Black Mesa Ranch
Snowflake, Arizona, USA
Artisan Cheese
Nubian Goats
Cheese and Candy Information and Online Ordering Page
Featured pages on this site
Updated!
We have revamped our Ranch Workshop Packages!
In addition to our three-day cheese making and goat management workshops learn about our free open- house days and lodging accommodations.
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Award Winning Artisan Goat Cheeses
2 Awards 2008 ADGA National Competition
4 Awards 2005 ADGA National Competition
3 Awards 2004 ADGA National Competition
(available seasonally)
2 Awards 2005 ADGA National Competition
2 Awards 2004 ADGA National Competition
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Click here to read the online version of Kathryn's booklet
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This site last updated:
July 19, 2010
© 2000-2010 Black Mesa Ranch Inc. All Rights Reserved
Endorsed by more than 36 humane organizations, the Certified Humane Raised and Handled® program is nationally recognized as the Gold Standard for certifying animal welfare.
Arizona Grown!
3/7/01:
Well, our new backup generator showed up on the 1st of March after a gazillion phone calls to the shipping company and several missed delivery times, dates and locations. UGH. We off-loaded it using the tractor at the well, un-crated it immediately, wanting to get some water (we were down to just an inch or two in the bottom of the tank) but were hampered by there being absolutely no paperwork at all in the packing. No installation instructions, no warrantee, no owners manual, and no keys. The keys were only for locking the case so that was no big deal, but we really could have used the installation stuff. The box had some rudimentary installation steps written on it and we followed those as well as did some common sense things like checking and adding oil, installing a starter battery etc.. It is an LP gas-fired generator and we hooked it up to one of those little 5-gallon bottles, like BBQ's use and once we were sure everything was right (as best as we could tell) tried to start it up. There was some difficulty in getting it to catch and at one point it made a high-pitched squeal that didn't sound very good and it smelled very "gassey"but we kept trying. Between trying different things to start it I was turning off the gas at the cylinder and one time forgot to turn it on. As it was cranking I remembered and cracked open the valve and VIOLA! it started. Not quite understanding why, and not questioning our fortune we went ahead and wired in the well pump and proceeded to fill the tank about a third before the gas bottle ran out.
New LPG back-up generator working at the well
The next day we filled the tank another 1/3 then moved the generator to the powerhouse in preparation for permanent installation there. We contacted the company where we bought it and got them to fax us some copies of the installation specs etc. One of the things we noticed right away was that it was supposed to have a set pressure on incoming gas. This was news to us of course (we had noticed that it already had an internal regulator) but we went out, bought a new regulator and installed it in the gas cylinder. With the new regulator in place we couldn't get the generator to start at all. We spent hours on the phone with the tech reps for the company trying to trouble shoot it over several days. Finally yesterday they decided that I had probably blown the secondary gas regulator in it by running it without a primary regulator. They are shipping another (and will decide whether or not to bill me for it later).
Had a neighbor come by last weekend to look at the goats and show us how to trim hoofs. She said that she thought it was possible that Trudy wasn't pregnant, just very large. She is due in a week or two so this was not good news. We'll just have to wait and see.
Today our solar installer arrived to make the generator connections to the power inverter and after some difficulties deciphering the correct wires to use got it hooked up and working fine. Once the new regulator shows up it should be perfect.
Today we moved the 48 4-week old chicks out to the just-completed Hen House.
Chicks in their new home
We also found out that the part for our 10kW portable generator had finally come in at Tag's but when the guy installed it, it still didn't work. He's hoping to figure it out tomorrow. If so we'll head up to Holbrook to pick it up.
3/12/01:
It's been a busy week. The big news is that Sunday evening Trudy (Nubian goat) gave birth to a bouncing, healthy 7.5 lb. doe kid we named "Nutmeg". It was our first new baby on the Ranch and the first time K and I had seen a goat give birth. Quite an experience!
