Marguerite, Ted, Joe, Peggy, 2 kids, Carolyn and John. Plus a wood cowboy hugging a bull. In this post I’m going to introduce you to some of the people I met today, July 15, 2019.

It amazes me how many people I meet each day. I can’t photograph them all. Still, today I asked a few if I could take their picture. Just to share with folks that are following my journey with mules Brick and… Continue reading →

Recently I picked up a stray. Crossing an old wood bridge, I heard an extra pair of clip clops on the wood decking. I looked back. And saw a horse.

Turns out the horse had slipped through an open gate and fallen in to line behind us. I walked the mules back across the bridge, toward where the horse had come from, hoping to lure the horse back home.

The horse followed obediently.… Continue reading →

For reasons only a neurologist or shrink might understand, I woke up this morning and thought, “Hmmm. Today I’m going to walk 31 miles.” That’s how far it is from where I spent the night with the mules, Elsworth, Nebraska, to where I wanted to go, Alliance, Nebraska. Turns out walking is a great way to make new friends.

Here are some… Continue reading →

Until last week, I’d never heard of a ranch rodeo. I’d been to plenty of regular rodeos. But what was a ranch rodeo?

Ranch rodeo is a team event based on skills a working cowboy would need. Each team has 4 members.… Continue reading →

Let me state for the record that I am not a cowboy. I can not throw a rope. I can not brand a cow. I don’t own a 10 gallon hat. I do know that “trouble in a leather sack” means “cow” in the Sand Hills. Seth Adam told me so.

The mules and I may be walking across the land of 12″ of annual rain but there’s an oasis underfoot. It’s pumped to the surface by windmills.

In these remote parts of eastern Wyoming, windmills are still the primary way to pump water in to stock tanks. Solar panels are coming on the scene. But by and large, if a cow wants in drink in… Continue reading →

It was time to see my wife Julia. The mules and I have been on the road for 4 months, traveling from North Carolina toward Idaho.

Julia and I decided the Sand Hills of Nebraska would be a great place for her to fly out and meet me. She booked a plane ticket and a rental car. She didn’t click on that “Add a Room to Your Ticket” option.

She… Continue reading →

I married Julia in February. By April I was gone. 4 months later she found me.

About 2 weeks ago, the mules and I stayed with friend, sixth generation Nebraska rancher and broadcaster Trent Loos.

One morning, over coffee, we sat down at the microphone and talked about the things I noticed on my mule journey that most folks overlooked.
In particular, trash – road side trash.

He leaned out his pickup window and said, “I’ve been sober 2 years now. I bought this pickup for $200 but I want a mule.”

But mule ownership had eluded him. He said, “the people in this town don’t want me to have a mule. I don’t know why.”

I told him I couldn’t understand either because I’d just slept in his town with my mules and it seemed to make everyone happy.

“You’ve got it lucky,” he said, “because… Continue reading →