Spring????

[George]

I know that many of you are colder than here but -12F is still cold to me - - - I got back from town and it is now +5F so it is going the right direction! We could get into the mid +20sF this afternoon!

Our 8 day forecast does not show any above freezing temps. Our over night lows are all supposed to be above 0F so that will help. What makes this so bad for us is the normal daytime high for this time of year is supposed to be +44F.

I called and had another 300 gal of LP brought out. I normally get a June fill topping off my 1,000 gal tank and run a full year - - - last year I had to get 200 gal about this time and now again. I am ready for "normal" weather.

We have been running an average of 10 to 15 degrees below normal here for almost 3 years according the the weather stations. I guess we should be grateful for "Global Warming" or we would have all frozen to death! I have loved not having many days in the +90sF and last year we never had any +100F days at all. Our normall is 20 +90F days and 5 +100F days each summer.

We have only had snow twice so far this year and about 5" both times so the travel here has not been bad but as cold as it is we keep the snow we get. Last year the ground was warm and when we got snow it would melt from the ground up and be gone in a few days even if the temps did not get above freezing but the ground is cold enough the snow is just staying and reflecting the sunlight.

I have a water main that blew out at the barn about a week ago and I am just going to let it leak until it gets into the upper 30sF - - - got a good little creek running but we still have enough pressure that everything works - - - the pump just runs more than it should.

 

[burnt]

Your patterns are just about what we've experienced and for the same time period. Consistently 10-15 degrees below seasonal normals. Only about 1' - 1.5' of snow in the fields but drifted deeper in hollows and fencerows.

Yesterday I noticed that there is frost coming through the shop walls - an 8" wall with fiberglass bats in them.

It is to start warming to slightly above freezing after this weekend. Can't hardly wait!!

#notturningheatup :-l

 

[leanin' H]

Amazing how different we all, are depending on where we live. We just had a streak of 48 consecutive days of temps atleast 12 degrees above normal. We are at 17% of moisture for the water year which started in Oct14. I have been building corrals and digging postholes with a bar and shovel all through January and Feb. Talking with my 90 year old neighbor, he cant recall a milder winter for temps. I am not complaining after seeing reports on how cold the rest of the nation has been. But I am pretty fearful for what summer will bring in regards to our aquifer, reservoirs, wells and springs.

 

[George]

I know many of you live in colder climates but when I go out to do the morning feedings here at this time of year I normally worry about the mud. No problem this year -15F with 20 MPH winds this morning - - - I let the skid steer run in the barn for about 10 minutes at a hi idle while I fed the replacement heifers - - - when I started feeding the steering was very slow to respond :? for about the first 10 minutes.

I sure was glad I had a heated cab, I think back at all the years I did not have a cab on the old D17 Allis Chalmers - - - glad I was younger then as I really don't think I would do it now! I did outfit both the D17 ( loader tractor ) and the D19 ( grinder tractor ) with canvas "heat housers" and thought I was in tall cotton! Then I bought a JD 4230 in 1974 with a heated air conditioned cab and thought nothing could get better!

My biggest problems today were about 1/4" of ice on the Ritchie waterer and the power button on the radio in the skid steer would not work :???: until I was about 1/2 done. Once the heater was putting out heat the power button worked and we are supposed to get into the low to mid +30sF next week. I feel if I had more cattle drinking out of the waterer it would have remained ice free but I only have 3 head there and with just 1/4" they could still have gotten water on their own but it makes me feel like I'm helping by clearing the ice skim. I need to feel needed!

My loafing shed opens to the south so the low winter sun penetrates clear to the back and the cattle were taking advantage of it, laying on about a foot of tree chippings in the sun out of the wind so they seemed to not really mind but I sure bundled up to go form the house to the barn!

Got a call from my baby girl ( on vacation in Cancun Mexico ) and her complaint was it was +115F - - - it was to hot to do anything except the pool! Poor baby she will get a shock when she flies back this evening!

 

[mwj]

The weather underground said we set 2 records this week for record lows down to minus 14 and record low,high, temps ,that date back to 1898. These are the lowest temps our area has ever recorded this late in the season. December and January were both nice months.

 

[Big Muddy rancher]

I might have asked you before but can't remember, are you anywhere close to Mount Vernon? I have friends from there that come up here in the summer to train bird dogs.

Seems like in January we were nicer weather up here.

 

[George]

I am probably 150 miles north east of Mt Vernon Indiana - - - Mailing address is Knightstown but live in the town of Greensboro, People on the north side of my road have a mailing address of New Castle.

I woke up to +14F this morning and the high is supposed to get to +28F with that being the low for tonight and getting up to +38F with snow turning to rain tomorrow.

I guess I will get to experience mud again this spring, just a little later that normal.

