Final Reflections
November 2024

Over the course of my apprenticeship at Cold Mountain Ranch I learned many new skills, gained experience, and learned many lessons. 

The three tasks that are likely the most important in the season are fencing, irrigating, and haying, or at least they are the jobs we spend the most time at. These are also the jobs that I gained the most experience in.

We spent lots of time tearing out old fences, building new fences, and maintaining old fences. Building a new fence from scratch taught me how to build a quality, tight fence with solid h-braces, and appreciate the work that it entails from digging post holes and setting posts to stretching wire. It was also really fascinating to learn about the lay-down fence that they use on the forest permit to minimize the damage to the fence over the winter and to be less of a barrier to wildlife when not in use. I’ve only ever seen permanent barbwire fence before so it was cool to see a new system that gets taken down. 

Water is rather limiting in this landscape and necessary to grow good hay and have green pastures, so irrigation becomes a rather important task. I got to witness the importance of water on this landscape and the management of the land. I was exposed to and learned how to use many different forms of irrigation from gated pipe, side roll, flood irrigating, and center pivots. 

As a ranch in western Colorado that has a short grazing season, putting up hay to feed through the winter is very important and a big part of the operation. Before this apprenticeship, I had no experience with haying. I enjoyed learning about the process and all that it includes starting with the irrigation to grow the hay, to learning how to look at a hay field and know when it’s ready to be cut, and all of the steps involved from cutting, raking, bailing, and stacking. 

One of the main lessons I learned is that I often have a tendency to look at a task or a list of things to be done and attempt to rush through it and try to get things done quickly. Through repeated mistakes, I kept being reminded that it is more important to slow down and do things well rather than with haste. “Fast is slow, and slow is fast.” Pay attention to details even in the tasks that seem simple. 

I also learned that I struggle to remember things when I am given multiple tasks at once. To anyone reading this thinking about applying to the program I would highly recommend buying a notepad! I’m sure having one would have helped me to remember things throughout the season and make fewer mistakes. 

What I enjoyed most about this apprenticeship was the time spent on the forest permit. The days that I spent up there were magical and the most romantic parts of getting to work on a ranch. Becoming intimate with the vast landscape, fixing miles of fence, chasing cows through the oakbrush, moving the herd to new pastures, all in the most beautiful landscape was the stuff of dreams. I enjoyed being exposed to the local ranching community that all worked together to run cows on the summer forest permit and getting to know all the characters. I also really enjoyed working with my horse, Nash, through the season and further developing our relationship and trust in each other as well as my confidence in my horsemanship. Sorting cows with Nash was a joy, because he seemed to enjoy the work equally as much as I did. It was incredible to witness how much he picked up on what was going on and knew what to do without me having to ask very much of him. Another thing that I found a lot of pleasure in was getting to irrigate a section of pasture on the ranch that had never before been irrigated. It was incredible to see how the pasture responded to irrigation and the drastic difference in how well it grew compared to adjacent areas that weren’t receiving water. I’ve always found it a joy to watch the grass grow throughout the season, how it responds to the weather, and watching the regrowth after being grazed. 

I’ve affirmed through this program that I would like to continue to pursue a career in agriculture. I feel that some people in my life expected that my passion for agriculture would have been a phase through high school and college that would dwindle as I grew into an adult and faced the realities of the difficulties of the industry, and that I would eventually succumb and get “a real job.” Being a part of the New Agrarian Program with like-minded peers eliminated many of the doubts that I was beginning to have about wanting to pursue my dream of becoming a producer and reignited a fire within me. When you aren’t around people who share the same passion, it is easy to start feeling like you are crazy. What would have been more crazy would have been to give up and not pursue my dreams, even when they are difficult and come with lots of challenges. Being a part of the program helped me to get over many of my fears, overcome others expectations, and to finally feel like there is a place for me in the agricultural industry. I am grateful for the apprenticeship and the fellowship and how it has made me feel less crazy for wanting to pursue this lifestyle. I am currently planning on spending the winter working out the details on starting a pastured poultry enterprise of my own in the spring and am simultaneously excited and terrified, which feels like a good place to be. 

How did you get interested in agriculture? And what are you hoping to gain from your apprenticeship?
May 2024

I became interested in agriculture at an early age because my extended family has a cattle ranch in western Nebraska that my family would go to visit each summer. Being exposed to ranching helped me to gain a connection to the land and better understand our food production. Whenever I returned home to Chicago I felt disconnected from people and the landscape, and it was in searching for more connection that I discovered that I wanted to pursue a career in agriculture.

The main reason I am interested in agriculture and food is it is the common human experience. Farming is part of what makes us human. We become connected through the growing of food, the preparation and cooking of food, and the sharing of food. Food and agriculture connect us to our human community, but also connect us to the land. Through the mindful growing and eating of food we can regain a connection with the earth that many of us have lost.

 The first job I ever had was working for a company that designed, built, and maintained backyard organic gardens for clients. After working for various vegetable farms I came to realize that I much prefer to work with animals and pasture systems and sought to broaden my knowledge in that area which led me to applying to the New Agrarian Program. I am excited to learn more about pasture management through this apprenticeship, regenerative grazing, and to deepen my connection to community and land through food production.  

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