Winter of 2004 and the
pond is looking pretty grim.
pond is looking pretty grim.
But Look!!!!!
There is hope!!!!
There is hope!!!!
Actually, there is more than just hope. Just weeks after the Junipers were removed, water started collecting in the
area. The hot fall weather dried it up again.
Late in the spring of 2005, I took a small back-hoe digger to the spring site and dug a small hole. It is about 3 feet
deep. During the June gathering, some us hiked up to the spring to see how it was doing. Below is what we found.
area. The hot fall weather dried it up again.
Late in the spring of 2005, I took a small back-hoe digger to the spring site and dug a small hole. It is about 3 feet
deep. During the June gathering, some us hiked up to the spring to see how it was doing. Below is what we found.
And about 15 feet down-hill of the hole I dug, the water is coming to the surface on its own.
The plans for this area are to create a real retaining pond in this area and then to fence it all off with wildlife friendly
fencing so that the wildlife can get in and use it while keeping the cows out. We will set up a piping system to take water
to a trough outside of the fence so that the cows have a place to drink.
Eventually, we will plant some Aspens or other non-invasive trees around the spring to provide shade.
Completion of this task, along with everything else, is taking much longer than I had hoped for. Diesel and gasoline
costs have doubled which is severely crimping our budget. And donations of funds and of labor have dropped off
dramatically. So, the time line for these tasks has changed.
Another reason for the delay was that we had to wait for a Archaeological study of the area. The USFWS is partially
funding this task and part of their stipulations in the grant is that an area must be studied before any digging is
performed. In their study of the area they discovered some evidence of Native American activities. They found what they
term as "scatter". This is the pieces and shavings left over from the making of tools and weapons. It appears that in the
past, the local natives liked this area as much as I do and they used the area for tool making.
This find has required me to change the plans for the spring. I am no longer able to dig the whole upper area out for
fear of disturbing the scatter. Instead, the USFWS asked me to just dig a small hole for a cistern and then pipe the water
down hill to a retaining pond.
It is now Fall of 2006. We have most of the fencing up, all of the rock jacks up but one and we have the gate hung.
During the weekend of October 7, I started digging. Here is what it looked like before I started.
fencing so that the wildlife can get in and use it while keeping the cows out. We will set up a piping system to take water
to a trough outside of the fence so that the cows have a place to drink.
Eventually, we will plant some Aspens or other non-invasive trees around the spring to provide shade.
Completion of this task, along with everything else, is taking much longer than I had hoped for. Diesel and gasoline
costs have doubled which is severely crimping our budget. And donations of funds and of labor have dropped off
dramatically. So, the time line for these tasks has changed.
Another reason for the delay was that we had to wait for a Archaeological study of the area. The USFWS is partially
funding this task and part of their stipulations in the grant is that an area must be studied before any digging is
performed. In their study of the area they discovered some evidence of Native American activities. They found what they
term as "scatter". This is the pieces and shavings left over from the making of tools and weapons. It appears that in the
past, the local natives liked this area as much as I do and they used the area for tool making.
This find has required me to change the plans for the spring. I am no longer able to dig the whole upper area out for
fear of disturbing the scatter. Instead, the USFWS asked me to just dig a small hole for a cistern and then pipe the water
down hill to a retaining pond.
It is now Fall of 2006. We have most of the fencing up, all of the rock jacks up but one and we have the gate hung.
During the weekend of October 7, I started digging. Here is what it looked like before I started.
Cost analysis:
Excavator: 1 day @ $275.00 per day
200 yds of four strand perimeter fence wire
2 strands of barbed wire = 400 yds barbed wire $55.00
2 strands of smooth wire = 400 yds smooth wire $43.00
60 fence posts @ $318.00
6 rock-jacks - 10 ft each of hog wire style fence = 60 ft fence $43.00
1 10 ft farm gate - $63.00
Labor required:
Operating excavator- approximately 8 hours
Building rock-jacks - approximately 24 hours
Driving fence posts 8 hours
Stringing fence - 8 hours
Hanging gate - 6 hours
Approximate totals: $780.00 and 54 man hours
Excavator: 1 day @ $275.00 per day
200 yds of four strand perimeter fence wire
2 strands of barbed wire = 400 yds barbed wire $55.00
2 strands of smooth wire = 400 yds smooth wire $43.00
60 fence posts @ $318.00
6 rock-jacks - 10 ft each of hog wire style fence = 60 ft fence $43.00
1 10 ft farm gate - $63.00
Labor required:
Operating excavator- approximately 8 hours
Building rock-jacks - approximately 24 hours
Driving fence posts 8 hours
Stringing fence - 8 hours
Hanging gate - 6 hours
Approximate totals: $780.00 and 54 man hours
Hanna's Spring
I started visiting the property on
a regular basis around 1990. At
that time, this spring holding
pond held about 150 gallons of
water for most of the year. The
pond was very healthy. It had
frogs in it every year. It was
fairly shaded so the water did
not evaporate quickly.
Unfortunately, the trees
providing that shade were
Juniper trees. As the years
passed and the Junipers grew,
the water level dropped. The
frogs disappeared. The aguatic
vegetation disappeared. And
finally, the water disappeared.
This picture was taken in the
spring of 2004 and as you can
see, the only remnants of the
previous water source is the
green grass. This picture was
taken just after all of the
encroaching Junipers had been
removed.
a regular basis around 1990. At
that time, this spring holding
pond held about 150 gallons of
water for most of the year. The
pond was very healthy. It had
frogs in it every year. It was
fairly shaded so the water did
not evaporate quickly.
Unfortunately, the trees
providing that shade were
Juniper trees. As the years
passed and the Junipers grew,
the water level dropped. The
frogs disappeared. The aguatic
vegetation disappeared. And
finally, the water disappeared.
This picture was taken in the
spring of 2004 and as you can
see, the only remnants of the
previous water source is the
green grass. This picture was
taken just after all of the
encroaching Junipers had been
removed.
Water is seeping out of the ground and collecting in the small hole that I dug last year.
Now it is time to get started. The following are a few snapshots of the process.
Now it is time to get started. The following are a few snapshots of the process.
And now we have water flowing down the hill. Unfortunately, I ran out of time before I
could dig the holding pond. I will work on that the first weekend of November.
could dig the holding pond. I will work on that the first weekend of November.