For those who may be wondering, Whitefish Bay Farm and its occupants have not fallen off the edge of the earth. My apologies for being rather quiet during the last few weeks. For those who may not remember, in mid-November I managed to sustain a rather severe high right ankle sprain, complements of Ulmer, the ram. Until early January my movements were significantly limited by a large boot which encased my foot and lower leg 24 hours a day.
In January the boot was replaced by a much smaller brace and I was given the go-ahead to proceed with physical therapy. I have been at it ever since, under the watchful eye and tutelage of Ann, my physical therapist. It is truly humbling to find out just how much muscle atrophy can occur when you do not use your lower leg for that length of time. Nonetheless, the tendons and ligaments are healing and the muscles starting to strengthen. Thank you Ann! Without your help I would not be nearly as far along as I am. And thank you Gretchen, my co-worker and spouse, who picked up so much slack for me during this excruciating winter.
Once into the recovery mode, my goal was to be able to handle all my normal duties before we reached the date when the sheep were to be sheared. The secondary goal was to shed all the excess weight that was gained while I sat around and did lots of reading. I made it to shearing; the weight loss is still a work in progress. In that regard, we purchased a stationary stand for my old Gitane bicycle, so that I can ride indoors during the winter. I am now riding from Faaborg to Korinth and back (in Denmark) every day (or at least trying to visualize the trip). Cycle shops, however, are dangerous places for me to visit. Needing a trip odometer for the Gitane, I also ended up purchasing a new Trek cycle: further incentive to finish recovery and get on with spring! Perhaps by summer’s end I will get into a century ride.
Opal and some of her pals waiting to be sheared
Of course, shearing takes precedent over just about everything else in late February. Once again we assembled a topnotch crew (some veterans and some new members) to assist our shearer, Dave. For once, the weather has co-operated. It has been unseasonably warm for February and as a result the sheep have managed to stay comfortable without their full fleeces. We sheared all 129 sheep in less than two days.
The next step is to prepare each fleece for sale. We can work on a maximum of seven fleeces a day in the warmth of our basement. Each fleece needs to be spread out on a rack to air. Under good light Gretchen then skirts the poorer quality wool (generally the wool not covered by the sheep coats). When all the fleeces are processed, we will weigh each one, group them by shades and color patterns and then price them for sale. With any luck they will be ready for sale in mid April. (Anyone who is not already on our list and who would like an opportunity to purchase one or more of our fleeces, should check out the Fleece Page on our web site for instructions on how to get your name on the notification list.
Lunch is well deserved and relished, once shearing is done
We would have the fleeces ready much sooner, save for one “minor” interruption. On about March 8th, our ewes will begin presenting their new lambs. From that point and for the next four weeks our schedule is not our own. Fleeces get processed only when the ewes are not in labor and the lambs not in need of attention. Shearing is exciting, both in terms of seeing the beauty of the fleeces as they come off the sheep and also in terms of being able to see just how far along are the ewes’ pregnancies.
Of course, life goes on for the rest of the farm as well. The wild Turkeys make periodic raids on the areas under the bird feeders. The White-tailed Deer seem to be herding up. Recently we counted 13 in the back yard. Once lambing begins we will be stumbling upon both groups of animals as we work our way to and from the barn.
Adding new meaning to "bird feeder"
So stay tuned, we should be able to share news and “baby” pictures soon!
Our intention was that we would harvest the blossoms for use in our dye pot. Initially they refused to germinate. Once they finally did sprout all they produced was a solid, tall wall of foliage. The late summer rains have now done the trick. The vegetable garden is now at least a visual treat. The cosmos seem to be blooming faster than we can pick and freeze them. In the future we will report on their dying project.
Of late we have been able to visually experience “reds” that one can never expect to reproduce with a natural dye. As I was attempting to bale hay between rain storms last week I noticed what appeared from a distance to be a red survey stake in the 20+ acres of woods just west of our large hay field. I thought it strange that someone would be placing a stake in the woods because: 1) it is our land and no one had contacted me about it, and 2) the woods is a wetland, primarily an semi-open ash and cedar swamp much of the year. I promised that once the hay was baled I would return to investigate this intrusion into our domain. When I returned I discovered 
that the “marking stake” was actually one of many Cardinal-Flowers (Lobelai cardinalis) in bloom. For our area it is a relatively rare flower which blooms in late summer usually along the edge of dry seasonal creeks, one of which borders our woods. I am used to seeing their blooms along the creek, but this was the first time I have seem them in the middle of our woods. Once I slogged my way deeper into the woods I discovered that the flowers appeared to be everywhere where the deepest pool of water stood in early spring. If there ever was a sign of Sensommer, this was it!
In addition to harvesting forage, we are keeping up with our job of educating and entertaining the guests from the bed and breakfast. It is a difficult task but we are up to it. The bunch with the nice lady in the picture includes a couple from Milwaukee who we remember from previous visits and some new people from Arkansas. 
The picture is of a bunch of us showing off the wool under our jackets. We even are getting the lambs trained for duty. That is little Wizzbang, Tabitha’s daughter in the foreground, learning the ropes. She really has become quite the little “suck-up”. Shadow is getting scratched behind the ears while she shows of her fleece.
When they are full each of the three mows will hold hold over 3000 bales. As I write we have baled about 550 bales and they are all safely stacked in the first mow. 
In the photo above, on a hot afternoon we have just taken a break on the last wagon. This was also the last wagon for the day. Obviously we still have a ways to go before we will be comfortable with our supply of hay for next winter.
