It’s that time of year again — fall cattle work, preconditioning, sorting, and weaning calves. This month, my wife Hannah Axtell and I (Spencer), along with our family, have gathered and vaccinated our calves to keep them healthy for buyers on weaning and shipping day. 

It takes three days to get all the calves vaccinated and back into their pastures, where they stay with their mamas for at least a week before being worked again. Lots of prep work goes into these days: gathering food and supplies, shoeing horses, and keeping trucks and trailers moving to transport it all. 

This year’s calf crop is wonderful and very healthy so far. Big calves and high prices make life on the ranch much more enjoyable, especially with good help and nice weather. 

One of our greatest challenges this season has been the Red Canyon Fire, which burned very close to our cattle — even into the same pasture. Fortunately, none of our livestock or people were harmed, and there is no longer an urgent threat. Thanks to the hard work of my family and neighbors, the Red Canyon Fire is now contained on the west side where we operate in Thermopolis, WY. Thankfully, we are able to get back to being cowboys and working cattle this month. 

I have grown up on this ranch and know the ins and outs of our operation, which sometimes change year to year. This is Hannah’s and my first year being married and living on the family ranch. We built a small place on the ranch and moved into it in December of 2024 — a load of work, but a major blessing as well. It’s been a learning curve living and working out here for both of us, but we love it and are slowly starting to get the hang of it. 

The ranch’s fall work usually begins in the last week of August and wraps up around the first week of October. I would say it’s the busiest season of the year because it’s the most critical time to make sure things run smoothly. Having enough help is essential so the calves can be shipped healthy and on time. Living on the ranch makes this time of year much easier compared to driving 15 miles out of town early in the morning to start some of these days. 

Even though life can be crazy on the ranch, we couldn’t imagine it any other way. We are very fortunate to have the success that we do. We will keep praying for good weather and no more fires.