeys…even a mountain lion! Uncle Jim introduced us to Jack, the hunter extraordinaire, and we planned out the next day before retiring to bed by 1. In the morning, we had some great homemade baked oatmeal and were off for the cattle round up by 8. My dad participated in this, although he hasn’t ridden horses in years. In order to get the needed horses, we took the gator out onto some of his 1,000 acre pasture land and watched as a group of 30 {he has 125} horses were gathered for the riders. They chose 5 and the rest went back out into the pasture. We brushed them and saddled up before transporting them over to where the round up would take place. It was amazing to see the 5 horse and riders gallop down into the valley and funnel the herd up towards us. Once they were gated in, the calves were separated from the heifers by the riders. The heifers were then placed in a gated pen which had different sections. The last section had a chute, where the vet stood and would check to see
how far along their pregnancies were. Research this process if you do not know how it’s done. The doc has his entire arm in the rear end of a cow. If they were not pregnant, they were labeled “open” by painting a big “o” on either side of the back haunches. It was rainy and cold but the sight was too interesting to miss. We stood bundled up and watched this process for almost 2 hours. Jack then treated us to a warm lunch of soup and sandwiches at the local diner. Best crab soup ever! After the meal we rode the horses indoors because it was pouring. It was amazing that these beautiful creatures had just been out in the pasture {he does not keep them in a barn} but could become so tame. What an experience to be a part of. We rode for a couple hours. Jack then made the announcement that he had a calf to deliver to a certified Angus beef outfit. It was about 45 minute drive and Andrew and I rode in the truck pulling the trailer with the calf in it. You could hear it along the way. The cattle farm was enormous and we got a full tour of it all. Jack’s son happened to work there and gave us a backstage look at the operation. We also learned that one calf, if it had enough seamen to breed 400 heifers, is worth over one hundred thousand dollars. We finished the hour tour and made our way back to the house. We showered and settled in for the evening.
We had great homemade subs and then all relaxed by the big marble fireplace in Jack’s living room. He also had an excellent automatic massage chair. By 11 o’clock we were all in bed. We were woken up at 9 on Sunday morning with plans to go to a nearby homestead to gather fresh eggs for breakfast. The lady who owned it offered a ride on her gator to round up her 4 horses and the cutest little mini donkey. The donkey didn’t even reach the bottom of the horses’ stomach. We broke the ride into guys and girls. The girls went first and we had the opportunity to see the horses grazing near her pond then come toward us. We headed back down the hill. One of the horses was galloping towards us and passed only 5 feet from the tailgate we sat on. It was incredible! The guys went on their trip and we had a tour of the hen house. When the gator returned we left to go back to the house to have breakfast. Jack made us a great scrambled egg dish and toast. We then were told to head back to the pasture where we would handle colts for the first time. They had to switch herds from pasture to pasture so that the correct colts could be placed into the gated chutes. We watched as we were us
ed as a gate across the road and bridged to pastures together so that the horses could not get away in the process. Now, the colts and mares were where they needed to be. We were instructed to “love on” the colts as they were placed in the gates areas. This took some getting used to. We were to rub the hair where the saddle would be placed to get it ready for the feel of a saddle. The colts were very cautious of our hands at first and try to buck up and kick. But, after 10 minutes, they learned that our soft touch wouldn’t hurt them. The next step was to let the colt out of the gate and “halter break” them. The colts were very strong and the mare would get uncomfortable at seeing her colt fight. Andrew, Dad and Aunt Emmy tried their hands at it. What a crazy thing to witness. They were being dragged around; it looked like mud skiing! The colt eventually settled down and accepted the slight instruction from the bridal. The process would need to be done for weeks until they were ready to be saddle ridden. After the excitement with the colts, we had a chance to ride in the ring again. Later, Jack told us his plans of taking us up the mountain (Buchannan state forest) to tour the beautiful vistas. From there he drove us to another farm to ride 2 gators through hundreds of acres of cattle. It was incredible how much land he owned. We even saw 2 long horn steer. We got back to Jack’s and had one last meal for homemade subs. Packing up and thanking Jack for a once in a life time experience, we were on the road home again.
