Friday, February 29, 2008

The Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas


Top of the World!
The Ouachita Mountains are fold mountains like the Appalachian Mountains to the east, and were originally part of that range. During the Pennsylvanian part of the Carboniferous period, about 300 million years ago, the coastline of the Gulf of Mexico ran through the central parts of Arkansas. As the South American plate drifted northward, a subduction zone was created in this region. The South American oceanic crust was forced underneath the less-dense North American continental crust. Geologists call this collision the Ouachita orogeny. The collision buckled the continental crust, producing the fold mountains we call the Ouachitas. At one time the Ouachita Mountains were very similar in height to the current elevations of the Rocky Mountains. Due to the Ouachitas' age, the craggy tops have eroded away leaving the low formations that used to be the heart of the mountains. From Wikipedia

Thursday, February 28, 2008

Adam's Mountain


River runs through it! Adam's Mt. is
in Pope County,AR

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

The Catch!


Here is one more photo from Troy down in
the Texas Bayou. Supper will be catfish!

Retirement Study



Riverhawk, Troy Vance sent these photos of him training for
how to handle retirement. The two gentlemen that accompanied
him are teaching him how to take care of lazy days. The little
house is just one of his retirement homes. It has handicap
parking out front. Troy owns Zipper and Corker and Judge
Roy Bean and Lillie Langtree!












Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Monday, February 25, 2008

Floyd is Grand Sq. Champion!!!

GR. Squirrel Champion Pretty Boy Floyd
Larry and Betty, Floyd won the champion cast against several good dogs in Andrews, Indiana Saturday.This finished him to Grand Champion.Floyd has been in 9 champion casts of which he won seven and competed well in the two he did not win but made dens and nests.The quality of the dogs you are breeding is outstanding and as more of them are put out there it will become plain to see.Floyd is the best dog I have owned and is as solid and honest of a dog as a man could ask for.We are VERY proud of Floyd and glad to have found him and had the oppurtunity to become such good friends with you folks.

Thank You very much,
Dean and Barb

Note from Galla Creek: We are proud of Floyd too...you see the Wright's
own Floyd, but he is still a Galla Creek Feist and ours too! When a dog
leaves Galla Creek a little of their heart stays behind within our own!

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Old Tennessee Feist

L to R: Barto Davis, A. Littlejohn and Ruby
Roger Littlejohn sent this picture of an
Old Feist his father owned in the 1930s. I
will copy his email below the photo. Sounds
like the way we grew up in the Mts.
Back during that time my dad and others just had working/hunting dogs and didn't keep up with breedings like people do now. They just bred the best with the best without regard to thoughts of line breeding, out crossing etc. My dad has this bloodline for 20 plus years and had another dog he called Ella, however, I only have the picture of him and Ruby. I was born in 1950 and by that time he had lost his Feist line, but we had other shepard type dogs that would hunt up a storm. I remember when I was real little, especially in the spring, summer & fall, at night my dad always sat on the front porch until bedtime (he wasn't one to stay in the house much) I'd crawl up un his lap and tell him "Papa, tell me a hunt'n story". Needless to say the hunting stories of him and Ruby & Ella, I heard 100's of times but never tired of them. People need to remember that d! uring t he depresion (30's) family's depended on their hunting dogs to put mean on the table. Even though I was born in 1950, I've eaten a wagon load of fried squirrels and squirrel & dumplins :-) I remember specifically in the mid 50's we lived in Haywood County (Brownsville) on the Thomas MacKnight farm (share croppers) and my mother would take the 22 to the field in the morning and around 10 am she would head to the house to make dinner... she would make a swing thru the woods. We could hear the crack of that 22 and know that mama had found a squirrel. She was as good'a shot with a 22 as papa :-)

My father was A. H. Littlejohn, (b.1910/d.1998) and during the time he had his Feist dogs the family (I being the last of 5 siblings I was not around during the 30's & 40's) lived in and around McNairy County (Selmer) in West Tennessee. In fact the old Littlejohn homeplace was near the community of Gravel Hill which is close to Hwy 45 & Hwy 57 junction. Most people know McNairy County, Tennessee as the site of "Buford Pusser & Walk'n Tall" :-) ...like I said in the SDC post, this photo is circa early 1930's. I know this because papa has hair and he lost his hair in his early 20's :-) ...In the original photo, he is sitting next to a neighbor I've heard him speak of by the name of Barto Davis. I cropped the original photo to get a better shot of dad and Ruby but can send a copy of the entire picture. In addition, my mother had written information on the back of the original picture.