Trudy kids with Nutmeg
Last Wednesday we had Matt, our PV solar guy over to help hook up the new LPG back-up generator into our system. He had never worked on a Generac and there was some confusion about how to make the interface which was compounded by some odd advice when we called the tech guys at the company. Eventually we figured it out and, aside from an on-going problem with the gas regulator, it worked like a charm.
On Thursday, the week before Trudy kidded, impatient for the goats to start giving milk I used purchased cow milk and began the cheese making process by getting my Mesophilic culture started. On Friday I started a batch of "Lactic" soft cheese. Saturday I finished off the Lactic cheese and tried to make a Ricotta from the whey but had a dismal failure when the proteins never precipitated. Ugh. At least the soft cheese was really good.
One of our first fresh cheese batches
On Friday we took all of the various LP gas regulators for the generator into town and had them tested. They were fine. We brought them home, re-installed them and all of a sudden everything worked fine. Go figure! Happy Day the generator is FINALLY up and running 100%. We used the tractor, brought it up to the well and pumped up about 5/6 of a tank-full (from completely empty) so we're really back in business with all the amenities.
Saturday and Sunday were pretty cold with snow flurries on and off the whole time (of course Trudy would want to kid then!)
Yesterday, Monday I took the truck into Show Low for some final warrantee work (it just ran out), did some shopping, got the 25-gal LP tank filled for the generator. K stayed home with Nutmeg and got her used to bottle feeding. Nutmeg is living in the house for now and teaching the 4 dogs who's boss already.
Today we contracted with our solar guy to install a 900 watt wind generator to boost the system during cloudy periods. It should be finished in about 3 weeks (we are seriously gluttons for punishment).
3/24/01:
Spring is in the air! The weather here has been beautiful for the last week. Sunny and calm with daily high temperatures in the 70's. Even though there was a slight snow flurry a few nights ago, the valley is turning green and the birds are singing.
Since the last entry a little over a week ago, we've gotten a good start on the installation of our new wind generator (turbine). We dug the holes for the tower and guy-wire supports and did the trenching to the powerhouse using the tractor. Our solar guy Matt set the tower base and support rings for the guys in concrete and we ran the conduit between the tower and the powerhouse. Matt was supposed to finish erecting the tower last week but has re-scheduled for this coming week. The "bird" (the turbine) is on order and should be here in a week or so.
We had a chance to do some work on the irrigation system for the orchard. It's a rather complex array of about 30 valves with filters, pressure gauges, relief valves etc and hundreds and hundreds of feet of piping for the nearly-1 acre orchard. We have no information at all on the workings for any of it and it has been unused since the property was abandoned more than 10 years ago. Our hopes were not high for getting it in working order easily but to our surprise, once we had figured out most of the valves, the pipes seemed amazingly clear from obstructions and there were relatively few major pipe ruptures. We're so excited about getting the orchard back into production we've purchased our first 9 fruit trees and some grape vines. The whole area has been tilled and marked out for planting and we hope to get our organics next week for amending the soil.
We did some more work in the goat house, getting the wash room built out and installing the instant water heater. We also finished the lighting there and installed a manual grain grinding station and did a bit of roof patching.
The goats are all getting along fine and have really bonded with us as well as each other. We've taken them out of their paddock several times and gone on un-tethered browsing walks up the mesa. I'm sure it's quite a sight (if there were anyone around to see); us, the 4 dogs and 3 goats (one just 2 weeks old) out trekking around. They (the goats) really seem to enjoy the change of scenery and browse and always follow along, staying within easy sight. Little Nutmeg has had her hands full teaching the dogs (and us) all about baby goats.
Nutmeg has won everyone over
We did some normal maintenance this week around the ranch too including equalizing the battery bank at the power house, and regularly scheduled maintenance on the back-up generator, the large portable well generator and a 10-hour maintenance on the tractor.
We also put together a cabinet unit for the kitchen for storage of cheese-making supplies and got some work done on our back-yard patio/bar-be-que area this week.