The ice dam

We had great news that the sheep are sold! But this meant someone coming to our farm to pick them up. And, well, we haven't opened the gate to the ram's pen all winter. 100+ inches of snow never moved. I've gone in there but I climb the gate :) Zac usually fed them by throwing hay over the fence. Now that snow had turned to a solid stack of ice frozen over the gate. We took boiling water, and may different tools (ie: pitch forks, sledge hammers, and the like), to chop away at the ice.

There was hay mixed in the ice, which actually gave us some leverage in dismantling this mess.

And finally, the gate can open!

Zac left the gate ajar while he ran inside to get something. I was cleaning up the dog's area and next then I know, ram is there!  Now if you know about rams, they like to ram things.  Rammy is sweet, but he does ram.  The good news is he could fit through the gate opening, the bad news, he did not want to go back in his pen and rammed me good before we got him back there.  I am sure that will leave a bruise.