Roger

Saturday, February 23, 2008

Hawk Hunting


One reason our squirrel population
is low is that our hawk population is
huge. This is Doc Harkrader's hawk.
The photo was taken in Idaho.

Friday, February 22, 2008

James Doc Harkrader, trapper





I have relatives that are part Cherokee. My
Standridge ancestors came to AR with the
Cherokee Indians right after 1830. The
Harkraders were from OK but ended up back
in Virginia. This week one of my distant Cherokee
kin, Calvin Harkrader, sent pictures of his brother
(now deceased). He was a trapper for the US
government and hunted with hawks and dogs.
His job was to help the farmers in northern
Idaho by protecting their stock. Doc moved
to Idaho in 1969 and never left. I thought his
life was a interesting one. Here are some pictures
from another time and place. If you click on the
photo it will be larger!

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Wright's Maple Sugar

The kids in Barb Wright's Day Care...
dressed Sugar up in pretty pink and
leopard skin. Wonder if Dean will take
her to the woods like this? Sugar is out
of Tia and Radio and she is a full sister to
our O' Hickory!







Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Sparky and Belle

Sparky and Belle are treed here near
my house. Sparky has a home in Mississippi.
She gets to ride in the cab of the truck when
Elliot takes her hunting. The first two times
they went he killed over 20 squirrels and she
earned the right to ride up front. She was a
real little jewel and I do miss her. Belle will
be 11 in 2008. Does not seem like that long
ago that I chose her from the little females in
Crook's litter.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

New Dog in Town!

O' Hickory--is the new dog on the block.
We bought him from Dean Wright. We took
him and Opal hunting today and we were
really pleased with how he did. He is only
8 months old and is out of Tia and our Radio
Flyer--which makes him a half sister to Opal!
Here he is treed in the Ouachita Mts.

Sunday, February 17, 2008

From Summer 2004


Patsy and Cork playing when they
were young pups on Galla Creek.
Patsy is out of Belle and Max. Cork
is out of Aussie and Max. Patsy
moved to South Carolina and Cork
is at home with Troy Vance in Tx.

Saturday, February 16, 2008

Meg and Rufus!




These are Bill Harden's two
Feist, Meg and Rufus. They are
from the cross with his female
and Spud. He has decided to sell
Rufus (dog with double patch over
his eyes). They are about 6 months
old.

Friday, February 15, 2008

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Squirrels are Scarce!

Elm buds will appear soon and
maybe the squirrels will too!

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Sq. Champion Nogo Nell

Juliann Swann owns Nogo Nell. She is here visiting and
having a little Valentine weekend with Spud. Once a
guy writing a Magazine article about squirrel dogs wanted
a perfect picture of what he thought an Old Feist looked
like he used Nell's photo in his story. She is cat-footed
like all the old Feist and fine boned. Also, a little independent
like the one old Abe Lincoln wrote about in 1845.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Randi and Hickory!

Galla Creek Randi is looking through the
kennel at Dean Wright's Hickory. Randi
is out of Lily, who is out of Pris Wilkerson,
who is out of Bell and Galla Creek Max.
Hickory is out of Tia and Radio Flyer.
They are checking each other out. We got
Randi from Randy Nortman and named her
after him.

Monday, February 11, 2008

Tressie Shows Off!











Email from Rodney about Tressie-
Well my little Tressie had quite a day today.
She won best of class, best of breed and female
best of show and gained 35 more points towards
bench champion. After the treeing contest I
took Tressie over to the tree and she barked
at the squirrel and then I backed up and let her
go and she put the hammer down on that tree.
She barked good, it was awesome. She's own
her way. I added a few photos for you folks.
Brother Rodney, thanks for sharing Tressie's
win with us!



Sunday, February 10, 2008

Tim Taylor's Mister I've Got it!







Mister is out of Jim E Sue and Spud. He's
lives in Alabama. Tim sent this email about
Mister I've Got It! We want to thank all of
you that share photos... you would get
tired of just looking at the ones Galla Creek
takes.
Attached are some pics of Mister. This is his
first live squirrel in a trap. We went hunting
this morning and he ran 2 squirrels up a tree.
He loves squirrels and hunting. He's real mouthy
on a live squirrel. I'm very satisfied.

