Those 4 wheelers

Well two years ago I notified the Absentee landowner that 4 wheelers were trespassing on his land and tearing up the first valley. I texted him with a photo of one of the vehicles that had parked up on the road.

His answer was "I'll check it out."

That was the last word I heard from him.

Here a photo of what the 4 wheelers had been doing.

I was heartbroken and disgusted at the same time. The owner never got back to me.

One day while taking photos and hiking, I allowed myself to be seen by the 4 wheeler 'dudes'. The three of them pulled up. They were actually pretty polite, said they had permission to be there. I found out later that they are actually NOT nice people and the long arm of the law has been after all of them off and on for different reasons.

With no word from the owner, I continued to arrange my hikes, rides, and daily explorations with an ear out for the 4 wheelers.
The past year someone has brought in big UTV's and chainsaws. They have cut down trees to rearrange trails and make new ones. Their engines are so loud that two weeks ago when I was in the back valley [a mile away] I could hear them unload their UTV's on the ridge.

Yesterday a truck and trailer with 3 ATV's pulled down into our place.

It was a nephew of one of the absentee owners who lives locally.  He'd just taken his kids back on 'the farm' as they call it to do some riding around and he was horrified at the damage being done to the steep hillsides and places where the fragile earth would just slide and crumble down the hills and creek banks.

He said he'd been back deer hunting in November and things didn't look as bad as they were now.

The damage IS pretty horrifying. These big machines go to wet spots and dig it up with their huge tires and fling mud for no other purpose but to fling mud. Those wet spots are natural springs that provide water to the creeks that flow in the two valleys.

Ok.

I told Derek that I was surprised they didn't know about it. The local family members had pretty much left this chunk of land alone and only came out during the 9 day deer hunt.

Well, apparently these 4 wheeler/UTV's are trespassing.  And I said I'd call Derek to notify him when they unload this weekend to go out and tear things up. I said they were like clockwork.
They off load around noon and tear things up for about 4 to 5 hours or mor

I can only hope that we get peace and quiet back. That would be nice.

I'll help keep an eye out not because I'm just a good/great neighbor.

But because I love this land that I have roamed daily for 24 years. I know every tree and trail like they are my best friends. And I am selfish, I love this land and am the only person that visits it daily.

Progress!

So, I got the 4 wheeler going. But now I understand that it needs more than just my help.
I sat down yesterday morning and read the manual and Troubleshooting Guide for this machine. Really, I do like this 4 wheeler, and I think with a tune up and spark plug change, it could run for me all winter long, but other than hauling things with the cart, I don't use it much in the winter.

So at CrossFit we were sitting around after working out and someone made a suggestion that was actually a great idea.

This:

Yeah. A Polaris Ranger with a snow plow. These newer UTV's are for working and have engine block heaters and electronic fuel injection and all sorts of gizmo thingies to run in the winter or summer and the cheaper version can haul 800lbs of 'stuff'.
Oh my heart be still.
Yes, it is expensive, but I think I could easily sell the skid steer and get one of these which would be sooooo much more useful!

I'm thinking of how to approach Rich. It may take a year or so, but I think I have found a solution.
Yesterday I 'aired' up the truck tire and moved it to a level spot so if it goes flat again I can take the tire off.
One of the reasons I haven't sold the truck is that we had a conversation about it last year. Rich said that truck was to last as long as he lived. Huh. Do I need to say more?

So on to the fun stuff.

Yesterday morning ... going out for chores....

The dawn was delightful.
The temperatures were mild and dry!

So later in the day I thought I'd take a short walk with Charlie. I took a bagful of stuff for ... well, here it is:

I'm always searching for a fun way to use the woods as a backdrop for some still life photography.
Can you guess which camera I used to take this photo? Hint [the little Tough Camera!]

Or this?

Charlie was not amused at this intervention of his job to smell and search out squirrels. However he did sit still for me. Just would NOT look at me directly. I'll have to try this again with some dog treats!

Lighted vase in between two mossy rocks...

An Elf...

Grumpy Gnome...

Cowboy snowman...

All sorts of fun in the woods!

And then an incredible sunset....

Let the Winter Solstice celebration begin!