Little Utah Farm: December 2022

Cows and Carrots Along The whittier Narrows
Tons of Carrot in long troughs for the cows.

In the 60's we rode bareback through the deep sands of the San Gabriel Riverbed and floodplain. The land was ever changing as the rains came and went. A full river had tall cranes, waterfalls, and grasses that swayed with the currents and leaves that circled in whirlpools. Cattails and tall bamboo grew along the banks. Winds that came along in the evening or later in the afternoon rustled the bamboo and rattled the cattails. As the water receded the boulders along the river bed were brought into clear view. Dark pools of water lingered near the bamboo and trees along the sandy banks.

The San Gabriel River was alive with the song of birds, gurgling waters, and bamboo clacking in the breezes. Especially in autum when they dried to a golden brown. The horse's hoofs were hushed by the deep sand as we trotted along on the sandy banks. Out on the floodplain our horses hooves pounded like thunder against the well worn trails. We wove in and out of the trails ducking our heads under the low branches when we past by the trees and bushes..

I didn't realize it then but life was carefree. The only thing that crossed my mind was a teenage whim for a boyfriend and the fear of being bucked off my horse, Apache Tears. He was quite spirited and reared at leaves blowing by. I named him Apache Tears after a black transclucent stone that I saw in a gift shop out in Death Valley.

Whittier Narrows Dam

It took an hour to reach the Whittier Narrows Dam. We rode up to the top of the dam on the concrete ramp called Myrtle's Rump. At the top we rested while looking over the fence into the dam. The water spilled over the gates like a waterfall that occasionally rushed and roared. We rode further down the back side of the dam and headed northeast towards the Rio Hondo River. The sound of our horses hooves went clippity clop down the concrete ramp. The land was a wide open floodplain with few trees and bushes. On the way to the Rio Hondo River we rode through a farm and the Whittier Narrows Nature Area which reminded me of The Secret Garden. No one was there. It was all ours to explore.

Back Side of Whittier Narrows Dam

Whittier narrows Nature Area reminded me
Of The Secret Garden

The heat of summer never bothered us. We waited knee deep in the river. The sandy bottom squished between our toes. In deeper parts our horses across in the deep parts we rode on the horses as they swam across. As we rodeon the trails it made a breeze all its own. And there was plenty of Double Colas waiting in the machine at the stables.

A picture of children playing in the
water of the San Gariel River.

Autumn didn;t get too cold in Southern California unless you went to the mountains or the foot hills of Glenn Oaks where we bought apples. One autumn day while riding through the Whittier Narrows floodplain we caught a strong, sweet, earthy scent. As we got closer we saw long troughs overflowing with bright orange carrots ! A herd of black cows were grazing on the prairie grasses and other cows stood at the big troughs eating the carrots. The sight and smell of this made quite an impression on me. In autumn for the next 3 years we smelled the sweet earthy scent and saw the troughs overflowing with the orange carrots. One year we saw a dark green old truck drive up the little ranch road filled with giant bushel bags of carrots for the cows. It was the last time we were to enjoy this magical time. I wonder how many people ever saw this.

Writing this has brought to me many good memories. I am glad I took the time to sit down and write about it. So much time can be spent pushing ourselves forward. I want to remember more of those days and I want to make new memories too. Remembering my past experiences have reminded me of how they all prepared me to live on this Little Utah Farm.

Thank you for visiting Little Utah Farm,