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BRIGHAM CITY — About 2,200 sheep are taking a very slow journey to their winter pasture, and it’s quite a sight to see.
“(I) got a call from a friend who lives on this street and said, ‘They’re coming. You’ve got to see the sheep,’” said Christine Wilkerson.
“I’ve lived here 26 years, and this is the first time to see the running of the sheep. It was a flood, like a flood of sheep, rolling down the street. It was absolutely fantastic and beautiful.”
The herd, after stopping to feed Friday, will actually make it home just west of Bear River City, Box Elder County, sometime next week.
Since the 1930s the Jensen herd has been going right through Brigham City, making its way to its winter pasture.
“Everybody comes out, and we have to tell cars to scoot along (and) not park in front of our driveway, so we can actually see it,” said Thomas Chino, who has lived in the area for about five years. “We come out every year to watch them pass by.”
State troopers have been warning people about when to expect the surge of sheep traffic over the past few years and with that, farmer Lane Jensen says the crowds coming to watch have grown.
For the last several years, they have started the journey on UEA weekend, so children could come out and watch.
“That's kind of what it's about,” Jensen said. “My children were walking with us today, and it's our family heritage."
“There was like white ones and black ones and brown ones,” said young Jax Christenson.
“It’s stinky, but it was pretty cool to see all of them,” said Jax's mother, Andrea Christenson. “It was fun.”
These sheep have spent the summer in the south end of Cache Valley, up on the Cache and Weber county lines. “In the spring, we use trucks to haul them up because they’ve got their own lambs with them,” Jensen said.
This is an annual event that has gone on for 80 plus years, he said. They use the exact same route every year.
“Our belief is that we’re maintaining the trail right to keep this trail open by using it every fall,” Jensen said. “My understanding is that as long as somebody uses it, it stays open."
He said the public’s been more receptive to them the past five to seven years, at least the ones that come out and watch. “There’s probably those that just peek out the window and roll their eyes,” he added.
His grandfather’s herd was 1,200 and supported four families. Jensen said his herd has 2,200 sheep and supports just one family. He said that speaks to the economy of the industry.
“People want to talk about renewable resources. You’ve got an animal that produces a fiber that can be made into real quality clothing every year, no harm to the animal,” he said. “The side benefit, too, is also the lamb. If you enjoy lamb, then that’s another product that comes from them. It just turns over every year. If everything goes well, these sheep won’t set foot in a livestock truck until next June.”
The journey started Thursday and stopped in Mantua. Friday, they stopped north of Corrine and will go home west of Bear City in the next few days.
“Sheep, you either love them or you don’t,” Jensen said. “They’re a pretty unique animal.”
Contributing: Viviane Vo-Duc
