September 30, 2009

View of the day-It's another windy one as the flag flaps forward as we combine.

Al was up early and went out to unload the truck and grain cart, then service the combine before starting to cut. Marilyn got lunch ready then stopped in town to pick up some produce at the newly opened grocery store before heading out to take over in the combine.

We finished the rest of the field we were on, then moved a couple miles east to start on the next one. Al was kept busy hauling to the pile and once we made the move, he kept adding to the one he had started in the other field. He had decided to go to the hockey game in Yorkton, so he made sure everything was empty before he left around 6:30pm. Marilyn worked at filling both rigs and finished around 9pm and after tarping both units, headed for the camper.

It was surprising how much it had warmed up by the end of the night...relatively speaking...it was probably 10 degrees warmer than when we started in the afternoon...and the wind hadn't let up. Al did say there was lots of lightning in Yorkton when he got there which seemed bizarre for this time of year...here, anyway.

And where did September go...

September 29, 2009

View of the day-Eliminating a few steps by just dumping from the combine onto the ground in the field. There is a shortage of bin space so the next two fields will be dumped here...doesn't look big now, but wait a couple days.

We started out the day by moving the combine over to the new field, just to cut a patch, thinking it wouldn't be dry enough to start...lots of dew on the grass. But as a former customer told us in the past..."you're not cutting the effin grass"...so we were pleasantly surprised when it was dry enough to start. Well, dry enough to put in the pile we were starting, at least.

Once we had gotten everything else but the van moved over to the field, Al started combining and Marilyn went back to throw lunch together before combine back to take over. It was cold, sunny and really windy...REALLY windy, which made things interesting after the sun went down. There was so much chaff blowing around that whenever the combine turned to go west, Marilyn had to stop and wait for the dust to get blown away before moving...too many power poles, augers and sloughs to be driving blind.

After we finished the south third of the field, Al moved the cart and General out to the other side of the field, then we both went back to the first field to get the van so Marilyn could go back to the camper and Al could finish filling the cart and truck before calling it a day.

And it was a damn fine day...combining wise, anyway...

September 28, 2009

View of the day-More like yesterday...without the rain. Cold, cloudy and windy.

We were up early, even though we were pretty sure we could sleep in. We decided to go to Yorkton to get the van licensed so we would have two vehicles...it is hockey season after all and Al will likely book off so he can go spectate...this way Marilyn doesn't have to walk home from the field.

We woke up to the furnace fan blowing...but blowing cold air...we were out of propane, so Al took the empty tank off and went into town to get it filled. Twice the price we paid in the US for the same tank...but we can't argue...unless we want to freeze. Al went over to Gerald to visit with his brother, Jeff, then came back in time to have lunch before we left for Yorkton.

We went to get the registration renewed for the van then went out to the farm to get it started after it had been sitting all summer. Marilyn left to visit the Staples crew and Al grabbed his hockey season tickets before going to visit his co-workers at H&R Block. After fueling up both vehicles, we met with Marilyn's friend for supper before coming back to Esterhazy.

We did see a few combines going on the way back to the camper, but they were all going in canola...different conditions than the wheat we will be going into. Eugene was combining his canola when we got home so Marilyn decided to get a couple loads of laundry done before the lineup to the shower started.

Tomorrow we get back at it...

September 27, 2009

View of the day-Wishful thinking. Maybe it will just sprinkle a bit so we can get the rigs moved to the next field...riiight.

We got up and the sun was shining...so much for the forecasted rain, we thought...that lasted about an hour. It clouded over, the wind got nasty and it stayed that way all day.

We went into town for brunch...not as good as what it used to be...then went out to the field to service and, hopefully, move the combine over to the new field to cut a patch to park everything. While we were servicing, it started to look a bit foggy to the west...and then it hit. Not a downpour but several bouts of misty rain that lasted for the better part of the day. We didn't move anything.

We went back to the camper and Al spent the rest of the day watching NFL football...good timing for the rain...and Marilyn working on theatre stuff. We went out for supper with Eugene, our landlord, then came back to the camper for the rest of the night.

It was about 2am when Marilyn finally decided to go to bed...and forgot about the blog, so it will be a double header today.

And it doesn't look promising for combining...

September 26, 2009

View of the day-The last load of wheat goes onto the pile...right on schedule.

We got to the field early, serviced everything then did a bit of rearranging as we moved to a different part of the field. We had to use the combine to mow some stubble to the ground to make place for the pile of wheat we would be creating throughout the day.

Al was kept busy shuttling between the north end of the field and the pile, which was on the south end. We eventually ended up a bit closer to the pile by the time we were finished at 7:35pm...5 minutes after Al had predicted we would be done.

The day was windy and cloudy off and on and as we drove the combine back to the pile after we had finished, it started to sprinkle a bit, but it never amounted to much and it didn't affect dumping the last load of wheat onto the pile. We went back to the camper and had a visit with the landlord before calling it a day.

Tomorrow we move to a new field...if it doesn't rain as forecasted...

September 25, 2009

View of the day-The combine and grain cart are full and waiting for the truck to show up.

We got out to the field early to get the knife assembled and back in it's proper place. Al replaced a few guards while the knife was out...much easier to do when you don't have to work around the knife sections. After the greasing and fueling was done, Al started combining and Marilyn went into town to get some groceries, since the cupboard was bare.

Back at the camper, Marilyn made lunch and got the shopping put away then went out to the field to take over combining. Al spent the day filling up smaller bins and moving the auger...three or four times...until he got the last bin filled in the dark.

The final bins were in the field where we were cutting, so that made the hauling a lot easier, Al did have to enlist Marilyn once to climb the ladder to open up the last bin. That had to be done by backing the General up to the bin, then putting a ladder in the box...which was 1/2 full of wheat. After emptying the wheat out of her shoes, Marilyn went back to combining until everything was full.

We got back to the camper and had to close all the windows...yesterday was so warm that we had the windows open all night...not a chance tonight. It's 11pm and 47ºF already...chilly.

We're out of bins, so tomorrow we start piling on the ground...

September 24, 2009

View of the day-You can tell the Freightliner doesn't get used that much when the spiders work their magic and tie down the steering wheel.

We were up early to have coffee with the landlords before loading up the camper and making the final move to Esterhazy. We got the Freightliner started then moved into the exit position and started battening down the hatches in the camper.

We got hooked up and left Carlyle around 10:30am and drove straight through to Esterhazy. Marilyn unhooked the camper in the yard then went out to help unload the tractor and cart. Once that was done, we took the Freight back to the yard so the spider could rebuild since we weren't going to be using it right away. We finished setting the camper up...it seems we always have to do that job in the heat of the day...and it has been unseasonably warm...but we're not complaining.

We went back to town and Al took the cart out to the field while Marilyn snagged a pizza for lunch...ahhh...they don't make pizzas like that in the US. We got out to the field at the same time and after having a snack, started combining.

We were straight combining wheat that had been dessicated for a couple of weeks and it was running around 50 bushels/ac, so Al was busy with the hauling. He filled one bin and had to move the auger to another one which slowed him up a bit, but that was okay because just after the sun set the knife broke on the header, so Marilyn was done for the night.

Marilyn went back to the yard to get the shop trailer and got back to the field just as Al was returning from the bins. After taking what was left of the old knife out of the header, we decided to leave it until morning...the mosquitoes would just have to go hungry.

Back at the camper we finished getting the inside organized, showered up, got logged on to the internet, then got caught up with the landlord when he stopped in after his day of combining was done. Once again we have to think about where we are when we open up the camper door in the morning.

Everyplace is the same from inside the camper...