New Fence Line

Last year when we did that overnight backpacking trip with the boys, a big storm blew in and blew a fuse in our electric fence.  The horses got out and were running all over, and no one could reach us because we were in a region where there was no cell phone service.  Once we found out, we drove the two hours home, and I was terrified for the horses the whole way.  I already knew that Phoenix was limping.  Luckily, I was able to get them home (they were about a mile away from our house, up a mountain) and Phoenix's injury, while painful, was treatable.  I NEVER want that to happen again.  So I've been saving every cent I get from Christmas or selling stuff online towards building at least one very secure pasture.  With no electric!  That means three board fencing for most of it.  With the cost of wood right now, it's a pricy endeavor.

We've been working on this stretch since Christmas.  We hit a number of obstacles, including a broken nail gun, a post hole digger that didn't want to run, and post holes that dipped into an underground stream and were filling with water.  Not to mention all the rocks we had to dig through!  Happily, we now have a big stretch done.

This pasture already has wood fencing on two other sides.  So now three sides are fenced with wood.  We only have the back stretch left.  Because the final side is by a river (and may need adjustments as a result), and cannot be seen from the road, I will probably try to use high tensile fence wire with a mixture of wood posts and t-posts.  It should go in easier than the wood (with having to dig less holes) and hopefully will be cheaper.  After that's done, I will start saving again - I still have a couple of other stretches of wood fencing I want to do.  I do love seeing the fence lines once they're done!