Those Baby Goats, Tho! A Day with Chia Thrane
The summer of 2022 I took the “beevan” on an extensive jaunt in an attempt to assist my friend, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Associate Professor & Extension Specialist Dr. Judy Wu-Smart, with data collection for an ongoing investigation into the poisoning of her bees (along with local fish, birds, butterflies, dogs, and yes – people) near the Alt-En plant in Mead.*
Bee Regenerative’s budget for a “Bee Friendly Vineyards” project had just been halved. On top of that, a lucrative bee research contract for another project had fallen through just days before I was to start monitoring.
I was in shock and adrift. All of the sudden there was about $25K and seven months of work missing from our budget and my calendar.
So – I decided to try to make myself, my skills, and Bee Regenerative’s tools useful. I packed up myself, Midgie, and all of our bee monitoring equipment to hit the wide-open road, headed eastward.
In an attempt to be in community, and potentially find new bee habitat projects, I sent out a message to the Women in Ranching list serve – looking for flat spots to park the van between southern Oregon and eastern Nebraska and offering to nerd out on bees with anyone who was interested. I was wowed by the response by the WIR group; I received over a dozen kind and thoughtful invitations.
One of the messages back to me was from Chia Thrane, a goat herder in Montana. Her ranch was just out of reach for the route that I planned, but I logged her offer in my mind and there it sat until this year.
Chia and I finally connected in person at the Women in Ranching “Confluence” at Paicines Ranch in Central California in March. We were easy and instant friends through our affinity for wildflowers, foraging, and love of the land. She casually invited me to stop by on my travels between projects in Montana and South Dakota; I instantaneously worked a visit into my schedule.
I arrived on a breezy Friday afternoon and was instantly welcomed by little Axel – their 7-year-old son who is an impressive nature whiz. Chia had prepped him on who was coming to visit and he had already trapped a bee under a glass while they were foraging on dandelions in the yard, in anticipation of my arrival.
Myself, Chia, her husband, Ivan, and their littlest human kid, Juniper, all followed Axel’s enthusiasm to the glass – where he was eagerly awaiting confirmation that he had caught a very cool bee.
And that he did!
Perched upon the dandelion was what seemed to be a Dieunomia, maybe even a Dieunomia nevadensis. The bee had characteristically long antennae, a very fuzzy white face, a reddish abdomen striped with white hairs, and smokey wings. I’ve yet to see one in Montana, so a very cool find, indeed.
Shortly thereafter, the sun faded and the storm clouds blew in. I spent the first half of the next day catching up on admin work that I fall woefully behind on during driving days. The later half of the day was spent getting to live inside Chia’s world, and a world of delights it is.
We drank delicious tea from herbaceous leaves she harvested from her yard. We made ginger and yarrow tallow body butter from fat rendered from one of her harvested cows. We connected over living similar (yet different) un-traditional, untamed lives. AND I got to spend time in the barn with baby goats that were just hours old. The cuteness is indescribable!!
The next morning before I headed eastward to South Dakota, Chia, Axel, Juniper, and I headed up to a portion of the property untouched by the “bossy” non-native smooth brome (a grass introduced by the settlers for European livestock).
Axel led the way in his very stylish wool bison sweater. He and I charged ahead to look for bees, of which there was none (thanks to the strong wind), but flowers and very cool rocks that he could name were aplenty. The hills were covered with prairie smoke, arrowleaf balsamroot, lupine, and exploded pasque flowers.
The “cool find” icing on the cake of the morning was a coyote jawbone.
On the way back Chia and I foraged cut leaf cone flower, known as sochani to the Cherokee people. This is a delicious and nutrient-dense green found in riparian areas. That night I sauteed it up and served it over a bed of egg pasta with an egg from Evers Ridge farm, topped with parmesan and smoked birchwood salt.
Just because I live in a van, doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy fine cuisine!
Speaking of - Chia and Ivan have an upcoming collaboration with celebrity chef (and our buddy), Eduardo Garcia. On Friday, June 13th, they are co-hosting a “Holistic Goat Butchering Workshop.” In this multifaceted experience you’ll learn about ecological (bee friendly!!) pasture management, ethical butchery, and open fire cooking.
If you’re looking for an opportunity to be more connected to the land and your food, this is it. More information and registration here.
I’m already looking forward to the next opportunity to spend time with Chia and her family and am forever grateful for this wide-spread community of bee-loving farmers and ranchers who open their doors and hearts to me and make everywhere feel like home.
* If you would like to know more about this trip, and the poisoning issue, read my journal entry from the summer of 2022 at beegirl.org/blog/corn
