Tom Green Memorial Rodeo

When Tom Green was killed it was a tragic accident that shocked the whole town. He was a giving man and his family still remembers him in a great way just like the man. They put on this ranch rodeo and the profit goes to the kids of Jefferson County through the 4H and FAA program.  What an amazing family.

I have also decided that ranch rodeo is so much more fun then regular rodeo. The only time the chutes are used is the bucking event. They don't use a bucking saddle but a regular western saddle.

The roping events also don't use the chutes. On the ranch you don't have roping chutes, just the open range and some corrals.

They had teams of 4 cowboys and in team roping they turn out two steers into the arena and the cowboys are behind a white line, the flagger drops the flag and off every go, it is wild and fun.

The did branding, with paint, cowboy rescue which was really a hoot. They have to run a course through the poles and pickup  their man off the barrel at the other end and take him back and then go get another one until he has retrieved his other three partners. The audience went wild screaming for their team. They ran two teams at once and it was a timed event.

I have never been to a rodeo where the audience got so into the events except at the senior rodeos. I will now go to every ranch and senior rodeo I can.

After the rodeo they had a band come in the arena on a flat bed truck and our local Central Oregon band Countryfied played. The kids could go and it was a just a fun family event for all.

A big high five to the Green Family, loving memories to Tom Green, kudo's to Kelly Simmelink for the job he did and to all the others that made this event something for the Green family to be proud of and for the whole town of Madras and all the cowboys that came from all over the state...Thanks for a great evening.

Snake River

The Snake River is a great play to go to fish, boat or just play or watch wildlife.  The first photo is my brothers dog Putt-Putt swimming in the river. He loves the river and rides in the canoe with them and then jumps out and swims and then gets back in. He goes all day long playing in the boat and the water.

Birds abound on the snake and you can get some great photos of them. They have a lot of wildlife areas set aside for birds that you can get to by car or by boat.

My mom loves to fish the snake for channel cats. Channel catfish fight more like a trout then they do a catfish and are great fun to catch and they grow them big in the snake.

One day we were fishing on the bank and my mom got tackled up so my daughter went downstream to get her line untangled and got in some high grass and got attached by the mosquitoes like you would not believe. Mosquitoes love her and when she threw the line and took off running for the pickup a black cloud followed her and there were so many it sounded like a small plane.

When you set around the campfire when the sun goes down you can hear the buzz of them all around you. Always keep some green wood on the fire because they will eat you alive just like they do at Ollalie Lake. They aren't bad during the day but you would not believe all the bugs that come out when the sun sets. Fish early or fish when it is windy....

Snow, Rain, Hail, Sunshine

Yep it is central Oregon all right, within two hours we had rain, sunshine, hail and snow. Drove to Bend and back with takes a couple of hours and hit every type of weather.

One saying for central Oregon is "if you don't like the weather hang around 5 minutes and it will change"

Second saying "the only place you can stand in a mud puddle and get hit with a dust devil"

I love central Oregon, it keeps you guessing.

old ranch barn

One thing I love to take photos of is old barns and old houses. If you drive through a rural area you will find old ranches and farms and the barn is the biggest and nicest building on the ranch.  A rancher learns early if he is going to survive he must provide for his animals.

Many people lived in dug outs in the hills with a rock front and had a nice barn. A barn was necessary for survival on the plains.  Even today ranches provide for their stock as they know without it they lose everything.

This old barn is at a deserted homestead near some mining areas too.  The house has almost totally fallen down, the garage area has an old car inside and the garage has fallen down on top of it.  The barn still stands, the roof looks good and the barn has some bad spots but it is till usable and hanging in there. Even the fences have mostly fallen down. Cows still go inside for shelter here.

There aren't a lot of trees to break the wind and the snow so barns became a way for animals to get out of the storm and most had a loft where they stored hay and on blizzard nights they could crawl up in the loft and throw the hay down. Much more fun then hauling it over in the storm.  Luckily most winters we don't get to much snow to feed off the truck or wagon.

I have a friend that feeds his stock the old way with a horse drawn wagon or sled depending on the weather.  The one team makes me laugh because if you feed off the little ATV or the pickup they will run around and get in front of you like they are towing you. They won't eat until you are done then they go back and eat. It is the cutest thing you ever saw.

Gray Butte Cemetery

What a peaceful place to rest. This little cemetery is out in the middle of no where with a view of the mountains and sagebrush. If you go out early in the morning the birds are always singing and when the sun comes up the first place the rays hit to warm the day is the cemetery.  The local people take good care of it and a lot of old graves are here plus new ones as it is still used to this date.

Wild Carrot

Wild carrots are also known as Queen Anne's Lace, Bishop's Lace and grow wild on the dry side of Oregon usually near a water source.  You have to be careful as they look a lot like a deadly poisonous hemlock. Handling the wild carrot can also cause you to be sensitive to the UV rays and on some people actually cause a rash.  The root smells like a carrot and can be eaten when it is young but becomes woody as it ages.

It was used as a contraceptive by some of the Native American bands and does have some effect. You can read about them on the internet but they are beautiful with their large white clusters of flowers sticking out of the brush.

Smith Rocks

One of my favorite places in the world. So peaceful and serene and beautiful.  A great place to go hiking or rock climbing.

Every year people fall rock climbing here. They come from all over the world to the park to climb the rocks. Some live through the fall and others never see the light of day again.

Most of these are the back side away from the park area and I am jealous of the people who ranch here. The Crooked River runs at the base of the rocks and is not a very far walk from the parking lot. A great place for a family picnic.