Honestly who cares if you talk a lot? You’re the one out spearheading this thing so talk all you want man! I’ve been watching this from the very first few vids so it’s awesome to watch the change! I hope to come down sometime and even help out!
That desert willow is the perfect demonstration. Instead of gabions, try planting live "leaky weirs" as "speed bumps" across those canyons. You can do this with willow cuttings spaced closely together across the flow (e.g. 6 inch spacing). An even better option is Vetiver Grass, which does a better job than willow, captures more eroding soil, and puts more water into the water table. Now would be the time to plant either option, while the soil is wet and the weather cool.
I was with you until you mentioned Vetiver grass. I'm opposed to using non-native plants when we have natives that will do the same thing - like Panicum virgatum or Andropogon gerardii. The native prairie grasses actually used to live right there, but slowly faded away as the beavers were removed upstream and the cattle/sheep were grazed through the area. The upside to using the native grasses is that they provide a home and food for native critters living there while also helping with erosion. Their famous rooting is every bit as good as the Vetiver, but you also don't have to worry about introducing a plant that just doesn't belong in that ecosystem. The damage we've done to our ecosystem with "fragmentation" and the introduction of non-native species is huge, so anywhere we can get the same function with a native plant....
@@threeriversforge1997 That is my observation of most of Mexico and the desert SW in general, a lack of grasses, bare soil. I read years ago that region was much different 500+ years ago, ruined by overgrazing with sheep introduced by Spanish missionaries. The big problem is they didnt keep them moving, kept them on the same spot until it was completely denunded, then they would move on and ruin the next valley.
Glad you got out safely, and managed to learn a lot about how the water moves around your land. No need to rush and take risks, this is going to be a marathon, not a sprint.
So it's beem a long time since doing the math behind fluid dynamics, but wanted to tag on to the thing that the hydrologist mentioned regarding speed bumps. I vaguely remember that the kinetic energy (washout force) that descriete streams of water pick up as they flow together with gravity uninterrupted is not a linear function. It is an acceleration function. That said, putting multiple smaller scrap cloth+cardboard+rock walls every few yards along high-flow channels should be more effective in reducing total kinetic energy in the system than trying to stop it all with a single large structure. In turn each rain even will allow more silt deposit and less repair needed to primary check structure. In the same vein, maybe avoid pulling rocks to build the structures from the channel bed and take them instead from the embankments on top of the sides of the channels. Love watching these especially with the early year/late year comparisons. Cool channel, keep going!
Exactly! That one Gabion he built got hit hard and was knocked over, but that was because the water had no speed bumps up the hill from it. All that speed/force/momentum hit that one single barrier and..... Of course, with the remains of that Gabion still there, it's helping to slow the water and take away some of the energy, protecting things downstream just a little. And that means a bunch more structures need to be built - and starting at the top of the property.
Shaun, get some nopales and put some pads into the ground in low places. If these rains persist over the next 3 years of La Nina/El Nino, then you will have established one type of hardy desert plant that can serve several purposes - food, animal fodder, mulch, medicinal(diabetes), etc. Nice update.
@@dustupstexas I think you need to install pipes / culverts for the water to go thru instead of the water topping the road and making gullies. No matter how high you pile fill into those low spots the water will still be there because it has to go somewhere.
Native of the AZ Southwest here (PHX). I spent years poking around the various desert locales prospecting/rockhounding. Love what you're doing. Ya drive me crazy sometimes but I know it's a learning curve for ya. Hope to one day make it out there to help out in some way. Dave/PHX p.s. ya gotta start wearing proper footgear. Your gonna regret those sandals...
