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Jay Springs Ranch

Our story so far...

By Geoff Bodman

It all started in 1964.  We had just moved to Kamloops, from Blue River, and bought a small house in Westsyde.  A friend asked me to find someone who would tan a Mountain Goat hide; after a few inquiries I found an elderly farmer in Pinantan who would do the job.  When I went back to pick up the finished hide it was evident that this man was not in good health and he mentioned he would soon have to sell the property.

 My wife and I had both come from rural backgrounds.  In fact our folks had both homesteaded in Saskatchewan, north of Regina, only a few miles away from each other. As we had some experience with farming we became very interested in the place.

 As soon as we could make an inspection of Mr Peel’s farm, we walked the boundaries and looked at the all-important water resources.  We soon decided that there were some promising aspects to these two quarter-sections, and the adjoining two quarters of Grazing Lease.  With the help of the Veteran’s Land Act and the equity in our small Westsyde property we were able to close the deal in September, just two weeks before Mr Peel died.

 Fortunately a good friend of Mr Peel offered to look after the place during the coming winter, before we were able to move in May 1965.  That was a heavy snow year and we wondered then if we had made a wise move, after some of the shed roofs caved in.

 We moved up gradually but it was six vehicle convoy of small trucks in May which finally installed us in the old log house.  Several friends and relatives thought we were taking on too much and would only last two years on the place.  This forecast turned out to be a good incentive for us to prove up and do something worthwhile.

 As I was still commuting to a Kamloops job with the BC Forest Service we had to make plans to develop the property and adjust to living without Hydro power and telephone.  The water system was quite basic too, an open ditch which, in theory, was supposed to keep running if the right weather conditions followed.  If a light frost put ice over the ditch it was imperative that we get a good snowfall to insulate the ice right after freeze-up.  Mother nature did not oblige every winter.

 What to do with the land was the big question.  No livestock came with the deal so we had to decide on animals that would fit into our plans.  A good milk cow was given to us and we traded potatoes for a few sheep; now we were established, some people might say.

 A relative decided we should have electricity in the house so we received money to buy a generator plant. However, my passion for Brown Swiss cows took precedence and we bought two heifers from a dairy in Chewelok, Washington.  We eventually ended up buying a few more cows and with the crossbred offspring from Hownow and Heidi, our original two, we were running nearly 40 head on the Grazing Lease.  After quite a few years of selling milk to the expanding community of Pinantan Lake we decided to concentrate on sheep.

 During that period we were able to have about 60 acres cleared and planted to hay and pasture.  Haying was done with the help of neighbours until we acquired the necessary equipment.  Haying at our altitude, 3000 feet, can be a frustrating exercise with the heavy dews.  Once, just once, we were able to hay all night long in the warm breezes.

 After our "potato sheep" we bought our first purebred Suffolks from Westwold.  Through the years we bought many small flocks from Enderby, Dunster, Westwold, Merritt among others.  Notable of these bunches were the last of the large Hayward flock at Westsyde and the remaining Pooley flock from Merritt.  With good records we can trace genes back to these outstanding ewes through many generations.

 As our commercial flock grew we gained good experience from helping with the BC Sheep Breeder Cooperative Association, many years of 4-H work, sheep auctions (5300 head was the last sale at the Co-op yards in Kamloops), ten years up the North Thompson grazing clear-cuts(1500 head), a five month Nuffield farming scholarship in Britain in 1976, and farm gate sales of our lamb.  Regardless of all the outside experience we often look back to the unforgettable lessons from a small, nondescript ewe called Ingrid, one of the “potato sheep”; there will never be another one like her.

 When our two daughters reached school age they, along with three other kids in the valley, were transported by school bus, first to Pritchard, then to Chase.  Before long there was an influx of people settling around Pinantan Lake so a larger bus was necessary.  I applied to drive the 60 passenger bus and drove it for seven years:  an experience no one should miss in life.

 A series of three hip replacement operations followed bus driving and my activities were limited so the family had to take on more of the work.  By that time our daughters had been to technical school with a few years experience in various jobs in the Yukon and in Vancouver.  Our son graduated from Selkirk college as a forestry Technician.  Gradually they all came home with spouses to establish themselves, on the ranch or nearby, to take over the ranch and woodlot operation.  Thankfully everyone has shown equal interest in the Woodlot and the sheep.

 So after nearly 40 years we have reached the stage where we must make some changes to our operation.  We hope to gradually enlarge our sheep flock and work more closely with the Farmers Markets.  We have come close to the magical 200% lamb crop a few times and are acclimatized to the ebb and flow of agriculture.  We are thankful for many things, especially having our family close by or working on the ranch, and their increasing interest in developing better return to labour.  Already the grandchildren are showing appreciation for their surroundings and having so many things to occupy their time.

 We cannot forget the tremendous help we have had from the Maremma and Pyrennes guardian dogs which patrol our acreage, keeping an eye on the sheep and the grandchildren.

 Incidentally, the name for our place came from the day we were looking over the possibilities of buying.  A flock of Stellar’s Jays were scolding from the trees surrounding the main spring, hence Jay Springs Ranch nearly 40 years ago.

Heading out for a day's grazing
 

Katie at work

Free on the range

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