Our farm is located 22 miles southwest of Beaverlodge or 6 miles west of Rio Grande, along the Red Willow River Valley and the beginning of the Foothills into the Rockies.
Anna and I purchased our place in 2004. We have 3 children; twin 15 year old boys, Tyler and Wyatt, and their younger sister Faith who is 9. The kids participate in a lot of sports and activities as well as help out greatly on the farm.
Our grain farm consists of 2500 acres wheat, barley, and canola. We also try to have 200-250 acres of fescue to harvest. We farm with my parents Howard and Marlene, and my Uncle Frank and Aunt Marie.
My Grandma Collins’s brothers moved in west of Rio Grande in 1929. In 1934 in the midst of the Great Depression my Grandpa Jack Collins decided to leave Arcola Saskatchewan where he was born, before they starved to death. They saved their money for 3 months to buy a train ticket for my Grandma and Frank. Grandpa hopped trains all the way up to Peace Country to meet up with my Grandma, when they left Arcola they only had $1.25 to their name. They moved to the current farms location in 1945, where our family has been farming ever since.
Farming in this area has its ups and downs because of our close proximity to the mountains we are susceptible to early snowfalls which can be devastating to standing crops and make harvesting really tricky. We also tend to get more moisture which helps with yields on our crops and pastures.
We also have an abundance of wildlife in our area deer, elk, moose, grizzly bear, cougar, and wolves are all commonly seen around the farm.
Farming has its highs and lows but overall is a great way of life and we are proud to be part of the agriculture industry!