You should have a wheelbarrow, a digging bar two five gallon buckets and a round shovel in the bed of your truck anytime you are on the property. You are wasting so much time picking one small rock at a time and pitching it onto a pile. When you come upon something that needs the leaky weir repaired or built up, get your wheel barrow and tools out of the bed and go for a short walk. Try to find bigger rocks. When your wheelbarrow is full, walk back to the weir and PLACE the stones flat in a strategic jig saw pattern as tight as you can. now go for a walk and fill up both buckets (depending on what you can carry) with intermediate size rocks. These will be used to fill in the big gaps. Carry two buckets because it puts equal load on both shoulders. Finally, fill in the tiny spaces with washed gravel. Start always thinking about how you can efficiently accomplish your task first. ALWAYS make the leaky weir twice as tall and twice as wide as you think is necessary, Finally, leave a big dip in the center of the weir so your overflow goes over the middle of the weir, never around the edges. 😊
Sean, this is tough! Luckily - You don’t need to figure anything out here on your own. These desert regenerative practices have been relatively well established over the last few decades. These “check dams” that your building are all going to be toast man. That’s why they all fall apart whenever there is any flow at all lol. You can’t stack small or even big rocks like that and expect them to stay in place in desert arroyo’s. What you need is a series of ONE ROCK DAMS. So instead of balancing rocks on top of each other to create a wall - one rock dams are like taking rocks about the size of a basketball, and burying them about halfway to 1/3 into the ground. Do this so that they are in a row all the way across the arroyo, even up against and past the bank in a slight U formation. Then do another row of rocks behind the first row. Repeat until you have a nice big pad. This is a one rock dam. Usually you want to seed native grasses all over the dams. Sometimes they can stretch up to 20x50 feet depending on the head cut/arroyo. The idea is that when the floods come - the rocks will not topple over. Instead they will stay put, gather silt and eventually become completely covered up with soil/silt. This controls erosion- the way we regenerate arroyos that have formed because of soil erosion (like yours) is from the bottom up. Flattening things into a grassland with one rock dams and other regeneration techniques for addressing headcuts. It’s important to understand headcuts, how and why they form, and how to fix them.
I've watched your channel since of the first videos you uploaded and always get excited to see a new update, you are literally living my dream (I just startet working in the IT sector and have basically your channel as a goal). All this and I can't belive how frequent, long and informative your updates are. A big thanks and greeting from Germany 👍
The "speed bumps" your hydrologist mentioned seem like prime spots to set up One Rock Dams. If you set up enough in series, that would help draw a lot of energy out of the water. I'd practice a bit with them in one of your other flow areas before moving on to the big time there, maybe next year, but it's definitely worth doing.
One thing I’ve learned about gravel roads (that I help to maintain) is that even when you don’t need to use 4WD it has has another benefit. It reduces wheel spinning and the damage that causes to the roads. Thanks for the video!
Shaun NEVER NEVER EVER DRIVE THROUGH WATER FLOWING THAT FAST IN A DRY WASH. You made it this time.....don't play the odds...they are stacked against U!
Hey Shaun, Daniel Schwartz from Wisconsin here. I live in a fairly wet climate but I have been fascinated with desert-to-grassland restoration/regeneration videos and info so your work here is very interesting! I am enjoying watching you figure it out and I'm excited to see the results in five years or so. I was very excited to see your interest in cattle, as ruminant regeneration and regenerative ranching/farming is my primary interest! Looking forward to the journey. Thanks for sharing this experience.
It is SO incredible to watch the water flowing, even hear the water flowing. And to drive through it in the truck. Gives me such a realistic idea of what the desert is like when it rains. Great video today, Shaun.
We are out here in Hudspeth County as well so it’s good to see your videos on how the land works with nature. I see you’re also a tech guy like me lol love working remote! I moved out here on 87 acres in February building up our homestead slow and steady! Good luck to you and keep the videos coming I love the professional quality edits!
To fix areas where the road is blown out I would suggest you place a sandbag wall at the entrance and exit of the blowout then fill the space in between (the road) with a layer of big rocks, followed by layers of smaller rocks. This will stabilize the roadway. Keep the sand bag height slightly lower than the rock level. This will allow water to trickle through and slowly fill with sand and tiny rocks. This should make a very stable roadway. Build it (and all dams) slightly higher at the sides to keep the water in the center of the channel when it overflows the damn. This will lessen the chance of an end around blowout. Another general tactic is to place random large rocks in the straightaways to slow the water and keep its momentum down.
