When Field Day's Got Your Goat: Adventures with Peanut and Rooster

QRP and goats. Some would say that’s an odd mix. Not so, if you think about it. I'm an old backpacker who's seen the light as in lightweight.

After many years of surfing, cycling and jogging, my knees started complaining about hauling my 50-pound backpack around the Colorado mountains.

I’ve since whittled my pack down to the 20-25 pound range – including my rig – to keep it fun. But what’s that got to do with goats?

It all got started last summer when I was faced with burning off some unused vacation time from my work – or lose it. So I pick up my fly rod, which hadn’t been flexed for years, and while standing in the river and jerking a fellow fly-fisherman’s cap off his head on my back cast, I decided it was a little too crowded in all these easy-to-get-to fishing holes for my taste.

Next I read a book titled “Flyfishing High-altitude Lakes” by Gary LaFontane in which he kept referring to how his little “hiking buddy” helped him haul his gear (float tube, waders, boots, etc.) to these high mountain lakes.

Later he revealed it’s a goat! Wow, I thought that was a great idea!

I immediately researched pack goats on the Internet and library over the next couple months. By late summer I had built a stable in the barn next to the wife’s horses stall with a door to an outside pen. I wrapped the scrub oak with hardware cloth to save them from being eaten. Goats can – and do – eat most anything given time and nothing else to do.

It seems everywhere I hike with my pack goats – Peanut and Rooster – people on the trail say, “Oh my gosh, are those goats?” I guess it’s not often you see folks in this country out hiking with goats. But they're the ultimate QRP pack animal in my opinion.

They need no special food as they browse along the trail just like deer depositing small berries here. They’re lower eco-impact than a horse, mule or lama. They can and will go places horses and mules can't go or prefer not.

Their disposition is very positive. Actually quite delightful, and yes, maybe a little silly at times compared to Lamas and mules. They have a great work ethic. They carry heavy loads all day long with no complaints. But do like treats for their labor.

Best of all is they're intelligent and trainable. I wished my kids (real kids) were as much. They don't bark, bite or chase and they think I'm the alpha goat following me around like a faithful dog.

They do bleat when danger is near or it’s feeding time. My “boys,” are too young just now to carry much. When they reach maturity and weigh in at 180-220 lbs., they will carry ~50lbs of gear each. Combined, that's four times what I'm carrying in my pack now.
Meanwhile they've become my best hiking buddies ever! Low impact and maintenance in many ways! Well on their way to becoming very efficient QRP pack animals.

It turns out the goat dairy industry can only use a few male goats per 20 or so female goats. The result is that most of the little boy goats go to the sale barn and wind up in Fido’s dinner dish. Or become a “pack goat” or working goat of some sort.

There are several breeds that are better for packing than others. Basically you want a big strong goat. Small goats can pack, too. Like a lot of things in life, it’s all about attitude. You want a goat with a positive “can-do” attitude. I lucked out on finding Peanut and Rooster – both boys are neutered males and have great “go-for-it” spirit.

My first two-night backpacking trip with my goats was a blast and a huge success. A few ham radio buddies and I go camping every year about this time during ARRL Field Day.
I was surprised and pleased how well the goats did. Peanut, the year-old younger boy, seemed at home while my big boy Rooster was a little unsettled at times, but in the end did fine.

Friday night I woke on and off, unzipped the tent, shined the headlamp around to check on them, and saw they were laying side-by-side chewing their cud at peace with the world. I did hear them browsing and playing several times (they had a little bell on their collars) but the first night was without incident. I was so happy they behaved and I didn't have to tie them up. I was afraid they would raid or disturb my friends' sites near by, but no issue. And if tied up they'd have bleated all night!

Saturday late day thunderstorms brought what goats dislike. I fortuitously brought a 12 x 12-tarp and pitched it on one side of my tent which gave the boys and me some shelter in case of wet weather. They used it often as did I to cook and keep dry. First afternoon showers found me surrounded by goats and friends as I sat cooking dinner.

The boys behaved themselves under the threat of a squirt bottle or being ejected to less dry conditions. I was amazed how well they understood the word "no" or maybe it's they way I said it.

