On December 18th, I go for a checkup with my orthopedic surgeon on my hip replacement. If he thinks that everything is ok, then I will have an appointment with him in one year for an annual checkup on the hip. We are going to leave on the 19th for New Mexico where it is going to be a little colder but I will have the opportunity to see the mountains and visit the ranch and check things out. I have not been able to do this in a very long time because I simply could not get out and walk the land. I am looking forward to this very much. However, I feel like I will have to go through smoker withdrawal as I do not have a unit on the ranch.
So, this week, we remedied that situation and place an order for a new smoker. It is highly likely that we will not receive this for Christmas but probably in January. As you know, I am a big fan of Yoder, having a YS 480 pellet smoker and a Cheyenne backyard wood smoker. Since this is for the ranch, I went a tad bigger so that we can entertain fellow ranchers and neighbors in our community. Here's a picture of what we ordered.
I went with the optional tie down cargo area and the second grate and we will have pre-drilled ports on either side to run thermometers. As far as wood is concerned, we have lots of scrub oak and mesquite laying on the ground. Looks like I may need a whole tree to fire this baby up. I want to find a good source of wood so that I can have them stack a couple of cords. Looks like I'll have to pick up a gallon of peanut oil to give this a good bath before I fire it up. I will have to cut out a steer to carve up the beef and put some prime rib, beef ribs and brisket on this baby. I have not seen a lot of people in a long time and this will be a nice way to say hello again for the holidays.
Unfortunately, we will have to return to New Braunfels in January. But, we will go back again in the Spring. This is going to be a big year for trout fishing.