I've seen videos of side canals that use the natural slope to irrigate far away. Also a water ram or just a pump to fill up any kind of containers or just a hole in the ground.
you're use of what is esentially as Sand Dam to fill in the road is actually kind of genius. you should look at a standard sand dam design, because i can see at 14:37 you're risking bank errosion. i know from your other videos you've had similar problem with your check dams. if you build up the sides of your dam higher than the middle, then you can control the overflow so it only happens over the centre and protects your banks. sediment will build up you banks in the calmer waters rather than erode them and the rough water will concentrate in the centre where you've designed it to overflow instead.
I was thinking the same although it needs to be a bit wider and higher on the side so the banks don't get washed away. Plus thinker another row of sand bags too hold more pressure as it gets higher.
I'm happy to see the progress and how it's coming along. A recommendation: There are codecs for video encoding that are better for static settings and there are ones that are better for situations where the whole screen need updates. I think you might want to switch it up, because your camera work often times includes camera panning and with your current video codec this just produces a blurry mess. With the rocky ground this makes it harder to see what's going on than would be necessary. (See 17:35 for reference) Best wishes!
This channel is about a guy trying to restore a large piece of land near Sierra Blancho in western Texas. Shaun said that most of the land in western Texas is degraded due to over-grazing and erosion. What would be an example of what the land would look like if it wasn't degraded? Is there a place nearby in the US or Mexico that could serve as an example?
I wonder how often in rains like this in our desert. This is reall amazing to see all the water. Soo much potential for practicing and learning water management! Who would have thought!
Get some tools out there man! A wheelbarrow, a shovel, a maddock, a digging bar, and a metal rake. Again, trim your prickly pears bury them onto the edges of your gullies. Also, you’re nuts driving through that lol
Seems like that area would be a prime candidate for Terra Preta "islands" that would be starting points for plant spread. If you bring in some raw charcoal, use the human excrement made on site, and use clay found in the valleys for terracotta balls, it should be doable with minimum effort. Just a thought 🤔
RTFM on the drone camera. You've set the camera exposure manually (to a value which is overexposing the footage you're trying to make). You need to set it back to "Auto" exposure until you are more familiar with how to set it manually. Thanks for the videos. Stay safe out there.
Ace video and love what you're doing, would be cool to see a no voice no cuts walking video around the ranch during another rain. Background music optional
The editing was really entertaining in this one with the legend of Zelda and star wars references. Lol. You don't always have to make silly edits, I find the project interesting enough to have watched every video from the start as is. But the occasional silly edit is a definite bonus 😄
Thank you to your editor as well. The position on cards helps. And sth small like: Shawn: "it will be a long walk". Editor: 0,03 miles of 0,14.... is fun. :D
After watching your channel for some time, I'm confident that the one all around piece of equipment for you is a larger than average backhoe with an extra wide hoe bucket. There is no doubt that swale and berm constructions, Zuni bowls and bunds (or bathtubs as you prefer) will have a huge impact - if you build them on contour and lay them out so the uphill structure empties into the next downhill structure. Compared to some parts of the world that are green with full grown trees - you get a lot of rain water. You just have to keep it on the land. A storm of that size in Andalusia, Spain would be a once every 18 months event, if they were lucky.
Mr Sean been following since day one ... for most city slicks living offgrid is off limits ... have been thinking about 2 crops you can do on that terrain ... one is Agave ... the other is Passion fruit tree ... also prickly pear ... but as we know is your choice after all ... will keep following to se the progress as a truck driver I pass there almost every week .... see you soon
Speed bumps are better than nothing and can be maintained to raise the level of the creek bed for better infiltration and spreading water into the soil 👍if a road comes across the river some where it's a good place to add hight of the road to raise the hight of the river and slow down the flow ✌️
Shawn- if you have quick Trip there they have new Coffee that makes one cut at a time. IT IS EXCELLENT> good idea to use existing rocks to improve your roads.
