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3/13 & 3/14/10
3/13/10, McCulley, TX - A nice easy day for the team. We had traveled about 85 miles in the previous four days, so the lads deserved a short day. I took my time leaving the picnic area and didn’t pull out until almost 10 am.
After a couple of hours on the road, we stopped next to a Historical Marker for lunch. The temperature was in the low seventies, so I sat outside with the team and had a cool beverage. During lunch, a couple of folks stopped by, including a man with his granddaughter, on a motorcycle. She got a kick out of feeding the lads some treats and sitting on Doc.
Later in the afternoon, Darlene was dropped off to begin her wagon adventure. She’ll be aboard until Tuesday, when she has to head back to civilization.
We camped that night at the home of E.D. Gomez. E. D. is a great guy that also happened to have about an acre of really good, green, rye grass. The horses and I would like to really thank E.D. for his hospitality.
3/14/10, Roby, TX - This was another short day. Why, well, because I felt like it. We had lunch in the town of Roby. To give you an idea of some of the conversations I get involved with:
An older feller pulls up and says to me, “My whole life I’ve always wanted to do what you’re doing. I want to get one of them Gypsy caravans. I would get a wagon now, but I think my wife would tease me.”
I told him, “The time was right for you to just go out and do it - let the wife get in her laughs”.
He agreed, and left with a warm smile on his face.
We’re settled in tonight at Mike’s Cotton Farm. Mike, his son, and some hired help farm several thousand acres of cotton in the Roby area. I met Mike at lunch in Roby, and he invited us out to spend the night on his farm, a couple of miles down the road.
Tonight, he threw a really nice barbecue for his family and invited us to attend.
I did learn a few things about cotton farming; which was easy, because until now, I knew next to nothing. One of the nice things about this part of the country is that they have eradicated the Boll Weevil. For two years, they haven’t seen a-one. This is good news for area farmers, because it really cuts down on the cost of insecticide (a major expense).
Tomorrow, I’m continuing west on Route 180. There’s not much between here and the town of Snyder (32 miles away), so, I’ll probably aim for a picnic area about 17 or 18 miles down the road. I think the sore on Doc’s shoulder has healed to the point where he can go back in harness and give Bill a break.
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