07 Jul Laura: Not enough fun yet!
Greeley County, Kansas: On Sunday after church, as I was cleaning and packing up the camper, Little Man asked, “Mom, why do we have to leave already? I haven’t had enough fun yet!” You see, the kids really enjoy the Tribune/Sharon Springs area as do I. They both have friendly people, great pools with slides, clean, exciting, parks, community-run movie theaters, and even a bowling alley. It is not a problem finding something fun to do. It is a harvest kid’s dream.
This year, however, our run was cut short, hence Little Man’s comment that he hadn’t had enough fun yet. The great white combine beat us to this stop some weeks prior, as mentioned in previous posts. The resulting acres that remained only totaled a fraction of the normal allotment. What remained took a few short days, but you know what’s worse than having a job cut short? No job at all. We are counting our blessings for what we were able to cut.
When I headed out west Friday afternoon, I knew it would be too late to get groceries, cook, and then deliver food, so I picked up an order of chicken fried steak dinners to go in Syracuse at the Black Bison Pub. I’ve read great things about them and have wanted to try them out for a while, but it never timed out. They didn’t disappoint. They had everything packaged and ready when I arrived which was a good thing because another storm was coming in fast. The kids and I didn’t even stop to eat ours in the car because there is a lot of open country between us and the field, and I didn’t want things to get ugly somewhere in between. We raced up Highway 27 and were entertained with a great lightning storm. Luckily, we were almost to Tribune when the worst of the storm hit, so we knew we’d be ok. I kept going through town and on out to the field. The dinners still had some decent warmth left by the time I made it, though the winds from the storm also had arrived. They may have had a little dust seasoning to go with them. It only sprinkled for a little bit at the field and the crew continued cutting. We had a rainbow backdrop that lasted for a significant amount of time.
Saturday was much nicer, but with another chance of storms, the crew wanted to make sure to finish up. I delivered a pasta dinner, and since Ryan was operating the combine that day, the kids got to take a ride. Later that afternoon, we met Kylee from DeBock Harvesting and her boys. We enjoyed time at the pool and park before calling it a day. (More on this outing in a future post.)
The kids and I hadn’t been at the camper long when a huge wind hit. I thought the wind may voluntarily relocate us a few feet. It was the front coming through and the visibility was greatly reduced with the blowing dust. When things calmed down, the kids and I walked over to the bowling alley for burgers and bowling. It was their first time to bowl and they thought it was great! The next morning was the annual breakfast and church service in the park in honor of Independence Day. We cleaned up and headed home, but not before stopping in Leoti to visit the DeBocks at the park, then on to Monument Rocks. I don’t know about you, but for the kids and I only being there a few days, I think we had A LOT of opportunity for fun!
In case you have made it to the end in hopes of getting some stats, congrats, you made it! We saw irrigated wheat in this area with yields ranging from 60-80+ bushels per acre. Test weights averaged 59-61 pounds per bushel. We were cutting white wheat, and it had protein at 12 or higher.
Despite the storm, I had to take a second to capture this old school house. (Photo credit: Laura)
Mom vs. storm. (Photo credit: Laura)
I arrived just in time to deliver food in the dust! (Photo credit: Laura)
It may not be a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but a pile of wheat in the grain cart is a close second! (Photo credit: Laura)
Beautiful sunset after the storm clouds. (Photo credit: Laura)
Friday night lights. (Photo credit: Laura)
Enjoying a hot lunch. (Photo credit: Laura)
The rainbows are following me and I love it. A little sun dog action. (Photo credit: Laura)
Cy watching the combines run while he waits to tarp the truck. (Photo credit: Laura)
Loading the truck. (Photo credit: Laura)
Irrigated wheat. (Photo credit: Laura)
Rolling, rolling, rolling… (Photo credit: Laura)
The view when the cold front hit. A nasty little dust storm. (Photo credit: Laura)
Lady A cheering on her brother! (Photo credit: Laura)
This was my second year attending this outdoor service. Prior to the service, a breakfast is served with donations benefiting the local museum. (Photo credit: Laura)
Greeley County museum. (Photo credit: Laura)
Some of the “Monument Rocks.” They’re also known to some as the “Chalk Pyramids”. This landmark is found between Oakley and Scott City. (Photo credit: Laura)
All Aboard Wheat Harvest is sponsored by High Plains Journal and John Deere. Laura can be reached at laura@allaboardharvest.com.
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