Tim



Saturday, February 09, 2008

Friday, February 08, 2008

Spook~Ollie


Hard to tell which is which!

Thursday, February 07, 2008

Some seeds fall in bad places!

Pine cones are sewed in various places. The
photo reminds me of the parable of the sewer
in the New Testement...who would have thought
that seed would have became a tree on top of the
crag but it is growing.

Wednesday, February 06, 2008

Richland Creek

Richland Creek lies in a Wilderness Area. No
tree is cut, letting the area stay as it was years
ago.

Tuesday, February 05, 2008

Galla Creek Tuskegee

Julian Swann sent a photo of Brown
Sugar treeing in Alabama. Sugar is out
of Carolina Crossfire and G. W. Carver
'Peanut'. She is special.

Monday, February 04, 2008

Littermates!


Here are Tressie and Jessie--Littermates


Saturday, February 02, 2008

Honest Abe Poem about Feist Dog!


Wonder how long there have
been Feist...Abe Lincoln wrote this
poem about 1845...about a Fice!
George Washington spoke of them in
his Journal in 1777. Here is Honest
Abe's poem about a bear hunt and
a gritty Feist (Fice) dog!


THE BEAR HUNT
A wild bear chase didst never see?
Then hast thou lived in vain.
Thy richest lump of glorious glee
When first my father settled here,
'Twas then the frontier line;
The panther's scream, filled night with fear
And bears preyed on the swine.
But wo for Bruin's short lived fun,
When rose the squealing cry;
Now man and horse, with dog and gun,
For vengeance, at him fly.
A sound of danger strikes his ear;
He gives the breeze a snuff;
Away he bounds, with little fear,
And seeks the tangled rough.
On press his foes, and reach the ground,
Where's left his half munched meal;
The dogs, in circles, scent around,
And find his fresh made trail.
With instant cry, away they dash,
And men as fast pursue;
O'er logs they leap, through water splash,
And shout the brisk halloo.
Now to elude the eager pack,
Bear shuns the open ground;
Through matted vines, he shapes his track
And runs it, round and round.
The tall fleet cur, with deep-mouthed voice,
Now speeds him, as the wind;
While half-grown pup, and short-legged fice,
Are yelping far behind.
And fresh recruits are dropping in
To join the merry corps:
With yelp and yelp--a mingled din--
The woods are in a roar.
And round, and round the chase now goes,
The world's alive with fun;
Nick Carter's horse, his rider throws,
And Mose' Hill drops his gun.
Now sorely pressed, bear glances back,
And lolls his tired tongue;
When is, to force him from his track,
An ambush on him sprung.
Across the glade he sweeps for flight,
And fully is in view.
The dogs, new-fired, by the sight,
Their cry, and speed, renew.
The foremost ones, now reach his rear,
He turns, they dash away;
And circling now, the wrathful bear,
They have him full at bay.
At top of speed, the horsemen come,
All screaming in a row.
"Whoop! Take him Tiger--Seize him Drum"--
Bang--bang--the rifles go.
And furious now, the dogs he tears,
And crushes in his ire.
Wheels left and right, and upward rears,
With eyes of burning fire.
But leaden death is at his heart,
Vain all the strength he plies,
And, spouting blood from every part,
He reels, and sinks and dies.
And now a dinsome clamor rose,
'Bout who should have his skin.
Who first draws blood, each hunter knows,
This prize must always win.
But who did this, and how to trace
What's true from what's a lie,
Like lawyers, in a murder case
They stoutly argufy.
Aforesaid fice, of blustering mood,
Behind, and quite forgot,
Just now emerging from the wood,
Arrives upon the spot.
With grinning teeth, and up-turned hair--
Brim full of spunk and wrath,
He growls, and seizes on dead bear,
And shakes for life and death.
And swells as if his skin would tear,
And growls, and shakes again;
And swears, as plain as dog can swear,
That he has won the skin.
Conceited whelp! we laugh at thee--
Now mind, that not a few
Of pompous, two-legged dogs there be,
Conceited quite as you.


Abraham Lincoln

Friday, February 01, 2008

Ohio Lia and Siggie--Last Spring!



Siggie loves all my dogs, but she has her
favorites...Bonnie Sue Parker is one of them.
Here she is visiting with Ohio Lia. Lia is
out of Nogo Nell and Floyd. We are proud
of her. She is what I call a 'get and spit' dog.
She gets going and gets it down.