Not all of the smartest people made Wyoming their home, but some of the toughest did.

I can't recall who said it, but there is a quote that says "Do what you can, with what you have, right where you are". There's also a true story I read somewhere a while ago about a diamond miner in the old days. He wasn't having much luck on his land finding many diamonds, but he was finding some. Then 1/2 way around the world news spread that there were diamonds by the wagon load being mined. The man sold out, moved to the "diamond rush" country and tried to make a go of it there. It was decent to him for a bit, but because all the people jumped on the bandwagon and did the same, he ended up losing everything. And ironically, the man he sold his old place to ended up striking it rich when he hit the mother load. I guess the point is, find a place to do work that you enjoy, realize there are downsides to everything, everywhere and just enjoy your work and life.

It doesn't matter what you do in life, there are going to be pros and cons. And that's so true in the ranching world here in western Wyoming. We deal with long winters that typically bring a lot of snow and cold. We have to feed hay longer here than most places in the country or world. It's definitely not the most profitable place to raise beef.

However, we have some of the best summer and fall country for cattle anywhere in the world. High mineral and protein rich soil/grass, and water every 1/4 mile. Lots of shade and trees and hardly any predators. We don't have to worry about flooding, hurricanes, tornados, etc. as we are in the headwaters and the mountains. The wind blows very rarely, and because of the protection of the mountains, we don't get "blown in" for days/weeks at a time like some places on the plains.

All the ranches, BLM and forest permits are already bought up anywhere else ya go, and I don't wanna go anywhere else. I love the mountains and I don't raise beef to get financially rich. Its a way of life. And the scenery here is some of the prettiest in the world.

I personally love snow and winter.

Anywho, I guess the point is, there isn't such a thing as "the perfect place" do something other than right where you're at.

This past couple weeks we have been getting a road, feed ground and water opened up for a calving ground at lower place. We calve all the cows at this location and leave the heifers home. Our due date from when we turned the bulls in is March 4th, but you always get a few earlier calves. We had 38" of snow on the level a week ago, but it's starting to settle a bit. Still deep enough the cows are confined to the feed ground. Had 33" on the level as of this morning.

Also, I am excited to announce that I have created my first ever photo book! It's filled with 130+ images of ranchers feeding elk, horses and cattle in addition so some doctoring and other ranch work that comes with living here in the Rocky Mountains of western Wyoming. Each book is hand signed and numbered.

If you're interested, you can learn more about it here: https://skye-clarks-working-ranch-images.myshopify.com/collections/frontpage/products/wyoming-winter-photo-book