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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 13h

The creek was a trickle this morning & this is after the storm but the level and velocity had already dropped. Still impressive

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 13h

Massive hailstorm at our place today 35mm in 10-15mins. Smashed holes in skylights & flooded 2 bedrooms..Looks like I’ll be up on the roof tomorrow. Luckily there’s no more rain forecast. Seems to have quite localised..No-one in town seems to have been hit. Wangaratta maybe..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Drenching sheep on Sunday afternoon before heading to QLD for a week. Probably around the time I got a message from Qantas to say my flight was cancelled..very wet & muddy underfoot. (My other half must’ve taken this on the sly with my phone.)

Photo of dorper sheep in a yard surrounding a bloke with a drench gun. Very wet & muddy underfoot..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

This is our dam spillway just below the dam wall after yet more rain overnight..Absolutely charging…NE Victoria.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

This is our creek meeting the dam spillway after another 30mm of rain overnight. Still raining…wettest winter since we came here in 2014 including the 3 La Niña years of 2021,22 & 23. Over 100mm ahead of last year’s annual total & that was a La Niña year. NE Victoria.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 01/07/2026

This is our creek flowing after yesterday’s rain. It was a raging torrent last night & the sheep had to spend the night on the far side. So comforting having water in this landscape when summer can be so brutal

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

There’s 50 Ha of vineyard down there somewhere..another fun morning for pruning @ 1.5°C. At least it’s not a hard frost

Photo of foggy vineyard- no vineyard in sight just murky fog

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

I’m a huge fan of marmalade- eat it every day without fail. This is the best I’ve had, including my mum’s & grandmother’s, both excellent marmalade makers. Made by a local woman in the hills behind Benalla. Cleans up at the Aust. Marmalade Awards every year.. @marcuskelson.bsky.social

A jar of Holly House Seville Marmalade- made by a marmalade obsessive & perfectionist woman outside Benalla Victoria. Has that wonderful bitterness that comes from using Seville oranges. Makes fantastic whisky marmalade as well.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

Slow-roasted venison shoulder- 5hrs on top of the wood stove. Smells great..just have to make a juniper/gin sauce to go with it @marcuskelson.bsky.social

Venison shoulder slow-roasted on rosemary, garlic & thyme

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

I have a soft spot for Satie's music since my teens- melancholic & whimsical at the same time. Surprised there's none of his in my dad's vinyl collection which I inherited- has everything else. Nice to see Gymnopodies turning up in #abcclassic100. Hopefully Gnossiennes too..@marcuskelson.bsky.social

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

Lambs in the vineyard this morning..one was quite curious. The sheep spend the cooler months in the vineyard post-harvest.

Photos of dorper lambs on the vineyard road in early morning misty light. One was quite curious ..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

Venison backstrap, duck fat potatoes red wine & gin demiglaze. Worth the effort

Photo of Bbq venison backstrap (cooked rare, rested 30 mins) duck fat potatoes & red wine & gin demiglaze
Harvested 10 days ago, hung for 7days ( would’ve liked minimum 2 weeks)

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

Venison backstrap…almost looks like a super lean beef fillet..can’t wait to cook some of it.

Trimmed Venison backstrap on a cutting board- very lean as venison is. Looks similar to a lean beef fillet..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

Picked 8T from our last block of Pinot Noir for vintage 2026 today before the forecast rain next week. After such a tough season with sfa rainfall, ridiculous heat & tropical humidity, the fruit quality looks excellent.

Photo of hand-picked Pinot Noir MV6 clone winegrapes in a plastic picking bin.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

Vineyard view from where we’re fencing during a brief lull in harvest. Very thankful for the 50mm of rain we’ve had this week. We’d had 1mm for the year before then. #winecountry #wine

View overlooking the vineyard out to the hills on the horizon. Sam, one of our kelpies in the foreground.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 12/01/2026

Smoke haze from the Longwood VIC fire in the vineyard this morning. Not great but at least the vineyard is visible, unlike 2020. Still hope that we may have a vintage 🤞🤞

Photo of a vineyard in NE Vic shrouded in smoke haze from the recent & still going Longwood Vic bushfire to the south

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 12/01/2026

My kelpie boys Ralph & Sam moving sheep to the back of the property. First day on sheep after the Xmas break & the opportunity to shed some Xmas kilos, after lying around bored witless for weeks..#workingdogs

