I was Googling Earth the other day, looking over my old stomping grounds and had a flashback of an incident that should be of interest.My dad Alva Young used to keep a "winter herd" of dry cows at his ranch in Tooele county Utah, well into the winter almost every year. To help them stay in good condition he used to take cotton seed meal out and mix it with salt in a couple of feeders in the Dry Farm pasture where the "dry cows" were. As I recall, about 1 ton of cotton seed meal each trip.
On this particular trip, the "posi track" differential in his truck broke stranding him very near Erickson Pass shown on the map. It was sundown and there was nothing to do but walk for help. The only living people in the area were at Ecker's Ranch, so he made the walk there in the cold and snow arriving there well after dark. It was 9.6 miles according to Google Earth.
He stayed with the Ecker's overnight and they gave him a ride to Abraham, his home, the next day.
That day, he and I went back out and took the broken differential out of the truck and returned home to have it repaired.
The following day he and I went back out using my brother Joe's old 49 Ford 2 door sedan. We replaced the differential and drove home again. I can attest to how bitter cold it was. He drove the truck and I drove the old Ford.
Tune in next week for the "rest of the story"
3 comments:
Grandpa was a tough guy. We are pansies these days! For him it was probably either walk the miles or freeze to death in the truck. . . . can't wait for "the rest of the story." You heard Paul Harvey died didn't you? I don't remember a time in my life when I didn't enjoy listening to his broadcasts!
Paul Harvey died!? I remember him too.
I like hearing old stories, I am not sure if my kids appreciate the 9.6 mile walk in the cold but I remember Utah cold and I wouldn't want to walk that far in it.
I am looking forward to the rest of the story.
That place has a lot of memories. What a freezing cold job you all had back then. It makes me glad I'm a nurse.
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