November 26, 2009

Black Gold

The area around the town of Roosevelt is dotted with oil and gas wells.  If you enlarge the above photo, you'll see a couple of them in the distance.  The petroleum industry provides many jobs in our area when petroleum prices are high.  Not so much, though, when prices sink.  That makes for a roller-coaster economy. 
One of our routes through "the Cedars", an arid juniper forest near our home, takes us right up to an active pumping unit.  Boss used to be leary of it, but now that it's familiar, he pays little attention to the movement and noise.
Mischief doesn't even give it a second look.
He's more interested in looking for treats under the layers I've donned to keep warm on a day that's barely above freezing.  (Layers, top = turtleneck shirt, zip up hooded sweatshirt, down vest, topped by windbreaker.  I also wear riding tights under my jeans, and an earwarmer under my hat. With all that on, I'm quite toasty.)
Depending on our exact route, our "Cedars" rides can be from 6 to 12 miles round trip.  As we head home, we can see our small town of Roosevelt in the distance.   
I hope all of you who celebrate Thanksgiving had a wonderful day and much to be thankful for. 
Here, we are well fed, clothed, and housed, and grateful for our many blessings.

To view a myriad of skies, click here.

30 comments:

  1. Pretty scenery and beautiful blue skies.

    ReplyDelete
  2. What a blue sky and lovely scenery!!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Very interesting, thanks for sharing!

    The King Sun

    ReplyDelete
  4. Simply great photo diary of a unique life shown in this post.

    Happy thanks giving

    ReplyDelete
  5. I couldn't help but notice you didn't have gloves on? Weren't your fingers chilly?

    ReplyDelete
  6. A little geography and a little history! Love your photos. Doesn't look that cold does it? Happy Thanksgiving!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Daisy seems to wonder what that contraption is in the middle of your juniper ride. I love the shot of Mischief giving you the sniff.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Janie, how amazing is this...out in the middle of vast beauty..you see an oil pumper??? Crazy. But I suppose we need them.
    All those layers you have to wear, not sure if I am envious of that.
    Happy Thanksgiving!!!
    Suz

    ReplyDelete
  9. It's interesting that it is that cold without snow. To me cold=snow. Hope you had a great Thanksgiving.

    ReplyDelete
  10. It looks like a nice little ride. I know all about the ups and and downs of the energy business!

    ReplyDelete
  11. That looks like so much fun. We have some oil well rigs down here in the swamp too, if you can believe it.

    ReplyDelete
  12. The term black gold always reminds me of the racehorse and the book by Marguerite Henry. Our pony frisks for treats too.

    ReplyDelete
  13. What more could you ask for? *Hugs*

    ReplyDelete
  14. It all looks so familiar. I've seen it all so many times-----in the "cowboy" films!!!---so different to our scenery.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Seems the price of oil is going up again and these pump are going to earn some hard cash. Happy thanksgiving.

    ReplyDelete
  16. That looked like a very good ride. The weather seemed great too. Happy Thanksgiving.

    ReplyDelete
  17. That was a great ride after all of the feasting. I didn't know you had black gold 'in them ther' hills' that surround you.
    I am enclosing a little warmth for your next ride, Janie.

    Happy trails to you, Steve and the crew.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Kind regards Janie from Germany where I am for a trip!

    ReplyDelete
  19. Beautiful pictures! I love the sound of a pulling unit.

    ReplyDelete
  20. What AMAZINGLY clear blue skies!!! How fun to accompany you virtually on your ride through 'the Cedars' and the oil fields. Daisy and Mischief don't seem bothered by the cold, but I'm not sure how Molly would do in near freezing temperatures being the So Cal beach pooch she is.
    Hugs and blessings,

    My Sky Watch is at Happily Retired Gal this week.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I pinyon for the sky. Thanks for the post

    ReplyDelete
  22. Gorgeous blue sky. It doesn't LOOK cold...Only your many layers of protective clothing reveal how cold it is.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Hi Janie,
    Hope you enjoyed your SLC sojourn as much as we did. We hiked in the Escalante Wilderness several days - it was very cold there, too, esp when we started in the morning and after the sun went down. Our skies were blue except for one night in Park City when it snowed.
    Enjoy your weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Layering is the secret to enjoying the world in the winter. That and keep moving. Your friend knows who to soften up for the goodies. I've been through Roosevelt on my way to a motel in Vernal then on to Colorado. Great country.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Lovely country, Janie. I always enjoy your trips with you! I also layer-up albeit when riding the "iron" horse with my hubby. I love seeing Daisy and your horses in the pictures. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  26. I guess it get mighty cold at high elevations when the skies are so blue - no clouds to keep the warm air in. The countryside is lovely even in November.

    ReplyDelete
  27. I am also grateful that we have all the basics - food, shelter, warmth.

    They are doing oil/natural gas exploration in our area and our property is included... they laid the seismic lines during the last week, and today I've seen the seismic trucks in some of the neighbor's winter wheat fields. I'm wondering if they will make it to our property today or tomorrow? Today is warm and in the 60s and I would rather take photos today than tomorrow, when it will only get into the 40s!!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Daisy seems quite inetrested in it though - perhaps she maintains a secret hope that it's bringing up doggie treats!

    ReplyDelete

LinkWithin

Blog Widget by LinkWithin