We have received 18 inches of snow over the last two days, which is the perfect start to our winter. Already, the elk have come down from the mountains and are starting to join our horses when we feed horses in the mornings. The morning temperatures are -10 degrees already and it is beautiful to see the elk and horses together, steam rising from their backs as the sun begins to warm their backs and melt the frost.
Archives for November 2010
Travel and Leisure Feature
The A Bar A was recently featured in Travel and Leisure’s article about America’s top dude ranches. Read the article at: http://www.travelandleisure.com/articles/americas-best-dude-ranches
Bridge Construction Video
Here is a video of the construction of our new bridge over Big Creek.
Building the Big Creek Bridge
Truly an amazing process. We removed the old bridge on September 27th, the first weekday after the staff and guests left for the season. The old bridge was removed in several sections that we will reuse elsewhere. Excavation for the abutments took a few days and then pouring of concrete started. That took about 14 days with concrete cure times. The day the concrete was ready, eight tractor-trailers and one crane arrived with the crane rigging, 100 tons of counter weights, and three bridge sections weighing 70,000 pounds each. The crane took five hours to set up and another four to break down. Setting the bridge took less than two hours once we were all set (and a few adjustments were made to the abutments). Watching the crane operator pick up entire trailers and bridge sections without a strain was truly amazing.
After the bridge was set, we welded the sections together, back-filled, caulked joints, and started to use this great bridge. Judging by the way it feels and was engineered, this one will last for many decades to come! We are really happy with how it looks in place!
First Snows
The first snows have arrived. They were late this year, but came in with lots of wind and precipitation. In the middle of October we got about 6 inches of snow, but they melted away quickly. Now the roads are mostly dry, but soon the winter will arrive with more strength. We have completed the construction of our new bridge across Big Creek and I will upload some pictures of it in the next few days.
We are almost full for the summer (just a few cabins remain), but there is still space after August 21st. That is a great time to come for fishing and riding. Over Labor Day weekend, people may want to consider coming for a long weekend with or without friends.
The horses are getting their final hoof trim before the winter and the ferrier will get that done this week. Already, the horses are starting to get their long winter coats. Soon they will start to look like big teddy bears walking through frosty fields.
Yours from Wyoming,
Justin Howe