"Drawing the Gate"___from my travel sketchbook...driving by the Birdwell Ranch in New Mexico
STOP THE CAR!!!!
Yeah, I guess I might say that from time to time as I travel as a passenger across the plains...God bless my friend Barbara who was driving this leg, and who was so agreeable to "obey" hahaha.
This was a precious scene we came upon, as the mounted cowboy turned his horse, grabbed the gate and drew it shut. Then he loaded his horse in a trailer and drove off. Behind them was a small group of hereford cattle that we guessed were either dropped off or rounded up. I actually had Barbara stop and wait while I photographed all that...took about 3 minutes. When we drove off, I sketched from memory (above), and later when I looked at the photos, I could read the gate, that this is Bridwell Ranch. It's on I-40 east of Santa Rosa New Mexico. (see gate photo below)
This scene reminded me of the frequent "wranglings" at our farm, where some of our family members were cowboys and rodeo riders and did the practical cowboying of moving cattle from pasture to pasture....Except this New Mexico vacquero had a strange looking cowboy hat...see photo below...I miss those days!
Have you seen the 365 paintings I did?...one for every day of our Last Year on the Farm. I am hoping that this "Passing America..." collection will be just as intriguing!
...the HAT
...Bridwell Ranch Gate
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