I really appreciate when you use overhead shots that show where you are. I find those helpful. I also appreciate your commentary. I don't think you talk too much. Just sayin
This episode reminds me: several episodes ago after you first crossed through some water and you asked a local about it later, he said something to the effect of "get a snorkel". You seemed to think he was joking (as if he was talking about swimming gear), but I'm pretty sure he was referring to a vertical extension to the air intake on your truck.
To me, the most interesting part was at 11:20 or so. That was interesting, fun, and honestly is like a swale that doubles as a road. I'm wondering if cottonwood/oxford canyons can be planted with trees and shrubs, to use them as a makeshift dams. Have you heard of beaver analogs? They're basically just wooden posts put into the river, that either form a foundation for a beaver to build on, or simply slow down the water and spread it out over the land. If conventional dams aren't an option, for several reasons, beaver analog type dams could work. The canyon is not exactly too treacherous, but it flows enough that it should be a major consideration for the projects goals, and slowing the water there will cause effects upstream. I don't know if its a good idea to try to significantly dam it up, because it might have negative effects downstream, but its definitely something you could experiment with. I'm actually kind of curious why the canyons are so barren. They get good sediment and water. Maybe it's just too intense? Sounds like it should be planted with cottonwood trees.
Building 1-2 foot tall weirs probably shouldn't be a problem down stream but will drastically slow erosion and water speed. Especially in flash flood type events these will help many people from having more severe property damage.
You made it back!!!!! I bet it smelled great after the rain. The Creosote bush puts off a smell that has to be experienced. Used to spend a lot of time in the desert down the road near Ft. Hancock and remember the aroma of the Creosote after it rained.
If you find a shopping cart and replace the wheels with larger offroad ones you can have a mobile dirt sifter slash yard wagon dumptruck adding hardware cloth you can size the rocks gravel or pebbles that stay in the basket.
I would also use other natural materials like brush, branches , small & large logs etc. In other words dead wood, nothing live unless it has to be removed.
When you lay rocks to catch sediment lay them out in a level U as read looking downstream rather than a straight line that encourages the flow to spread out and slow down to drop out whatever solids are being carried by the water. When there is water pressure it compresses the structure together making it less likely to wash out unlike a straight line that goes in to tension but there is nothing keeping the loose stacked rocks from spreading and coming loose. Also when you add height and width to the structure later, place the next layer a little toward the upstream side of the last layer.
Toyota needs to sponsor one of your videos. I was hoping to see some flowers after that rain. A couple of thoughts. 1. Find someone with a paramotor, (or learn to paramotor.) 2. spread seed before a rain comes. keep up the good work
Might be a good idea to build some coverts so that you have some land bridges that will not affect your rain flow. Would also mean better roads for you
A tip for helping those sandbags stay in place is to put a strand of barbed wire on top of the first layer, then put on the second layer of sandbags so it becomes like sandwich. That will help lock them in place.
By the way the place below the road in 10:19 could a good place for a Zuni Bowl. The bowl will fill soon with silt and gravel and you will add to the lower dam and forming the next Bowl....
An idea I had a few years ago. Using the Tesla One Way Water Valve concept, you could absolutely leave the main channel wide open. But on the fringes, put in the shapes (reverse tear drops) of the Tesla valve. This will force the water back in on itself and create a massive slow down. This will give you a ton of silt. Again, not changing the main channel, but integrating the main concept of the valve to slow the water, spread the water, and acquire all of the upstream silt/dirt. I'm not sure that makes sense...
oh my... flip flops in the Texas desert with snakes! Yikes.... not a good idea. Get you some snake boots. Being out there isn't worth the risk. Bob Hansler (Survivalist, Bushcraft, and Primitive Skills Instructor of Texas) on his channel you can learn what may happen when bitten by a rattler. He had to have Kidney Transplant after being bitten. You may enjoy his content as well. You have a family don't take unnecessary risks, especially when your so far out from civilization and flooded roads. I enjoyed the video... just had me shaking my head lol "WHAT ON EARTH IS HE THINKING!"
