Once again Vince proved himself to be an exceptional husband. Yesterday, I asked him if he would load up his new 4-wheeler and take me to our old house at the 'Red Meat Farm' so that we could go through the old cow pastures and down to the wild area above the bay so that we could pick iris. Without hesitation, he loaded up the wheeler and drove me the 4 miles to where the iris grow.
Iris don't grow just everywhere. They like a swampy open area with plenty of sun. They don't grow down on our forested hillsides. I used to try to go every year to pick them.
The last time I picked them was two years ago. Valda, the kids, Maygen and I hiked down to the iris fields. The cows are gone from the meadows and the hay grass has grown up five feet. I am allergic to this grass and by the time I got down to the picking area my eyes had swollen shut. We only got to pick for a few minutes before I had to run back to the car. I could not drive home my eyes were swollen shut. I haven't been back since.
I thought that this year would be different. With Vince driving me on his 4 wheeler and it being earlier in the year I thought that I'd have a chance.
We drove down the farm past the pole barns where the cows and owls lives. The mosquitoes are thick in that wet environment, but we planned ahead and wore our hooded jackets. We rode down the old cow road where Vince, Falcom, and I cut our first Christmas tree together 8 years ago. The memory of it rushed right back to me. It was a picturesque hike at the beginning. Very Norman Rockwell. We pulled Falcom in a sled that half mile down hill. It was beautiful in the pastures with the mountains in the background and everything covered in fresh snow. We hacksawed down a small spruce tree. Then the wind picked up and we slogged back uphill with the tree and the kid feeling an awful lot like the Donner Party. We have an artificial tree now.
Having Vince load up his wheeler and take me to the fields were so worth it! The iris were beautiful, growing up in the meadows. From where we stood on the old cow road we could peek through the spruce trees and see the blue speckled meadows beyond that the iris were thick in.
We didn't have to suffer through slogging through the muck. We were happy with the iris growing on the old cow road. We laughed at a memory of Scratch and I hiking together down there years ago. He and I had just turned the corner on that old cow road and about 50 yards ahead was a coyote. Scratch and that coyote made direct eye contact for about 5 seconds and Scratch was off. He chased that coyote through the bush and I'm sure caught her because Woody and I heard a yelp.
Four-wheelering down through the cow pasture was far superior to walking. It is not as loud as the snow machines and so I to hold onto him and chat with him while we meandered down the pasture. We didn't trip in the cow ruts and my allergies were kept at bay. We saw birds that we don't get to see at our place. We saw a spruce tree that we thought was covered in surveyors tape; it had pink weaving through it in such a way it looked like a Christmas tree. Upon closer examination the pink was actually rose blossoms from a vine that had entwined itself through the spruce. Beautiful!
Iris don't grow just everywhere. They like a swampy open area with plenty of sun. They don't grow down on our forested hillsides. I used to try to go every year to pick them.
The last time I picked them was two years ago. Valda, the kids, Maygen and I hiked down to the iris fields. The cows are gone from the meadows and the hay grass has grown up five feet. I am allergic to this grass and by the time I got down to the picking area my eyes had swollen shut. We only got to pick for a few minutes before I had to run back to the car. I could not drive home my eyes were swollen shut. I haven't been back since.I thought that this year would be different. With Vince driving me on his 4 wheeler and it being earlier in the year I thought that I'd have a chance.
We drove down the farm past the pole barns where the cows and owls lives. The mosquitoes are thick in that wet environment, but we planned ahead and wore our hooded jackets. We rode down the old cow road where Vince, Falcom, and I cut our first Christmas tree together 8 years ago. The memory of it rushed right back to me. It was a picturesque hike at the beginning. Very Norman Rockwell. We pulled Falcom in a sled that half mile down hill. It was beautiful in the pastures with the mountains in the background and everything covered in fresh snow. We hacksawed down a small spruce tree. Then the wind picked up and we slogged back uphill with the tree and the kid feeling an awful lot like the Donner Party. We have an artificial tree now.
Having Vince load up his wheeler and take me to the fields were so worth it! The iris were beautiful, growing up in the meadows. From where we stood on the old cow road we could peek through the spruce trees and see the blue speckled meadows beyond that the iris were thick in.We didn't have to suffer through slogging through the muck. We were happy with the iris growing on the old cow road. We laughed at a memory of Scratch and I hiking together down there years ago. He and I had just turned the corner on that old cow road and about 50 yards ahead was a coyote. Scratch and that coyote made direct eye contact for about 5 seconds and Scratch was off. He chased that coyote through the bush and I'm sure caught her because Woody and I heard a yelp.
Four-wheelering down through the cow pasture was far superior to walking. It is not as loud as the snow machines and so I to hold onto him and chat with him while we meandered down the pasture. We didn't trip in the cow ruts and my allergies were kept at bay. We saw birds that we don't get to see at our place. We saw a spruce tree that we thought was covered in surveyors tape; it had pink weaving through it in such a way it looked like a Christmas tree. Upon closer examination the pink was actually rose blossoms from a vine that had entwined itself through the spruce. Beautiful!
Vince and I fought back the mosquitoes and picked several dozen flowers. He loaded the flowers and me back on the machine and we wheelered back up to the car.By the time we got out of the pasture, a 10 minute ride, my eyes were swollen and my breathing was difficult. OY! Thank heaven for that wheeler. At the truck we found a yearling bull moose munching on alder leaves. The swelling in my eyes went down. My mosquito bites were minimal and my house is flooded with iris.
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