Did You KNow That Many People Graze Cattle In Wine Country?

@bagarad I'm a cyclist but we always cycle on the cycle lane. It's the public utility vehicles that are worst at observing traffic.

@toniganzon Our cyclists here seem to think they own the road, and our state government encourages that notion. They will ride two or three across on country roads and we aren't allowed to get within three feet of them. They are supposed to ride single file and stay in bike lanes if they exist. Some won't follow the rules even if they know there's a motorist behind them. We often can't pass them without doing something illegal and they still won't pull to the side, even where there is space. They keep the cars going at 10 mph behind them. I hope they try it someday when a Highway Patrol car is behind them.

Some people don't do a very good job observing traffic lights, either, especially pedestrians and cyclists.

That's too bad. I love being near the vineyards. The owners don't care if I walk through them and take photos and blog about them.

@Hannihar Maybe so, or maybe they are just being neighborly.

@bagarad Barbara, maybe because they think that when you put the pictures on the blog that will be publiciity for them.

@bagarad Oh, here and there you'll catch a whiff of it. Most of the feedlots are set back from the highways, but there is one huge one not far from here that's right alongside it, and yes, it stinks! A few cattle don't smell all that bad, especially when they're out on grass. It's a clean smell, anyway. It's just when they're enclosed and fed corn and other things they wouldn't naturally eat that the odor becomes a problem.

Do you have much of an odor problem with so many cattle around? It doesn't happen with the grazing cattle here because they are far apart. It was very noticeable in Dairy Valley where several dairies were clustered in a small geographic area. The feedlots seem to be the worst. We have to pass one when we travel north on I-5.

Do the cows wake you in the morning?

I like seeing the calves. They are really cute.

I can relate to why you'd rather have the cows.

It doesn't surprise me anymore, but it does surprise some people.

I'm afraid many probably are destined for the butcher's block.

I used to live fairly close to what was then known as Dairy Valley in Southern California. We used to pass it on the way to Knott's Berry Farm and Disneyland. There were many dairies there. We used to joke about the face we could smell it before we could see it.