Yea I was thinking the same thing, plus him lifting all the rocks to find the scorpions, poison centipedes, and friendly Tarantulas. It was only during the rain though, he had boots in that earlier video. If he actually manages to get this land greener more wildlife should start showing up. It'll either provide him some nice videos or a gofundme-I-got-bit campaign.
You could lay some pipes on top of you dams and hump the road up over the pipes so that in flash flood conditions you're relieving some water pressure while preserving your road materials and labor time. The dam would still hold the expected amount of water.
Thanks to LMNT for sponsoring this video. You can get 8 single serving packets free with any LMNT order from this link 👉 drinkLMNT.com/DUSTUPS
OH, Ive been so waiting for new episodes! already viewed the old ones. I binged ! love this project.
Who was the person at 11:17 ?
@@skoe3251 A g-g-g-ghost!!!!
So clearly the property has water now you gotta figire out how to stop the runaway and use it.
Let me says this. You must wear jeans , boots and snake gaiters plus gloves in our desert. Don't be a fool.
Honestly who cares if you talk a lot? You’re the one out spearheading this thing so talk all you want man! I’ve been watching this from the very first few vids so it’s awesome to watch the change! I hope to come down sometime and even help out!
That desert willow is the perfect demonstration. Instead of gabions, try planting live "leaky weirs" as "speed bumps" across those canyons. You can do this with willow cuttings spaced closely together across the flow (e.g. 6 inch spacing). An even better option is Vetiver Grass, which does a better job than willow, captures more eroding soil, and puts more water into the water table. Now would be the time to plant either option, while the soil is wet and the weather cool.
I was with you until you mentioned Vetiver grass. I'm opposed to using non-native plants when we have natives that will do the same thing - like Panicum virgatum or Andropogon gerardii. The native prairie grasses actually used to live right there, but slowly faded away as the beavers were removed upstream and the cattle/sheep were grazed through the area.
The upside to using the native grasses is that they provide a home and food for native critters living there while also helping with erosion. Their famous rooting is every bit as good as the Vetiver, but you also don't have to worry about introducing a plant that just doesn't belong in that ecosystem. The damage we've done to our ecosystem with "fragmentation" and the introduction of non-native species is huge, so anywhere we can get the same function with a native plant....
@@threeriversforge1997 I agree, any time you can use a native species instead of a non-native one, its best to choose the native option
What about higuera tree?
@@threeriversforge1997 That is my observation of most of Mexico and the desert SW in general, a lack of grasses, bare soil. I read years ago that region was much different 500+ years ago, ruined by overgrazing with sheep introduced by Spanish missionaries. The big problem is they didnt keep them moving, kept them on the same spot until it was completely denunded, then they would move on and ruin the next valley.
Mesquite trees would be a help
I sometimes find the comments section of his videos as educational as the videos themselves 👍
Glad you got out safely, and managed to learn a lot about how the water moves around your land. No need to rush and take risks, this is going to be a marathon, not a sprint.
So it's beem a long time since doing the math behind fluid dynamics, but wanted to tag on to the thing that the hydrologist mentioned regarding speed bumps. I vaguely remember that the kinetic energy (washout force) that descriete streams of water pick up as they flow together with gravity uninterrupted is not a linear function. It is an acceleration function.
That said, putting multiple smaller scrap cloth+cardboard+rock walls every few yards along high-flow channels should be more effective in reducing total kinetic energy in the system than trying to stop it all with a single large structure. In turn each rain even will allow more silt deposit and less repair needed to primary check structure.
