Ep 064: Memorial Day 2020 - The War Horse Remembered

Rick, Elara, Little Mule (newly named car) and Bessie (not-quite-newly named trailer) are nearly home after almost 6 weeks on the road on the Great American Cattle Drive 2020. After a quick detour across historic Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada and California, they have decided that they definitely have the good life travelling in the modern age. Especially with air conditioning. The Oregon Trail. The California Trail. The Mormon Trail. The Bozeman Trail.&n...

10 Aug 20208min

Backyard Green Films is on the route home on the Great American Cattle Drive 2020, with another 2,000-odd miles to go. As it happened, we recorded this episode from the banks of the Mississippi River, only an hour from Pepin, Wisconsin. Some of you might know that spot as the original starting point for Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the beloved Little House books. Her adventure with a wagon pulled by oxen was much more difficult than ours should be, and any kind of ...

3 Aug 202046min

We're still GACD - Great American Cattle Drive, that is. Today, we'll bring you a visit with a family that we think is peachy keen, absolutely fabulous, and the cat's meow (and yes, there were cats there, too). Three generations of the Freier Family hosted us for a delightful morning at Every Season Farm, learning about life on a dairy farm (and mini science lab) in the rolling hills of Seneca Falls, New York. With the patriarch starting the milk jug rolling, and a pedia...

27 Jul 202033min

We’re still in the Northeastern United States on our Great American Cattle Drive. This is the area where much of our country’s important paperwork is kept. The Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the documents in the Hall of Records, and the Milking Devon Herdbook, Volume 8. We just had to add that last one and take another little teasing dig at John Hall, President of the American Milking Devon Cattle Association, who owns the only copy (we know of) of that particular book. T...

20 Jul 202027min

We made it! We have completed our cross-country trip west to east for the first leg of The Great American Cattle Drive (“GACD” has a distinctive ring to it, don’t you think?). We start the film shoot with the American Milking Devon Cattle Association in New England today, but it was fitting that we began our run with a podcast recorded halfway across the country, in Monument, Colorado. We stopped for 24 hours to have a conversation with Rollie and Paula Johnson of Thr...

13 Jul 202035min

At last, we’re on the road. We’re going to interview wonderful people doing important conservation work, who also strive to ensure our food supply. And we chose a name for our new (used) trailer. It’s a natural fit, as it all started with The Holstein Dilemma. There’s will be challenges — especially over 7,000 miles for a road trip in July during a pandemic — but life is good. Thank you for being a part of it. Links: Www.backyardgreenfilms.com Www.milkingdevons.org Support the ...

6 Jul 202012min

Maps? Check Masks? Check Gloves? Check Disinfectant foot bath? Check Disinfectant for surfaces? Check Remote clip-on mics? Check Press passes? Check MPAA Safe Filming Protocol List? Check A month’s worth of food and supplies? Check Bathroom in the trailer?......Check. Goodbye, dear and faithful Maggie (our beloved teardrop trailer). Thanks for your good and faithful service, and we will miss you on The Great American Cattle Drive 202...

29 Jun 202012min

The behavior of individuals and groups seems to be in the news a lot these days. The same concept in the natural world might not hit the news quite as often, but it’s just as important. Any farmer or rancher will tell you that the more you know about what your plants and animals are telling you, the more effective your response can be, and the more you both can produce together. Leaves wilting usually means, “Water, please.” Ears back on the horse usually means “I’m un...

22 Jun 202044min