Every year, come fall, they round up the bison on Antelope Island for a week-long process of inspection, medication, and culling. We did not get to the round up this year but had been planning this trip to see them working the herd for weeks.  I was a little concerned when our normally sunny sky forecast called for rain that day but we moved forward with high hopes. When it still wasn't raining when we arrived I was positively giddy.  Giddy still, as I swung that camera strap over my neck and went to adjust the settings on the camera.  Giddy passed quickly when I saw that big "E" on the screen.  Error message.  

See, I was rocking this field trip thing.  It was on the calendar way in advance.  The little girls were up early packing lunches.  We got gas.  Camera card was downloaded and bag was packed.  The misstep in there was forgetting to take the memory card back out of the computer.  Insert sharp gasp and dramatic face palm.  Not gonna lie, I almost cried actual tears.  It takes 40 minutes to drive out from here to the island and they do this whole thing in a day or two.  

Sooooo, I pulled myself together and pulled out the world's stupidest smartphone.  You'll get the gist anyway.  It's more important to just keep telling the story right? 

Ok so bison are bovine and technically not buffalo which is apparently the term more correctly applied to the Asian water buffalo family.  Nevertheless they ARE the same critter that roamed the open plains of the wild west.  We've just been using the wrong name all this time. 

These bison are part of a large herd that roam the island. In the fall they open up these feeding corrals to entice them in.  When the medical staff and volunteers arrive they begin the sorting process.  A few at a time are moved down the narrowing path towards the chute with this "turkey chaser" tractor. 

One by one they are shuttled into the chute where the vet scans their chips (microchips, not buffalo chips ; )), assesses breeding status, and administers shots or meds as needed.  This all happens in about 90seconds.  I am not exaggerating.  They actually move them through in less than 2 minutes each. 

If the animal is not pregnant for two consecutive years or is not growing at a good rate or in some other way is not up to par they get routed to these holding pens to be sold.  This year there was a fire started by lightning on the island that took out some 14k acres of grazing area so more stock than usual are being culled to prepare for winter. 

Those that make the cut are sent on their way back out to the open range.  

After watching for a while the children got to handle some artifacts from the ranch and roam around.  Truly one of the best field trips we have done.  

Even with a stupid-phone.  

We had an afternoon to fill while we were in Cedar City, UT for a working trip for my husband.  While he was in meetings the girls and I decided to check out the Frontier Homestead State Park.  You can't always know ahead of time whether these places will be bust or boom but this one was definitely a hit. 

First stop was a station explaining the route west and the specifics about what could be taken along.  There were weight limits on the stage coaches. The girls had to fill a model wagon with what they felt were the best items.  

This little experiment should illustrate to all who it is you want packing your wagon.  Tess, ever practical, read all the explanatory signs and tallied up the crate weights.  She stuffed her wagon with flour, shotgun powder, vinegar/antiseptics, and tent supplies.  Abbie Rose assessed her options and loaded books, sugar, heirloom linens, and china which of course I could not fault her on. Priorities, people! : ) 

Next they tried their hands at washing clothes with plunger and washboard.  Tess LOVED this.  She insisted this was not work. She went so far as to suggest we try this at home.  thanksnothanks 

They tried on stripes and sat in lock up.  

We visited an old schoolroom and tried to decode the Deseret alphabet which was a bit of history news for me.  There's a reason that didn't catch on but hey, here's your fun fact of the day. If you want to give it a virtual whirl you can use this translator.

Picture me, trying to explain why people thought this was a good idea. See her totally not buying it, but also humoring me with an appropriate face for my theme picture?  Bless her heart.  When we got home I looked up the history of dunce caps, being the rabbit trailer homeschooler I am. This is actually a really fascinating story.  

Then we ventured into a native American  dwelling and they tried grinding grain into flour.  While they were game for laundering outdoors the whole corn-grinding-with-a-rock thing did not go over well.  Like, Tess was pretty sure that certain death by starvation would soon follow if this was the only option, especially when she figured out how long it would take to grind enough for our family.  

There is a lovely old farmhouse on the grounds complete with period furnishings.  I have loved touring Victorians like these since I was the girls' age.  Always, always I want to unpack and settle in. 

Settling in wasn't an option but a very nice lady tourist offered to take a picture of us on the velvet sofa.  That helped. : ) 

We wrapped up with a game of horseshoes.  Before we knew it the afternoon had slipped by and we headed out to get Dad.  The park was so well done and I am so glad we found it.