Saturday, January 17, 2015

Day Tripper...

I love the Beatles...

I love their music and the individuality with which four men lived heir lives. Mostly, I love that while listening to their music I feel! Happy, sad, thoughtful, married, single and a million other things.

Recently I was thinking about the words to the Beatles' song  "Day Tripper". Well, at least the first couple of lines..

"Got a good reason for taking the easy way out,
Got a good reason for taking the easy way out,
She was a day tripper..."

Okay, so I realize they are referring to a big tease. But I thought to myself, yeah, I got a good reason for taking the easy way out... to become a  "day tripper".

My son is in college and experiencing all the usual highs and lows that go along with school, The dating world and the pressures of college grades and finances reign supreme. I thought perhaps it was time for a little "day trip" with him and my Mr.


So we packed a little bag and drove a couple hours north to the great Cache Valley. Home to Utah State University and said son.

Cache Valley sits at the North Eastern tip of Utah. Gateway to Idaho and a bit beyond that Wyoming. Breathtaking vistas abound. Wooded areas, waterways, sand dunes, farmland and mountain ranges littered with domestic animals and  wildlife are readily available enjoyment.


The jewel in the crown is the Utah Division of Wildlife Management's Hardware Ranch. Hardware Ranch was purchased with sportsmans' dollars in the mid 1900s. It has been a winter refuge for elk ever since. As agriculture grew in the Cache Valley the Rocky Mountain Elk herd began struggling to co exist with farmers, Hardware Ranch became a safe place for the elk. Here they are fed and cared for during the toughest winter months. They remain wild and are uncontained.While the elk are not "penned up" the DWR is able to study their habits, count the herds and administer vet care if need be.
 

We took a day trip to Hardware Ranch on a beautiful Saturday morning. Just a 15 mile drive through a stunning winter canyon lay the ranch lands. For just $5.00 a person (money goes to help feed the elk). We boarded a horse drawn wagon and started out on our trek through the herd.

A ranger drove the wagon and narrated the purpose of the ranch, how it is sustained and a plethora of information about the elk, their eating and mating habits and why the ranch is critical in supporting the herd. It was educational and thoroughly enjoyable!


Besides the ride right out among the elk the DWR  has a nice visitors center. They are working hard to put in place a few "hands on" activities for children as well. Some are already in place :) There is also a nice little hill where several children were sledding while we were there (Mr. can actually remember sledding there as a child.)

So if you "need a good reason for taking the easy way out" go "day trippin' " to Hardware Ranch! It was a beautiful day with the Mr. and son. Side benefit....snuggling between my two handsome men along the ride :)