Photo of two red/tan kelpies pushing a mob of white Dorper ewes through a gateway after moving them a few kms up the property.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

Evie, our Xmas Eve orphan, truly a survivor. & sweet-natured. Got through the worst 3 days we’ve had in years..especially today..#lambs

Photo of white Dorper lamb. Born on Xmas Eve. Living with our chickens & bottle-fed 4 times / day, she’s doubled in size..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

One of the toughest gigs in radio has to be doing the Bushfire Emergency Announcements with all the weird & wild Victorian place names.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

Sunscreen protection for grapevines with 3 days of 40+°C coming. First photo is without sunscreen, second photo of a couple of blocks with the first sunscreen application. #wine #heatwave #beechworthwineregion

Photo of vineyard in early morning sunlight sans sunscreen

Photo of vineyard with a couple of blocks with the first application of sunscreen. All of our Chardonnay & Pinot Noir blocks will have sunscreen applied. The sunscreen is a kaolin clay product which reflects sunlight/UV, cools the vine & fruit reducing the incidence of sunburn & allows the vines to continue transpiring even at temps that would normally cause them to shut down. The real damage occurs when they shut down.
Cost in materials is approx $450/ Ha

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

Thought they’d come up to the house to put some pressure on for an early feed #sheep

Photo of 80 white Dorper sheep & lambs atop a drystone wall wondering where their evening feed is.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Evie, our Xmas Eve orphan - a cute little survivor. Getting stronger by the day #lambs

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 28/12/2025

3rd feed of 4 for the day for this little girl. Still trying to settle in.. One of our kelpies is keeping her company most of the day

Newborn lamb born on Xmas Eve & orphaned is on her 3rd feed of 4 for the day. So far, so good. She seems to be coping with the milk formula. First week is the most testing time

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 26/12/2025

Found this abandoned little newborn ewe lamb this morning checking stock. Thing is, this mob is due to lamb in April so there must have been a rogue ram lamb in with the girls. Not your typical Christmas lamb ..

Photo of abandoned ewe lamb sitting in the work ute passenger footwell. Picked up on its own in a paddock while checking stock this morning. Surprising it wasn’t taken by a fox. I shot 3 in there on Xmas eve but there was still more too far away

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

Feeling a bit lucky..this old giant fell over the fence where I was working while I was at lunch.. Benign conditions- no wind..no warning- widow maker.. 15T CAT dozer for scale

Huge old box eucalypt fell without warning on the fence right I was working on it. Luckily I’d taken a break for lunch.
15 tonne Cat tracked loader behind it for comparison and to push it up into a manageable pile.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 26/10/2025

Incoming storm- part 2…31mm so far. So welcome..

Incoming storm over the vineyard after a very dry rest of October. Welcome rain

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 25/09/2025

The ‘rat pack’- this season’s lambs. Still a few more to come..Can’t come quick enough. Need some sleep..

Shot of a bunch of new lambs from the last 3 weeks. Still a few more ewes to lamb. Severely sleep deprived atm..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 07/09/2025

Not the most salubrious accommodation but at least it’s dry, sheltered from the wind & rain & they’ve got another for company..#springlambs

Photo of 3 orphaned Dorper lambs in a corrugated iron shelter that keeps the rain & cold, southerly wind out. The chickens are a bit pissed off because this is theirs, however they have 2 others and the henhouse

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 06/09/2025

These 2 little orphans will be living with our chickens for a while. Both have perked up after a few bottle feeds today..#springlambs

Two orphaned week old Dorper lambs now living with our chickens for a while. Bottle fed 4 x day..they’re much happier now..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 02/09/2025

When I was a kid, you never went into the ram or bull paddock unless you could out sprint it.. This is Neville, 1 of our current Dorper rams. So good natured and docile. I had to clip his hooves recently. Alone. He’s 90+ kg, I’m 68 kg. Flipped him on his back. Job done in minutes, no struggle..🙂

Neville- one of our Dorper rams. Very docile & good-natured. Very strong & muscled. Easy to handle- had to clip his hooves alone and there was no struggle or kicks. Over in minutes to my & his relief. Loves a scratch..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 01/09/2025

Started lambing Friday night- 8 so far including triplets..long way to go Shot 12 foxes in the last week..115 for the year Won’t be sleeping much for a while

Photo of dorper ewe with new twin lambs. Lambing season starts- later than usual but planned. 8 so far but still a lot more to come.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

Great shot of the vineyard and the Vic Alps beyond on a frosty morning, from the vineyard next door by a colleague.

