08 Aug Janel: A first

South Dakota – We finished up cutting wheat in western Nebraska on Aug. 1 and that is a first for me.  I can’t remember ever cutting wheat in Nebraska in August.  We cut a lot of nice wheat there and overall it was a good crop this year and the farmers were pleased with the yields.

We recently got moved up to the Pierre, South Dakota area and had a good trip. I saw a lot of motorcycles cruising around and also more brand new grain bins.  It is 400 plus miles for us to get here and there’s a few big hills to climb.  My mom, Carlene, told me that back in the day the crew would have to pull over once they reached the top of a big hill to give the trucks time to cool down.  The hills are big and the trucks would overheat while climbing the hills.  We took our time on this trip because it was hot outside and we didn’t want to have to fix any blown out tires so we drove slower than normal most of the way which was fine with me!

We are always happy to finally get to the Dakotas and to have the stress of another big trip over. We pretty much unloaded and went straight to the field to sample the wheat.  We are cutting winter wheat yielding 60 to 70 bushels per acre and 12.5 percent protein.  The test weights have been around 60 pounds per bushel.  I thought we’d be late getting here but we got here at just the right time.  The winter wheat is borderline ready and the spring wheat is looking like it’ll be several days before it’ll be ready to cut.

Our 10-day forecast looks cool with highs only in the 70s and chances of rain. That won’t ripen wheat too quickly.  We might be in South Dakota for awhile.

All Aboard Wheat Harvest is sponsored by High Plains Journal and John Deere.  Janel Schemper can be reached at janel@allaboardharvest.com.

We finished up Aug. 1 in western Nebraska.  Luckily, we had 5 combines in this field and finished right before it rained.

No matter if it’s rain or shine Miss Moo is always happy to see me.

I washed a combine.  It’s always an excellent workout.

The Dock restaurant in Gurley, Nebraska serves the best bar food!

We made it to South Dakota!

Where is Miss Moo?  Sitting in the shade, of course!

We unloaded and went to the field and cut a sample.

Just like that we were cutting wheat again!

This girl gets plenty of rest in the combine.  I wish I could too!  If she’s sleeping I let her sleep!

Nice winter wheat to cut.

Nice winter wheat to cut.

My dad and I cutting winter wheat in South Dakota.

Unloading on the go.

My combine shadow.  I love this time of day.

She’s one-of-a-kind in every way!  She is sweet sunshine in my life!

Nice wheat to cut.

My dad and I cutting winter wheat in South Dakota.

The combine is her rocking chair!

Nice winter wheat to cut in South Dakota.

Cutting wheat in South Dakota.

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The sunset is beautiful.  When I was 11 years old I had a puppy named Wag.  He tragically died on that farm over there to the west and is buried in the treeline.  I always think of him when I’m harvesting nearby.  He was so cute and sweet.

Harvesting winter wheat in South Dakota late at night.