Prairie Flower

Mystery Flower I found this flower blooming in mid summer in a pasture near Niobrara, NE. It looked at home among the tall prairie grass, rolling hills and cattle. Can you identify it? Please let me know. Thought for the Day: It is the sweet, simple things of life that are the real ones after …

Thistle

Musk Thistle Late summer, the beautiful Musk Thistle appears in pastures and road sides. The hummingbirds love it, the farmers hate it. It is considered a noxious weed. Contrary to popular belief, the Musk Thistle is not poisonous to cattle. The main beef (pun intended) against the Musk thistle is its thorny stalk and spiked …

Ropers

Calf ropers are one of the "skill positions" in a cattle branding.  They must be able to lasso the hind leg(s) of the calf and drag them out of the pen to be branded.  As if on queue, the calf lifts its hind leg, and "swhoosh", there's a lasso dragging the calf out of the pen. The pen …

Round Up

Cattle branding in western Nebraska is about as close to real cowboys as you can get. Except for the horse trailers and propane-fueled fires, calves are rounded up and branded the same way they were over 100 years ago, using horses, ropes, branding irons and lots of manpower. This little dogie got out of the pen …