That evening, a chilly-damp southerly wind found Peanut burrowed in on the leeward side of a big old fir tree. Rooster joined him 15-feet from my tent. About 1 a.m., I got up. Quickly I realized I left the tent door unzipped. I turned just in time. My headlamp caught the silhouette image of Rooty streaking for my tent. I made a flying leap and tackled him just at the door and we wrestled to the ground while Peanut just dozed.

I almost had a goat tent-mate. Not a habit I would like to untrain. He rejoined Peanut as I zipped up my solo tent cocoon. Whew! All was quiet again.

I felt a little bad about being so rough with him and hoped he'd forgive me. Dawn came and when I woke I could feel a very subtle heart beat and it wasn't mine! I found Rooty curled up right up against the wall of the tent. I unzipped the door and there he lay chewing his cud. No grudges implied.

This was a fun two-day trip. We made lots of radio contacts with ham radio operators all over the United States and Canada who were participating in the Field Day event. My goats had lots of good exercise / browsed and got great training on camp manners as did this old goat. Plus my buddies were quite impressed with what good hiking / camping buddies goats can be.



	When Field Day's Got Your Goat: Adventures with Peanut and Rooster
		By Steve Galchutt, NØTU Special to The ARS Sojourner
July 2006 QRP and goats. Some would say that’s an odd mix. Not so, if you think about it. I'm an old backpacker who's seen the light as in lightweight. After many years of surfing, cycling and jogging, my knees started complaining about hauling my 50-pound backpack around the Colorado mountains. I’ve since whittled my pack down to the 20-25 pound range – including my rig – to keep it fun. But what’s that got to do with goats? It all got started last summer when I was faced with burning off some unused vacation time from my work – or lose it. So I pick up my fly rod, which hadn’t been flexed for years, and while standing in the river and jerking a fellow fly-fisherman’s cap off his head on my back cast, I decided it was a little too crowded in all these easy-to-get-to fishing holes for my taste. Next I read a book titled “Flyfishing High-altitude Lakes” by Gary LaFontane in which he kept referring to how his little “hiking buddy” helped him haul his gear (float tube, waders, boots, etc.) to these high mountain lakes. Later he revealed it’s a goat! Wow, I thought that was a great idea! I immediately researched pack goats on the Internet and library over the next couple months. By late summer I had built a stable in the barn next to the wife’s horses stall with a door to an outside pen. I wrapped the scrub oak with hardware cloth to save them from being eaten. Goats can – and do – eat most anything given time and nothing else to do. It seems everywhere I hike with my pack goats – Peanut and Rooster – people on the trail say, “Oh my gosh, are those goats?” I guess it’s not often you see folks in this country out hiking with goats. But they're the ultimate QRP pack animal in my opinion. They need no special food as they browse along the trail just like deer depositing small berries here. They’re lower eco-impact than a horse, mule or lama. They can and will go places horses and mules can't go or prefer not. Their disposition is very positive. Actually quite delightful, and yes, maybe a little silly at times compared to Lamas and mules. They have a great work ethic. They carry heavy loads all day long with no complaints. But do like treats for their labor. Best of all is they're intelligent and trainable. I wished my kids (real kids) were as much. They don't bark, bite or chase and they think I'm the alpha goat following me around like a faithful dog. They do bleat when danger is near or it’s feeding time. My “boys,” are too young just now to carry much. When they reach maturity and weigh in at 180-220 lbs., they will carry ~50lbs of gear each. Combined, that's four times what I'm carrying in my pack now. Meanwhile they've become my best hiking buddies ever! Low impact and maintenance in many ways! Well on their way to becoming very efficient QRP pack animals. It turns out the goat dairy industry can only use a few male goats per 20 or so female goats. The result is that most of the little boy goats go to the sale barn and wind up in Fido’s dinner dish. Or become a “pack goat” or working goat of some sort. There are several breeds that are better for packing than others. Basically you want a big strong goat. Small goats can pack, too. Like a lot of things in life, it’s all about attitude. You want a goat with a positive “can-do” attitude. I lucked out on finding Peanut and Rooster – both boys are