 

[Big Muddy rancher]

I am probably 150 miles north east of Mt Vernon Indiana - - - Mailing address is Knightstown but live in the town of Greensboro, People on the north side of my road have a mailing address of New Castle.

I woke up to +14F this morning and the high is supposed to get to +28F with that being the low for tonight and getting up to +38F with snow turning to rain tomorrow.

I guess I will get to experience mud again this spring, just a little later that normal.

I was meaning Mount Vernon Illinois Guess there is a couple Mount Vernon's.

I saw mwj was from central Illinois.

 

[George]

Mount Vernon Indiana is almost in Illinois - - - extreme south west corner of Indiana - - - I would not be surprised if it carries into Illinois.

 

[mwj]

I am probably 150 miles north east of Mt Vernon Indiana - - - Mailing address is Knightstown but live in the town of Greensboro, People on the north side of my road have a mailing address of New Castle.

I woke up to +14F this morning and the high is supposed to get to +28F with that being the low for tonight and getting up to +38F with snow turning to rain tomorrow.

I guess I will get to experience mud again this spring, just a little later that normal.

I was meaning Mount Vernon Illinois Guess there is a couple Mount Vernon's.

I saw mwj was from central Illinois.

I just saw this post. Mount Vernon is 135 miles straight south of me. Used to stop in when we went bass fishing in the southern part of the state. Does he hunt ducks or upland birds? He should have good luck with both in that area.

 

[Big Muddy rancher]

I am probably 150 miles north east of Mt Vernon Indiana - - - Mailing address is Knightstown but live in the town of Greensboro, People on the north side of my road have a mailing address of New Castle.

I woke up to +14F this morning and the high is supposed to get to +28F with that being the low for tonight and getting up to +38F with snow turning to rain tomorrow.

I guess I will get to experience mud again this spring, just a little later that normal.

I was meaning Mount Vernon Illinois Guess there is a couple Mount Vernon's.

I saw mwj was from central Illinois.

I just saw this post. Mount Vernon is 135 miles straight south of me. Used to stop in when we went bass fishing in the southern part of the state. Does he hunt ducks or upland birds? He should have good luck with both in that area.

Upland birds, Wiggins River Bird dogs

 

[George]

We got between 8" and 10" of heavy wet snow yesterday - - - with a low of +18F last night it seems like the mud will be here soon. Forecast calls for +45F and rain tomorrow then back to the teens - - - Break out the boot grips!

No school today - - - grand-kids are getting rowdy!

 

[loomixguy]

George....I can relate to just how cold you can get on a D17. Dad had 4 of them at one time, and not a comfort cover to be found anywhere. Then he got a damned 560 IH diesel, and bought a new comfort cover. It was easy on fuel and would fly down the highway, but when it was really cold the hydraulics would snot up and no power steering. The 4020 was like a Rolls Royce....then he got a 4230 with the sound guard cab, heat & air, and it was heaven! It was nice to work it all day in bitter cold in your shirtsleeves while listening to tunes!

I think he bought the 4230 because he felt bad for me. The winter before the county hired us to help opening roads after a particularly brutal blizzard. He was in the 12G motor grader and I got the D7G dozer with the OROPS and no cab or cover, just the fan turned backwards. I wound up in the ER that night....although I was relatively warm that day, I basically managed to freeze an eyeball. I think Mom raised complete hell with him for days when she saw me wearing that eyepatch. It didn't help any when my first response to any conversation was to say "Arrrrrrgh!" like a pirate!

We're on the downhill side now, good weather will be here before we know it. Stay warm!

 

[George]

Those old D17s sure helped me feed my family when I was younger - - - at one time I had one with a gas engine and narrow front end I put a mounted 2 row New Idea Super Picker on, and 3 diesels with wide front ends, 2 of which had loaders.

Really moved up when I traded one for a D19 diesel. Good tractor but I traded it for a 4230 after the blizzard of 1978.

A neighbor has an International TD15 dozer with an open ROPS that he built a cab with plywood and plexi glass ( All painted up it looks factory from 50' away ) with the fan turned backwards and side shields on he has to open windows if it is above freezing!

I have just gotten wiser as now I have heated cabs on just about everything! I still use my old S10 pick-up instead of a ranger or gator as I love the quiet and heated cab. Last week I had to pull my son's gator out, he always swore he could go places the S10 would not go thru.

I recently bought a 2003 S10 crew cab 4 X 4 but it does not have the ZR2 package so it will not hold a candle to the extended cab - - - the ZR2 package has a limited slip rear end in back and higher suspension and bigger tires. Dents and scratches all over and 357,000 miles showing but it is a little billy goat and will go with the rangers ( he did put a plastic cab on one of the rangers ) or the gator except it is about 8" wider so he could slide thru narrow openings and it is about 3' longer so he can turn shorter but I just ride in warmth and listen to the radio and let the grand kids in with me to stay warm!