Hello, my name is Connor McCauley, and welcome to this week’s newsletter.
I’m excited to have you all on board for another round of stories and adventures. This week in particular was one I’ve been looking forward to sharing, because while it brought a lot of hard work, it also brought a lot of fun. We just came off a major snowstorm that rolled through Amarillo — and really, most of the country. Chances are, you experienced at least part of it too.
As always, a quick reminder: these newsletters come from my perspective as someone still fairly new to ranching. My goal is simple — I want to invite you in. Come learn the ropes with me as I learn them myself. And this week, that meant experiencing ranching through a winter storm.
So let’s jump right into it.
The storm was met with a lot of anticipation on our end — probably like it was for most folks. Forecasts were calling for anywhere from 10 inches of snow, with some models predicting even more. On top of that came extremely cold temperatures. Not the coldest we’ve ever seen, but certainly the coldest stretch of this winter so far.
And that’s worth noting.
Snow by itself isn’t necessarily bad — but it makes things harder. Cold by itself isn’t necessarily bad — but it makes things harder. Combine the two, and it creates a lot of work.
We’ve had a pretty mild, pleasant winter up to this point, so we made sure to prepare well ahead of the storm. That meant staging equipment where it needed to be — plows ready, buckets positioned, skid steers fueled up. Everyone stocked firewood. We spent time chopping and hauling wood, which is especially important if power goes out.
For Helen and me, that preparation mattered even more. If you’ve read past newsletters, you know we’re currently in the bunkhouse (we’ve got a fun surprise to share on that front later on). But for now, we rely heavily on our fireplace — or stove, I should say — to keep the place warm if we lose electricity.
When the storm finally hit, it started slow… but once it got going, it was straight to work.
During snowstorms, ranch work really boils down to two critical jobs:
Putting out hay — because the grass is buried under snow.
Chopping ice — because water sources freeze solid.
I’ve written newsletters before going deep into the details of those tasks, so this time I wanted to shift perspective a bit. If you’re interested in the nuts and bolts of chopping ice or feeding during storms, there’s a newsletter from last February that covers all of that. You can find it on our website’s main newsletter archive.
For this week, though, I wanted to zoom out — and talk about the rancher’s mindset.
Now, I want to tread carefully here, because I don’t want to give the impression that ranchers think they’re better than anyone else. That’s not the point.
But ranching is niche. It’s unique.
Only about 2% of America’s population is involved in agriculture — and that includes farming. Ranching alone is an even smaller slice of that.
It’s a particular skill set… and, in many ways, a lifestyle that’s been lost in today’s culture.
Ranching is adventure. It’s hard work. It’s excitement. It’s being out in the country — sometimes so far out it feels like the wilderness. There’s a reason the “Wild West” image still captures people’s imagination.
There was a time when folks really looked up to this way of life. They thought it was rugged… honorable… even cool.
I think we’ve lost some of that.
But what hasn’t changed is this: ranching is difficult. That sense of adventure is paired with challenge.
Winter storms mean waking up in the middle of the night to check cattle. It means breaking ice before sunrise. It means long days and late nights. It’s not clock-in, clock-out work — it’s 24/7 responsibility.
And when I think about what people should feel when they think about ranching… I think they should think about America.
I think about an old, gritty American spirit — something buried deep in all of us. When you look around today and see anxiety, disconnection, young people separated from land, food, and the outdoors… I can’t help but think we’d all benefit from reconnecting to that rugged foundation.
Being tied to the land. Caring for animals. Producing food. Taking pride in something tangible.
That doesn’t mean ignoring the hard parts of history — or pretending everything is perfect. Ranching isn’t perfect. Ranchers aren’t perfect. Our nation’s history isn’t perfect.
But we can acknowledge flaws while still recognizing greatness — both where something came from and where it can go.
So to bring this full circle…
When a snowstorm hits, we don’t get snow days.
We don’t stay inside by the fire watching movies.
And there’s nothing wrong with folks who do — enjoying that time with family is part of what legacy is all about.
But for us, storms mean work.
It means rolling hay, breaking ice, checking cattle, and making sure these animals stay healthy and fed. It’s our livelihood, yes — but it’s also part of feeding this country.
And truth be told… we had a pretty good time doing it.
Not everyone would call it fun — but we did.
If you want to see it firsthand — the snow-covered ranch, cattle in winter conditions, hay being rolled out, ice being chopped — be sure to check out this week’s YouTube video. It’ll give you a front-row seat to what ranching looks like when winter shows up in full force.
Thank you for reading my ranching rant.
And as always — thank you for being here. You’re part of this legacy too. You’re supporting American ranchers, buying American beef, and staying connected to the land in your own way.
We appreciate you more than you know.
We’ll see you in the next newsletter.
— Connor
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