This is a collection of photos that exemplify the West, especially the Great Basin area.
Cowboy Boot in Stirrup
The cowboy life is still alive and well in the Great Basin. Every May, cowboys and cowgirls gather to sort cows and mark them. On our ranch, we don’t brand many of the cows, but they do get ear tags. The sorting is done by using old-fashioned roping techniques, a skill that’s not easy to master.
Abandoned School Bus near Wilson Springs
This old school bus was left out by hot springs in the West Desert of Utah. People still get their vehicles stuck today--the towing bill is very expensive.
Corral on the Way to Basin and Range National Monument
One of the country’s largest new national monuments is over 700,000 acres, but very few people have seen it because it’s in the middle of Nevada, hours from any interstate. I liked how this corral framed the distant mountain ranges, with varying shades of grey highlighting their topography.
Long Road to the Bat Ears
Highway 6 and 50 stretches off into the distance. The outline of the mountains may look like an owl (an owl pendant was found at the Fremont site that is now called the Baker Archeological Site), or a bat. Being creative makes the miles fly by as you cross the Basin and Range.
Spring Roping
This is real art, to rope a calf and position it so it can get its vaccinations and ear tags. There are easier ways to process calves, but they aren’t nearly as fun, so every spring the cowboys hold a roundup and practice their skills.
Pronghorn Closeup
Pronghorn are only found in the western U.S., and they are amazing animals. The fastest land vertebrate in North America doesn’t jump over fences, so they have to slow down and slide under a fence to get by.
Spring Roping under the Great Basin Skies
This was a terribly windy day, but the cowboys and cowgirls stayed with the sorting all day until the job was done.
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