Happenings on the Homestead - Wood Cutting & Bear Tracks

Well I didn’t get everything done that I had hoped, but we still made tremendous progress.

My father and I arrived at Wild Rose Acres late Friday evening to a field of knee-high green grass and those sad, fallen trees cluttering the yard from last time. Since I was immediately assaulted by mosquitos I didn’t dare stop to take photos. My father quickly started mowing as I moved what branches I could lift. By the time we finished, the sun has sunk and it was too dark to continue working.

Saturday started with the arrival of family to help clear the yard! Yet even with three chainsaws working simultaneously, it took us hours to make progress. I dedicated myself to hauling logs and ran the wheelbarrow back and forth until my hands calloused and my back ached. The sun was high in the sky before we sat back, panting and sweating, to view our accomplishment.

We cut over half a dozen large trees, yet this stack only shows two of them. It may not look large… but those logs on the left side? Those are about 15 inches in diameter and fairly hefty.

We cut as much as we could into long lengths (100 inches) for the logging company. Hopefully they stop by soon to take them away.

After that, we tossed another pile of branches to the side of the yard haphazardly. That tire hidden under the left side of the foliage is actually a large tractor tire.

Needless to say, we were sick of cutting wood. But our work was not done yet. Next, we had to plant the fields.

The rest of the evening was spent tilling, planting, rolling, and fertilizing soybeans. I would prefer planting a field for human consumption, but the boys have dedicated this field in particular for the deer. Hunting season is a big event for them so I will settle with my own edible garden instead!

So after taking these photos, I began to head back to the garden in order to finally begin working with our perennials… but suddenly I head whooping and hollering! I rushed back to the group that was now in a tight circle and leaning over something on the edge of the field. I pushed through the bodies to see what was causing the commotion.

Bear tracks!

I’ve never seen a black bear before and we rarely see proof of their presence on our land. So to be able to take the photos below was a very rare treat!

According to a quick search on the web, we found out how to roughly estimate the size of the creature. Measure the width of the print (in this case, approx. 4 inches), add 1, and convert to feet. So this black bear was probably around 5 feet long from snout to bum! Very cool!

With a spring in my step, I left the tracks behind and made my way to the garden. Finally, it was my time to get the work done that I had wanted to do since morning!

Wild grasses had sprouted among my flowers and sadly, I found that one of my zucchini had died. I hunkered down to begin weeding and watering.

Unfortunately, I hadn’t even been working for 2 minutes before the mosquitos descended and I had been bit over a dozen times. My new Bug Off! Essential Oil Roll-On was not as effective as I had hoped. I was forced to retreat, almost shaking from the adrenaline of being bit so many times, after taking these two hurried photos (hence the blur).

I am disappointed I did not get any work done in the garden this weekend, but I still count our progress as a success. The yard is now (mostly) clear of the fallen trees from the terrible storm and the field is now planted. So I will wait patiently to work in the garden until next time!

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Photography taken by @kiaraantonoviche and may be shared / reposted with proper accreditation. Footer badges created by @daddykirbs and @allforthegood.

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