Photo of the vineyard from above, from the neighbouring vineyard. Victorian Alps in the background.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 10/07/2025

Waiting in the shed for the rain shower to pass so the sheep can be fed. No pressure…

Mob of white Dorper sheep waiting out a rain to be fed. Not much grass growing at the moment because of the cold, so they get fed daily. Neville, one of our rams, applying pressure at the front..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 10/07/2025

Finally our creek is flowing again after more than 6 months dry.. Such a beautiful sound..🎶

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 09/07/2025

Throw the fricking stick Dad! These two spend their days pestering us to throw bits of old vine wood as we try to get through pruning 100K vines

Two pesky & bored red kelpies pestering their dad to throw dead vine wood so they can chase it. This always happens during the three months it takes to prune the whole vineyard

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 24/05/2025

Nice to see some water in the creek, although it will need another dump to start flowing. Has been dry as the proverbial for months..

Photo of granite creek bed with puddles after yesterday’s 42mm rain. Now we need some follow up rain to get it flowing

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 21/04/2025

Where’s our food?? We’ve been waiting for hours..worst service ever..no stars for this place 👎

White dorper sheep waiting patiently for food.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 21/04/2025

Took my 96 yo mum for a ride in the sidecar today. She loved it- reminded her of when she & my dad used to get around on bikes

Motorbike with sidecar with my 96 yo mum in the chair, out for a spin around Beechworth NE Vic

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 04/04/2025

This little girl decided a trip on the motorbike was preferable to the long walk home from next door..

Coloured dorper ewe lamb getting a ride home on the quad bike from next door after being left behind by the mob. She tried to go through the fence next to the open gate & failed, then panicked & took off back into the paddock. Finally got her out but she ran out of legs before we got back home. Safe at home now.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 22/03/2025

Sheep in the vineyard..can mean one of two scenarios- someone left a gate open…or vintage is finally over. Thankfully it’s the latter- two incredibly intense and exhausting months that’s going to take some time to recover from..

Sheep in a vineyard post harvest. They’ll stay in there for 6 months until budburst in spring, where they’ll lamb, get rid of weeds, eat any fruit left behind, fertilise and basically replace tractors for the period they’re in there..

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 01/03/2025

Bringing the sheep home from next door after some unauthorised but necessary voluntary bushfire hazard reduction work

A smallish mob of sheep being mustered towards home by two obscured kelpies and me on a motorbike after spending the day in the neighbour’s overgrown paddock

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 01/03/2025

Nice sunset to bring the sheep home after a hot day

Glorious sunset with two red kelpies pushing a mob of sheep across a fairly bare paddock

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 28/02/2025

Bringing the escapees home..again. Every few weeks they find a new wallaby hole in the last remaining section of dilapidated boundary fence & they’re away..

Two brown kelpies driving a mob of escaped sheep across a paddock for the 4 km trek home

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 23/02/2025

Sunday morning walk after a small shower of much needed rain-these 2 got after a fox today 🦊

Two red kelpies standing on the track around a paddock we call the ‘deer farm’- previous owners wanted to start a deer farm. Never happened- we use it for our sheep instead.

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

Wine grape harvesting this morning @ 2 am with rain and electrical storms all around us. The speck of light is the harvester..

Dramatic shot of an electrical storm lighting up the early morning sky with a grape harvester as a tiny blot of light in the blackness of the landscape

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 04/02/2025

Started vintage 2025 @ midnight last night machine harvesting Chardonnay & hand picking Chardonnay today. Fruit looks spectacular & will make stunning wine. We’ll be finished before it’s too hot..#BeechworthChardonnay

Handpicked bunches of Beechworth Chardonnay in a picking bin with the vineyard block as a backdrop

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tworeddogs.bsky.social @tworeddogs.bsky.social · 29/01/2025

We’ll start vintage 2025 next week. Pinot Noir is almost there, as is Chardonnay & Pinot Grigio. Looks like we’re gonna be busy. BTW the white flecks are sunscreen..

Bunches of ripe Pinot Noir in amongst a canopy covered in kaolin clay sunscreen.

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