Greetings From Willow Springs Guest Ranch!
Weather Report at Willow Springs
You can still see a few faint drifts of snow on the nearby mountains, but spring/summer has finally sprung! The big juniper tree near the dining room is loaded with birds, nesting, squabbling, calling -- all starting at 5:00 a.m. But what a way to wake up. Our funny starlings have their usual hole-in-the-trunk nesting site and are keeping us amused with their constant mimicking of other birds and even frogs. It's quite a surprise the first time you hear "ribbit, ribbit" coming from a big juniper.
The days have fluttered around 70 -80 degrees with the nights still moving down the thermometer to the high 30's. Our garden is struggling this year, but the trusty green house is nurturing 28 tomato plants and as far as we're concerned, tomatoes make the garden! And the beds are coming along -- it won't be too much time until we serve up those good homegrown salads and veggies.
Keith headed up a work party a couple of weekends ago to ride some of the nearby trails in the National Forest and is happy to report he has cleared the winter downfalls to allow for good horseback riding. There were still little patches of snow, but blue skies and moderate temperatures made for some excellent weather for trail clearing.
Horse Report
This year we've added two new horses to our herd. "Katy" is a 13-year-old Quarter Horse. She is sorrel with a little white and is quite stocky. She has a beautiful eye and is great to ride -- smooth and quiet. "Berry" is also a Quarter Horse, also sorrel with just enough white to make him interesting. He is a local boy, coming from a ranch just down the road a ways. Berry and Katy join our regular band of ranch horses. We are often asked what kind of horses we have and we always say, "gentle ones", as the breed is less important than the character and comfort of each individual.
Ranch Dog Does Well
Last year many of our guests met "Misty" for the first time. As a year old stock dog she had a lot of energy and as a Border Collie, a lot of intelligence and personality. Misty is now two and still has more get-up-and-go than any dog should have, and she's still meeting and greeting visitors with a smile and a wag. We had a very severe winter this past year so Keith hauled the big, ugly dog house up to the back porch. Misty spent the cold winter months alternately zipping around the place playing in the snow then hiding from the subfreezing temperatures inside her house. Sometimes a cat would join her. Much to her annoyance. Real ranch dogs do not fraternize with ranch cats!
As always we hope this newsletter finds you healthy and happy as we re here at Willow Springs. Come join us if you can for some great ranch adventures, wonderful campfire dinners and good old Western hospitality. Take care!
Cookbook
For those of you that are interested in purchasing our cookbook that is mentioned in the article in the "Oregonian", "Songs of the Sagebrush, Recipies, Rhymes, and Reminiscences From Willow Springs Guest Ranch" you may email us using the link on this page. The price of the cookbook is $12.95 plus $2.50 for shipping and handling.
Patty and Keith Barnhart
June 25, 2008 | 