neutered males and have great “go-for-it” spirit. (Editor’s note: For video visit: http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docId=-8696592994782613766 and click the play button on the lower left side of the screen) Backpacking Fun on Raspberry Mountain with Peanut and Rooster My first two-night backpacking trip with my goats was a blast and a huge success. A few ham radio buddies and I go camping every year about this time during ARRL Field Day. I was surprised and pleased how well the goats did. Peanut, the year-old younger boy, seemed at home while my big boy Rooster was a little unsettled at times, but in the end did fine. Friday night I woke on and off, unzipped the tent, shined the headlamp around to check on them, and saw they were laying side-by-side chewing their cud at peace with the world. I did hear them browsing and playing several times (they had a little bell on their collars) but the first night was without incident. I was so happy they behaved and I didn't have to tie them up. I was afraid they would raid or disturb my friends' sites near by, but no issue. And if tied up they'd have bleated all night! Saturday late day thunderstorms brought what goats dislike. I fortuitously brought a 12 x 12-tarp and pitched it on one side of my tent which gave the boys and me some shelter in case of wet weather. They used it often as did I to cook and keep dry. First afternoon showers found me surrounded by goats and friends as I sat cooking dinner. The boys behaved themselves under the threat of a squirt bottle or being ejected to less dry conditions. I was amazed how well they understood the word "no" or maybe it's they way I said it. That evening, a chilly-damp southerly wind found Peanut burrowed in on the leeward side of a big old fir tree. Rooster joined him 15-feet from my tent. About 1 a.m., I got up. Quickly I realized I left the tent door unzipped. I turned just in time. My headlamp caught the silhouette image of Rooty streaking for my tent. I made a flying leap and tackled him just at the door and we wrestled to the ground while Peanut just dozed. I almost had a goat tent-mate. Not a habit I would like to untrain. He rejoined Peanut as I zipped up my solo tent cocoon. Whew! All was quiet again. I felt a little bad about being so rough with him and hoped he'd forgive me. Dawn came and when I woke I could feel a very subtle heart beat and it wasn't mine! I found Rooty curled up right up against the wall of the tent. I unzipped the door and there he lay chewing his cud. No grudges implied. This was a fun two-day trip. We made lots of radio contacts with ham radio operators all over the United States and Canada who were participating in the Field Day event. My goats had lots of good exercise / browsed and got great training on camp manners as did this old goat. Plus my buddies were quite impressed with what good hiking / camping buddies goats can be. Oh, and the RADIO part of the story . . . Friday afternoon Steve Bates, NØMHQ; John Evans, NØHJ, and I backpacked onto Raspberry Mountain and pitched our tents getting ready for Field Day. Saturday morning I put up an 88-foot centerfed Zepp with 40-feet of Radio Shack twinlead at 25 feet. It worked great on 20 meters (1.2:1 SWR) but my KX1's ATU said 9:1 SWR on 80 / 40! John Evans, NØHJ suggested I take 5-feet off the feed line to change the impedance point. DOH! It now played with an acceptable match on 80 / 40 / 20! WOOHOO! Actually it was more like 7-feet I chopped off. This would have made it ~33-feet of feed line. Anyway, it worked! What I learned from this is if you’re having difficulty getting a match, try changing your feed line length. How many times have we heard this? I snagged 60-contacts for ~2 hours of operation on 20 / 40 / 80. My strategy was to wait for the dust to settle or until the big guns were hungry for Qs. Sunday morning I worked both coasts on 80 meters with 1.6-watts, but have to give credit to the other guys’ great ears! It took several fills and repeats before I got a “QSL-TU” confirmation. All operation was on the internal lithium batteries that never showed a sign of giving up. Signals were pretty darned good for being in the bottom of the solar cycle. I know I should have spent more time operating but it was too easy just to sit back and relax, catnap, chat with Steve and John and enjoy the nice day and scenery. Field Day took a break while afternoon showers rolled in and sent us all scrambling for dry cover – including the goats. It was great blend of camping and Field Day fun. Looking forward to next year already !* * * * * * * * * * Steve Galchutt, NØTU, is a longtime QRPer, Adventure Radio Society member and outdoorsman living in Monument, Co.