Early Start

Its not hard to get up before the sun in winter time in Sask. but today I was on the road long before sunrise, if in fact we could have seen the sun rise. It was snowing and blowing some and did not look too favourable for the job ahead but after numerous cancellations due to weather it finally got done today. Two semis of canola headed down the road by 11:30 am .
We are a little below normal snowfall but you would never know it by the amount I had to push to get to the bins at the "hundred acre woods". A good two hours of blading and piling. Numerous trips back and forth down the winding trail through the woods to make it wide enough for long trucks and trailers to get through. A bigger blade would make the job go faster but then I would also need a bigger tractor behind it.
Comfortable working at these warm temps (in the +20s).
Heres a shot of the last truck headed out in the distance while I wait to cross the highway with the grain vac.

Flax Vac on a Frosty Morning

I'd been a little concerned how we were going to get a semi load of 2 year old flax moved with the driveway having some major soft spots in it from the spring thaw. Well the latest below normal temperatures have solved my problem. At 15 degrees this morning the ground was frozen so hard that the loaded semi (hopefully 900 bushels) did not make a track in the ground. So sometimes cold weather is a good thing.
The old 970 Case was putting out a formidable cloud of smoke running the vac. It sure beats shoveling and is easier on the back.
Flax prices have jumped recently, not quite to the $15 level I was hoping for but certainly a good enough price that I won't complain too much. Plus the fact that the grain had sat in the bin so long that we would have needed to circulate it to be sure all was well.
And if you like to talk old tractors you might like to check out this discussion forum that I frequent called Canadian Antique Tractors