We woke up this morning after a peaceful night at the farm. Cats patrolled over us during the night to ensure we had uninterrupted slumber. Carolyn gave us a hearty breakfast, at least those of us who eat breakfast. Carolyn had a couple of other chores to perform before we left
One chore is to count the horses to make sure they are all there. All 5 are present and correct. If you don't see all 5, try counting the legs and divide by 4.
We had a leisurely ride down to the Ohio River on the agenda. We stopped at a McDonald's for a break. Viktoriya decided to create some buzz for our blog by chatting with some other diners. She was impressed to meet someone planning to hike a big section of the Appalachian trail, a bucket list item for some of us.
You never know who you will bump into if you stop to chat.
We noticed a change in the crops. It was still predominantly corn and soybeans, but unlike Northern and Central Ohio where there are more acres of corn than beans, today there were many more bean fields than corn fields. Could it be something different about the soil or climate?
We stopped to talk to a friendly bee keeper named Keith. His theory was that because the spring weather in southern Ohio had been so wet, farmers had missed the window to plant corn and had to put in beans.
Hmm, a man in a space suit. A visitor from Mars? Better send Kerry to investigate.
A few miles later we met a farmer named John repairing a fence. John explained that soybeans we selling for about $8 per bushel, corn for only $3, so farmers would make more money this year planting beans. Seems logical to me. Does the price of crops vary from one part of the state to another? John raises cows and was feeding his corn to his cows rather than selling it. He was 74 years old, but looked 50. That's what farming will do for you - better than a gym membership.
Here's the good stuff - honey! Keith explained that the bees can sense when the honey has exactly the correct moisture content (18% I think he said) before they seal the comb. If the moisture content is off by even one percent the honey will spoil, but the bees never get it wrong.
When we got to the Ohio River our ride was almost done, all we had to do was take a ferry across to Augusta Kentucky. Rain clouds were gathering, but the rain had the courtesy to hold off until we reached our hotel.
The ferry across the Ohio River. Jenny Ann is the tug boat, Old Augusta is the ferry.