In the same vein, maybe avoid pulling rocks to build the structures from the channel bed and take them instead from the embankments on top of the sides of the channels.
Love watching these especially with the early year/late year comparisons. Cool channel, keep going!
Exactly! That one Gabion he built got hit hard and was knocked over, but that was because the water had no speed bumps up the hill from it. All that speed/force/momentum hit that one single barrier and.....
Of course, with the remains of that Gabion still there, it's helping to slow the water and take away some of the energy, protecting things downstream just a little. And that means a bunch more structures need to be built - and starting at the top of the property.
the maps showing where you are on the ranch, are getting better every video
I'm glad it's getting noticed! Thank you
Shaun, get some nopales and put some pads into the ground in low places. If these rains persist over the next 3 years of La Nina/El Nino, then you will have established one type of hardy desert plant that can serve several purposes - food, animal fodder, mulch, medicinal(diabetes), etc.
Nice update.
You're going to love next week's episode
nerds
Bingo!
@@dustupstexas
I think you need to install pipes / culverts for the water to go thru instead of the water topping the road and making gullies.
No matter how high you pile fill into those low spots the water will still be there because it has to go somewhere.
@11:22 saw a guy behind that dried out bush
Native of the AZ Southwest here (PHX). I spent years poking around the various desert locales prospecting/rockhounding. Love what you're doing. Ya drive me crazy sometimes but I know it's a learning curve for ya. Hope to one day make it out there to help out in some way. Dave/PHX
p.s. ya gotta start wearing proper footgear. Your gonna regret those sandals...
You should have a wheelbarrow, a digging bar two five gallon buckets and a round shovel in the bed of your truck anytime you are on the property. You are wasting so much time picking one small rock at a time and pitching it onto a pile. When you come upon something that needs the leaky weir repaired or built up, get your wheel barrow and tools out of the bed and go for a short walk. Try to find bigger rocks. When your wheelbarrow is full, walk back to the weir and PLACE the stones flat in a strategic jig saw pattern as tight as you can. now go for a walk and fill up both buckets (depending on what you can carry) with intermediate size rocks. These will be used to fill in the big gaps. Carry two buckets because it puts equal load on both shoulders.
Finally, fill in the tiny spaces with washed gravel.
Start always thinking about how you can efficiently accomplish your task first. ALWAYS make the leaky weir twice as tall and twice as wide as you think is necessary,
Finally, leave a big dip in the center of the weir so your overflow goes over the middle of the weir, never around the edges. 😊
Sean, this is tough!
Luckily - You don’t need to figure anything out here on your own. These desert regenerative practices have been relatively well established over the last few decades.
These “check dams” that your building are all going to be toast man. That’s why they all fall apart whenever there is any flow at all lol. You can’t stack small or even big rocks like that and expect them to stay in place in desert arroyo’s.
What you need is a series of ONE ROCK DAMS. So instead of balancing rocks on top of each other to create a wall - one rock dams are like taking rocks about the size of a basketball, and burying them about halfway to 1/3 into the ground. Do this so that they are in a row all the way across the arroyo, even up against and past the bank in a slight U formation.
Then do another row of rocks behind the first row. Repeat until you have a nice big pad. This is a one rock dam. Usually you want to seed native grasses all over the dams. Sometimes they can stretch up to 20x50 feet depending on the head cut/arroyo.
The idea is that when the floods come - the rocks will not topple over. Instead they will stay put, gather silt and eventually become completely covered up with soil/silt. This controls erosion- the way we regenerate arroyos that have formed because of soil erosion (like yours) is from the bottom up. Flattening things into a grassland with one rock dams and other regeneration techniques for addressing headcuts.
It’s important to understand headcuts, how and why they form, and how to fix them.
I've watched your channel since of the first videos you uploaded and always get excited to see a new update, you are literally living my dream (I just startet working in the IT sector and have basically your channel as a goal).
All this and I can't belive how frequent, long and informative your updates are.
