osage prairie preserve

Today we went to a Osage prairie preserve (Which was very, very close to The Pioneer Woman's ranch! Too bad we couldn't stop by ;)) with some friends. At first the weather looked like rain, but thankfully it cleared up into a beautiful, but very windy day. The wind almost knocked me over...and I could lean against it.

(I don't know about you, but this sign struck me as funny. I had to laugh.)

We went on a walk hike, which was about three miles long. Note to self: next time don't wear flats on a hike. And bringing a hair band might not be a bad idea either (It took twenty minutes to get the knots out of my hair - a result from the wind).

They had burned much of the grass a few weeks before - a controlled fire meant for fertilization - so unfortunately we weren't able to see the sea of prairie grass that is always talked about. It was amazing (see above picture) that the fire just stopped right at the path...the nutrients that strip in it are so rich that the fire was unable to burn it. 

To get to the preserve, we had to turn off onto a gravel road. Once on it, we were held up behind a cowboy riding on horseback chasing horses to the pasture. It shows what a city slicker I've become that seeing horses was special (We used to have two horses, along with goats, and other farm animals back in Texas). I didn't remember being them being so tall...ha!

Another attraction was the buffalo. The herds were roaming freely (hence the "Buffalo are dangerous" sign)...I had seen them before, but I didn't know before today that they could run up to thirty five miles an hour. Yikes! They look so docile and sluggish...but I sure wouldn't want to provoke them. 

How was your Friday? 

-carlotta