In this case RV would not stand for Recreational Vehicle but perhaps Rest Vehicle for a cowboy or cowpoke. I’m not sure if this was once an old chuckwagon used on cattle drives or just a “mobile home” for a cowboy out with his cows. It sits on the property that adjoins our one parcel on the west, so yes we were technically trespassing to visit it. We first found it years ago and it was in much better condition then. Now the packrats have taken it over as their residence and it’s basically not long for this world. It’s sad to see it fall into such disrepair. But, the the land has not been used for some time as the fence surrounding it fell down years ago. I wanted to capture it in a few photos before it no longer exists.

It’s situated at the edge of their stand of trees, looking somewhat sadly and yearningly (at least to me) out to the open spaces where it once was useful.

It’s wheels aren’t turning any more over the open prairie.

It sits neglected. No longer of any use to anybody but the small rodents that now call it their home.

I’ll just let the photos speak for themselves except for a short explanation.
Photo 1: Me and Alex
Photo 2: Alex
Photo 3: Family photo of Rick, me and all three dogs.

Just in case any of you out there were wondering exactly where our cabin is, “X” marks the spot!

The driveway.

It’s hard to believe that we only have three days left at the cabin. Three days. Where did the time go? The days slip by in a sunny blur. Yesterday our weather station here at the cabin registered 83 degrees F! Crazy. We are unsure yet of how to best spend the remaining time here. Do we take another drive? Walk the perimeter of our 70 acres? Or just be lazy and sit around and read (and blog)?

We’ve done a few chore-like things but not much. We have to fix our fence at the entrance to our cabin every year because the snow piles up so deep that the fence poles (which are just trees that have died and fallen over) don’t hold up very well. Rick took the big chain saw and cut through downed trees on our path through the woods and replaced the threshold on our front screen door. That’s about it for work.

Part of the fence.

The other night we finally got lucky and caught a herd of cow elk just over the hill from the cabin. They were spooky and didn’t hold still for long. Still, it was nice to see them.

The cows continue to stroll through our newly formed “meadow” leaving lots of meadow muffins. behind. Like this:

Yesterday they just laid down and took a long afternoon nap. We forgot they were there and when Rick went out with the dogs after their meal Hailey took off chasing them. argh! I didn’t see it because I was inside, but from hearing Rick yelling at her I knew something was happening. She chased them out of the woods, across the road and over the hill, then she came back. She thinks she’s a cow dog now and is very pleased with herself.  Here they are at our salt lick (which we have to attract the moose, not cows) yesterday morning.

eBay likes it when the cows are here too. She looks out the window frozen into position and her whole body just quivers. I don’t know if she’s quivering with excitement or fear, but it’s amusement anyway. Speaking of eBay, she’s got her nose out of joint because I haven’t shown any photos of her, so here she is doing her favorite thing at the cabin—rolling around in the gravelly dirt in the driveway and taking a dirt bath.

We took a drive yesterday over Sand Creek Pass and down to the Laramie River road and on to Woods Landing, taking the extremely long way into Laramie. This stand of aspens were too pretty to pass up without capturing them.

One thing that Colorado and Wyoming have over New Jersey it that blue, blue sky that goes on forever. And, of course, signs like this one.

And folks, it’s no bull!

Uhm, but in this case it was a bull!

After errands in Laramie we came home and I made lasagna for dinner. We had neighbors David and Sal over. We took them on our “around” walk before dinner and they were completely amazed at all the trees we have. Bella took a late afternoon dip in the pond. I liked the ripples fanning out from her and the reflection of the tree that goes right through her middle!

I have so many photos to share I think I might do another blog entry later today, so stay tuned to the cabin channel!

Oops, almost forgot to include an aspen pic!

Here are some photos taken over the past several days on our land. Enjoy!

Taken in the morning while the moon was still up.

Beetle-killed pines, a spruce and an aspen share space with the moon.

Our cabin’s driveway arch under a clear blue sky.

A little too quiet. The relentless western sun shines every day. Day in, day out with no hope of rain. Yesterday it was 80 degrees! That’s more like summertime cabin temperatures. I’ve forgotten how strong the sun is in Colorado. We were so hoping for cooler temperatures than what we’ve had and what we can except for the rest of our stay here. The nighttime temperatures drop by over 30 degrees from what the daytime temps were. That’s quite a swing. Here it what the weather forecast in Sunday’s paper said:

Sunday: Another sunny dry day : high 81 /  low 41
Monday: More September sun : high 76 / low 43
Tuesday: No rain on the horizon : high 77 / low 44
Wednesday: Continued dry : high 75 / low 45
Thursday: Staying sunny : high 71 / low 43
Friday: Mostly sunny : high 72 / low 47

See? Even they are bored with the weather! They keep themselves entertained coming up with new ways to describe sunny, hot and dry.

While back home we understand that we had a good storm blow through our little town that toppled trees and took down power lines. Our house fared alright but a neighbor on our street had a tree land on their house. Our weather station at home has not rebooted since the power outage, so we can’t see how much rain we’ve gotten back there. Radar this morning showed a good drenching rain. Boo.

I have also forgotten about dry skin, chapped lips and sinus woes caused by the dry air here. Yikes, I am pruning up! My hair likes it here though even if the rest of my body does not. It comes out perfect every day.

The other night was chilly enough to warrant a fire, which was very nice.

Last year we took this old lamp back with us to New Jersey to have the socket refitted because it was broken and the wiring inside the lamp was old and worn out. My dad made this lamp out of a cypress tree stump that he got one of our vacations to Florida (before we moved there). It’s cool and very retro and fits right in with our cabin decor.

As another source of cabin lighting we sometimes use this mirrored candle holder.

The aspens area changing daily. Some that were in full color when we got here are barren and leafless now.  The grove behind the cabin died a few years ago and new trees have taken their place. When seen together they look pretty interesting: the gnarly old adults next to the up-and-coming youngsters.

I’ll have more photos of trees in another blog post that I may post later on today.

We finished a second puzzle the other day. A Springbok puzzle called “Knit Knacks” which pictured all things to do with knitting. I fell in love with the little gingerbread boy in the picture and am now on a hunt to find a similar pattern so I can knit one up for myself. If anyone out there has any suggestions of where to look, please let me know!

Here are a couple of photos I took the other day when we had a cloud in the sky!

And what would a post be without the obligatory dog shots?

Here is Bella facing down the wind.

Alex waiting to be let in on the back porch. Doesn’t he look handsome?

Hailey looking cute. (photo by Rick)

I know there are a lot of you out there reading even though you are not commenting! You’ve let me know by email, so thanks and keep reading! I’ll have another post up soon!