Cattle and the Canal - A Peaceful Retreat

The Nebraska Sandhills

Flowing through the southern Sandhills of western Nebraska, an irrigation canal offers some relief from the sweltering, summer heat. A ditch road that runs alongside the waterway is the perfect path for a morning hike.

Rain from the night before creates a thick haze that burns off into white clouds as the day begins. Even though filtered light glazes the landscape with gold, the pastures seem greener than normal this year.

A bunch of shaggy sheep are vocal inhabitants while swallows skim across the water’s smooth surface. Sometimes I’ll see wary jackrabbits or a white-tailed deer but in this big sky county, cattle are king.

They are voracious grazers but when confronted by peculiar visitors, it piques their interest. Cows and calves come running in order to get a closer look at the unexpected newcomers.

The deep, blue water is a natural barrier between us and the domestic beasts so the situation remains completely harmless. As we continue on our prairie trek, it starts to get scorching hot.

We head back to where it all began, hoping to get some much needed rest and a cold drink. Still full of life, the old homestead is our peaceful retreat in the middle of the Great Plains.

The irrigation canal

The ditch road is a perfect path

A thick haze burns off

Filtered light glazes the landscape

The pastures seem greener than normal

The water's smooth surface

Big Sky County

Cattle are king

It got scorching hot

A peaceful retreat

Comments

  1. Melissa AmateisJuly 16, 2016 at 6:16 PM

    Not sure why my previous comment didn't show up, but anyway! Gorgeous photos! Have you seen Michael Forsberg's photography? He focuses on the Great Plains (and he is a terrific guy, too!). http://www.michaelforsberg.com/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dan MillerJuly 29, 2016 at 1:08 PM

      Thanks for the nice comment. I've not heard of Michael but I'll check out his site. I always enjoy getting back home and going out to take some photos.

      Delete

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