The Farm From Above
Our long drive around the backside of the farm. the pack into our section with all our gear and supplies, with a brief stop to collect our strength and re-hydrate gave us stunning overviews of the farm.
This one small section of the forest had trees that were no longer healthy and were in danger of creating hazardous conditions during storms and after storms passed through. We wanted to clear the trees in order to open up the area for a full replant. This is some of the steepest ground on the property with the slope being more than an 80% grade, the only other area that is steeper is the sheer cliff above the river where a slide dropped earth and rock over two hundred feet straight down the hillside more than 100 years ago.
Where we disgorged all the supplies from the several trips in, a few stumps became our thrones as we took a few minutes to enjoy the view. Directly below us, the main herd of cattle graze along the base of the hillside. Inside the fence where the hayfield has become a 26 acre nursery field, the six cows with their six calves meander the area. The Nehalem River bends and curves around the fields/pastures in lazy swoops and arcs through the landscape. We observed hawks and bald eagles surveying and monitoring the river as the late salmon have been coming upstream as of late since the high water has receded a bit.
Where we were sitting, we saw evidence of coyotes, elk and deer that had been in the area in the last 24 hours although we did not have any sightings while planting seedlings, the dogs took off several times during our work to track what we could not see.
I have to admit, it was hard to tear myself away from the serene scene that was laid out before me and begin the work of planting. I could have stayed in this spot all day and would have been happy despite the winds that picked up from time to time ahead of rainy squalls that would pelt the clearing with fat raindrops between breaks in the clouds and bright sunshine.
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