Stockyards on the Roadside
By Judy Evans
@JudyEv (326278)
Rockingham, Australia
March 19, 2017 10:09am CST
We lived on a farm when I was a child. The house was about 100 metres from the gravel road and the stockyards were further on again. On Saturday, while we were parked on the side of the road at an endurance (horse) ride, there was a set of old stockyards right on the road.
I've noticed this before in the south-west of the state – stockyards parked right on the edge of the road. It always seemed a strange place to have them until it was explained to me that the paddocks in this wetter region become too boggy for trucks to drive on.
By placing yards close to the road, trucks do not need to run the risk of become bogged in soggy paddocks. I hope you like the photo of these yards which would have taken such an effort to build.
17 people like this
16 responses
@garymarsh6 (23393)
• United Kingdom
19 Mar 17
Looks like a nice photo it makes perfect sense to have them nearer a main road rather than a nightmare of getting stuck in the mud!
3 people like this
@garymarsh6 (23393)
• United Kingdom
20 Mar 17
@JudyEv I imagine up near Darwin it is even wetter! Isn't it tropical there?
2 people like this
@JudyEv (326278)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Mar 17
@garymarsh6 Yes, Darwin has their 'wet season'. We haven't been to Darwin yet. It's is very humid there too which doesn't appeal.
2 people like this
@Juliaacv (48459)
• Canada
19 Mar 17
I'm thinking that the paddocks are what we would call a pasture-a fenced in area for the cattle or horses.
The same holds true of the older farms in our area, they have a grassy fenced-in area for the livestock, and that is probably the reason why.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (326278)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Mar 17
The yards will no doubt just rust away with time. It's a bit sad in that way.
@Jessicalynnt (50525)
• Centralia, Missouri
19 Mar 17
I wouldnt have known why they were placed there either, but that does make some good sense
2 people like this
@JudyEv (326278)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Mar 17
I'm glad you like the photo. I was very intrigued with the yards. They are just so rustic.
@andriaperry (116860)
• Anniston, Alabama
19 Mar 17
That is awesome. I bet those are nice to see in person, feel the history.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (326278)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Mar 17
Old yards and barns really call to me. I love poking around such places.
@suziecat7 (3350)
• Asheville, North Carolina
20 Mar 17
I think they are rather beautiful :))
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (326278)
• Rockingham, Australia
21 Mar 17
I liked them too. We parked there while the horses went through and it was almost the first thing I photographed.
@AbbyGreenhill (45496)
• United States
19 Mar 17
I can not get photo to download.
1 person likes this
@AbbyGreenhill (45496)
• United States
20 Mar 17
@JudyEv My computer was having some issues yesterday - I did some 'cleaning' and now it's better and I see the photo in both places.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (326278)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Mar 17
Oh what a shame! It's not a very big file so I'll attach it here just in case it makes a difference.
@RichardMeister (5328)
• Otis Orchards, Washington
19 Mar 17
I was raised on a dairy farm and we used to haul cows to the stockyards. They were about 25 miles (40.23 km) away. Next to it was an Armour meatpacking plant. Now both the plant and the stockyards are gone.
1 person likes this
@RichardMeister (5328)
• Otis Orchards, Washington
20 Mar 17
@JudyEv Yes, they were trucked. But they were dairy cows so we only took two or three at a time when they would no longer birth calves. At that point they would no long give milk so they were basically worthless for anything but meat.
1 person likes this
@JohnRoberts (109857)
• Los Angeles, California
19 Mar 17
Makes sense. Also convenient for the trucks to get back on the road and moving.
2 people like this
@JudyEv (326278)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Mar 17
Cattle would be penned here and some loaded on trucks to go the the market.
@JudyEv (326278)
• Rockingham, Australia
20 Mar 17
I suppose the farm roads are a bit better formed and maybe there is hard standing in the loading area. The trucks would be more powerful too although they'd also be heavier. But I'm just guessing really. And some farmers have gone out of cattle.
1 person likes this