Brenna along the way. By 11 o’clock, after pulling into many wrong driveways, we were unpacked and comfortable in Jack’s basement apartment. There was thousands of dollars of taxidermy all over the walls. Bear, antelope, dozens of deer, small game, wolves, and turkeys…even a mountain lion! Uncle Jim introduced us to Jack, the hunter extraordinaire, and we planned out the next day before retiring to bed by 1. In the morning, we had some great homemade baked oatmeal and were off for the cattle round up by 8. My dad participated in this, although he hasn’t ridden horses in years. In order to get the needed horses, we took the gator out onto some of his 1,000 acre pasture land and watched as a group of 30 {he has 125} horses were gathered for the riders. They chose 5 and the rest went back out into the pasture. We brushed them and saddled up before transporting them over to where the round up would take place. It was amazing to see the 5 horse and riders gallop down into the valley and funnel the herd up towards us. Once they were gated in, the calves were separated from the heifers by the riders. The heifers were then placed in a gated pen which had different sections. The last section had a chute, where the vet stood and would check to see
how far along their pregnancies were. Research this process if you do not know how it’s done. The doc has his entire arm in the rear end of a cow. If they were not pregnant, they were labeled “open” by painting a big “o” on either side of the back haunches. It was rainy and cold but the sight was too interesting to miss. We stood bundled up and watched this process for almost 2 hours. Jack then treated us to a warm lunch of soup and sandwiches at the local diner. Best crab soup ever! After the meal we rode the horses indoors because it was pouring. It was amazing that these beautiful creatures had just been out in the pasture {he does not keep them in a barn} but could become so tame. What an experience to be a part of. We rode for a couple hours. Jack then made the announcement that he had a calf to deliver to a certified Angus beef outfit. It was about 45 minute drive and Andrew and I rode in the truck pulling the trailer with the calf in it. You could hear it along the way. The cattle farm was enormous and we got a full tour of it all. Jack’s son happened to work there and gave us a backstage look at the operation. We also learned that one calf, if it had enough seamen to breed 400 heifers, is worth over one hundred thousand dollars. We finished the hour tour and made our way back to the house. We showered and settled in for the evening. 
We had great homemade subs and then all relaxed by the big marble fireplace in Jack’s living room. He also had an excellent automatic massage chair. By 11 o’clock we were all in bed. We were woken up at 9 on Sunday morning with plans to go to a nearby homestead to gather fresh eggs for breakfast. The lady who owned it offered a ride on her gator to round up her 4 horses and the cutest little mini donkey. The donkey didn’t even reach the bottom of the horses’ stomach. We broke the ride into guys and girls. The girls went first and we had the opportunity to see the horses grazing near her pond then come toward us. We headed back down the hill. One of the horses was galloping towards us and passed only 5 feet from the tailgate we sat on. It was incredible! The guys went on their trip and we had a tour of the hen house. When the gator returned we left to go back to the house to have breakfast. Jack made us a great scrambled egg dish and toast. We then were told to head back to the pasture where we would handle colts for the first time. They had to switch herds from pasture to pasture so that the correct colts could be placed into the gated chutes. We watched as we were us
ed as a gate across the road and bridged to pastures together so that the horses could not get away in the process. Now, the colts and mares were where they needed to be. We were instructed to “love on” the colts as they were placed in the gates areas. This took some getting used to. We were to rub the hair where the saddle would be placed to get it ready for the feel of a saddle. The colts were very cautious of our hands at first and try to buck up and kick. But, after 10 minutes, they learned that our soft touch wouldn’t hurt them. The next step was to let the colt out of the gate and “halter break” them. The colts were very strong and the mare would get uncomfortable at seeing her colt fight. Andrew, Dad and Aunt Emmy tried their hands at it. What a crazy thing to witness. They were being dragged around; it looked like mud skiing! The colt eventually settled down and accepted the slight instruction from the bridal. The process would need to be done for weeks until they were ready to be saddle ridden. After the excitement with the colts, we had a chance to ride in the ring again. Later, Jack told us his plans of taking us up the mountain (Buchannan state forest) to tour the beautiful vistas. From there he drove us to another farm to ride 2 gators through hundreds of acres of cattle. It was incredible how much land he owned. We even saw 2 long horn steer. We got back to Jack’s and had one last meal for homemade subs. Packing up and thanking Jack for a once in a life time experience, we were on the road home again.
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