January 2024 vol. 1
It’s been a while since we’ve published a newsletter, but it’s not for lack of content. We’ve been quite busy – taking advantage of the unseasonably warm winter we’ve had to complete a few projects and repairs. But now the temperatures have fallen, and with that, we’ve gotten a good bit of rain.
As you may remember, about a year ago, I purchased a bulldozer and promised Molly I’d put it to good use—and I have! I’ve been waiting for the rain to capture some great pictures to share with you.
If you’ve visited the ranch and looked to your right as you entered the driveway, you might have noticed a marshy area overgrown with cattails. This is one of the many waterways on the property, which I often refer to as “the intermittent creek up front”. In spring, it would become massively overgrown, and in winter, it turned into an eyesore—a ragged brown scar across the front of the property. My plan with the bulldozer was to create a series of cascading ponds, transforming that eyesore into an oasis.
I began this project during the dry summer months, constructing the first pond directly in front of the house. I was truly impressed with the dozer’s ability to move dirt—though even more surprising was its ability to float! Despite not having seen rain for months, digging down a few feet quickly turned the dirt into mud. In fact, it felt more like quicksand, and the deeper I dug, the greater the risk of getting the dozer stuck. I managed to create a respectable pond, but I knew I needed to approach the rest of the job differently.
While browsing Facebook Marketplace (a daily ritual for me), I found the perfect tool for the job. No, I didn’t buy it – a fellow in Bastrop was leasing out a pretty good sized excavator that would make quick work of the soppy soil that the dozer just couldn’t maneuver in – especially since we had seen a few days of rain. After a bit of coordination, I was able to get the machine delivered the week prior to Thanksgiving. Knowing I had to make the most of my 4 day rental period, I took a few days off from my day job and got to work. Boy could that machine dig! With a 36” bucket and a 10ft reach, I was able to rip gobs of wet sand out of the earth with ease.

Imagine the surprise, when, on the second day, I found standing water in the area I had been working. That’s when it dawned on me: this “intermittent creek” was actually a spring.
It turns out there is a perched water table just a few feet below the surface! Getting very excited about the prospects, I put in long hours heaping piles of mud until I had a very respectable, pristine pond.
As the excavator was such an awesome workhorse, I was able to finish the digging with a day to spare. (I still had massive piles of spoils everywhere, but I knew I could level those out with the dozer at a later date). There were a few other low places around that I felt would be good spots for a pond, and I couldn’t help but wonder the extent of that water table. So I got to digging a few more holes and, sure enough, I struck water there too. Water, water, everywhere!

The following weeks, I used the dozer to smooth out the spoils, creating a nice walkway along the water’s edge and a roadbed over the dam for better access to the front of the property. With the recent winter rains, the ponds are quickly filling with runoff, turning the once crystal-clear water a murky brown. However, I expect that once the grasses grow over the barren earth, the runoff will be much cleaner, and the ponds will remain clear. I’m looking forward to next summer when the inevitable drought sets in; it will be fascinating to see how prolific this water table is. Having a source of year-round spring water will be a true blessing.
Be sure to join us for our Spring Farm Tour—we’re excited to share this with you! I expect it will be resplendent with wildflowers and baby lambs.


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