Ray and Donnie at Five R Ranch
(July 3-8, 2008)
They say that "Early to bed, and early to rise, makes one healthy, wealth and wise." Well, that's getting harder every day. It's early Thursday morning, and we set out to find the Five R Ranch. We find its a whole new world in the daylight, and Mel finds the right road, even though the landscape doesn't have any distinguishing landmarks. It's too early to be knocking on doors, so we have our breakfast perched on the hill looking down the road at our destination.
Everything's pretty much the same except for the time of year. The beautiful flowers are all abloom...and Ray and Donnie's planned new home next door is beginning to take shape.
We had a nice visit, and they wanted to show us some property they purchased in the hills, where they parked their get-away-trailer house.
It's a long, rough road going out, but we're riding in their 4 wheel drive vehicle. A fierce fire had swept through much of the property years earlier, and all the trees burned. Lots of interesting rock formations, green grass and wildflowers. Very beautiful this time of the year.
This solitary doe's keeping her eyes on us.
The get-away is pretty cute, and even has a tree for shade.
Donnie's posed by deer and elk antlers they've found on the property.
This rock looked like a big bear from the distance.
Ray's disappointed to find the pond drained since his last visit. The leak turns out to be the over-flow pipe had a hole in the bottom.
The old home needs some work, but is nice. After the wonderful tour of their nice acquisition, we drove to Wheatland hoping to see more relatives, but none were home except Jean. We enjoyed visiting with her over a glass of wine, and then went back to the ranch. Ray showed Mel where to park our motor home for hookups etc.
It's the Fourth of July. Today Ray and Donnie took us around the ranch area (about one and a half sections) where their sons have homes, or are building one. The name "Five R Ranch" is derived from Ray and his son's first name begins with R. Donnie was anxious to get home because it was customary for the family to come to dinner on Friday. Even though some had gone camping over the 4th weekend. Even so, many showed up for dinner. Donnie is a wonderful mother, grandmother, cook and hostess.
Grandson Wesley the Great demonstrated his magical card trick. It was amazing how he made the twirling card move up and down and around through the air. I asked if it was magnetism. He said "no," and if he told me it wouldn't be a magicians secret anymore. Ray told me there was a fine thread, but I'd examined everything and saw nothing like that. Wesley wanted me and his friend Kylie to do it. Then he demonstrated doing it with a plastic lid. (After we returned home a friend told us he'd seen someone do it, and there was a fine string involved. However, when he saw the original movie I took, he was astounded, because you cannot see anything attached. He thought Wesley was very accomplished.) Someone gave him a magician set when he was little, and he's been practicing ever since.
Wesley made this bear with bark chips. He said it was extremely tedious.
Well, it's getting late so we'll say good night and head for our camper. It's been fun, and we hope to see everyone Sunday, at the Fertig reunion in Wheatland.