A big thanks and greeting from Germany 👍
The "speed bumps" your hydrologist mentioned seem like prime spots to set up One Rock Dams. If you set up enough in series, that would help draw a lot of energy out of the water. I'd practice a bit with them in one of your other flow areas before moving on to the big time there, maybe next year, but it's definitely worth doing.
SO MANY MEMORIES OF WHERE I GREW UP. THANKS FOR THE VIDEOS. I MISS SIERRA BLANCA.
One thing I’ve learned about gravel roads (that I help to maintain) is that even when you don’t need to use 4WD it has has another benefit. It reduces wheel spinning and the damage that causes to the roads. Thanks for the video!
Shaun NEVER NEVER EVER DRIVE THROUGH WATER FLOWING THAT FAST IN A DRY WASH. You made it this time.....don't play the odds...they are stacked against U!
Absolutely correct! The amount of energy in those are insane. Many people learned the hard way but weren’t able to tell the tale to others themselves!
Hey Shaun, Daniel Schwartz from Wisconsin here. I live in a fairly wet climate but I have been fascinated with desert-to-grassland restoration/regeneration videos and info so your work here is very interesting! I am enjoying watching you figure it out and I'm excited to see the results in five years or so. I was very excited to see your interest in cattle, as ruminant regeneration and regenerative ranching/farming is my primary interest! Looking forward to the journey. Thanks for sharing this experience.
It is SO incredible to watch the water flowing, even hear the water flowing. And to drive through it in the truck. Gives me such a realistic idea of what the desert is like when it rains. Great video today, Shaun.
We are out here in Hudspeth County as well so it’s good to see your videos on how the land works with nature. I see you’re also a tech guy like me lol love working remote! I moved out here on 87 acres in February building up our homestead slow and steady! Good luck to you and keep the videos coming I love the professional quality edits!
To fix areas where the road is blown out I would suggest you place a sandbag wall at the entrance and exit of the blowout then fill the space in between (the road) with a layer of big rocks, followed by layers of smaller rocks. This will stabilize the roadway. Keep the sand bag height slightly lower than the rock level. This will allow water to trickle through and slowly fill with sand and tiny rocks. This should make a very stable roadway. Build it (and all dams) slightly higher at the sides to keep the water in the center of the channel when it overflows the damn. This will lessen the chance of an end around blowout. Another general tactic is to place random large rocks in the straightaways to slow the water and keep its momentum down.
I've seen videos of side canals that use the natural slope to irrigate far away. Also a water ram or just a pump to fill up any kind of containers or just a hole in the ground.
you're use of what is esentially as Sand Dam to fill in the road is actually kind of genius. you should look at a standard sand dam design, because i can see at 14:37 you're risking bank errosion. i know from your other videos you've had similar problem with your check dams. if you build up the sides of your dam higher than the middle, then you can control the overflow so it only happens over the centre and protects your banks. sediment will build up you banks in the calmer waters rather than erode them and the rough water will concentrate in the centre where you've designed it to overflow instead.
I was thinking the same although it needs to be a bit wider and higher on the side so the banks don't get washed away. Plus thinker another row of sand bags too hold more pressure as it gets higher.
I appreciate the walking tour perspective
I'm happy to see the progress and how it's coming along. A recommendation: There are codecs for video encoding that are better for static settings and there are ones that are better for situations where the whole screen need updates. I think you might want to switch it up, because your camera work often times includes camera panning and with your current video codec this just produces a blurry mess. With the rocky ground this makes it harder to see what's going on than would be necessary. (See 17:35 for reference) Best wishes!
Sandals and cacti. Love it!!!
Walking in your sandals in the desert, you're going to get bit by a rattle snake sooner or later and there will be no help.
Culvert pipe with a dug pond on the other side to catch water and you keep water and road
I actually enjoy the longer video, seeing more that goes on is really cool.
Why don’t you just put some culverts under the roads Shawn, this way your road access won’t constantly wash out on you?
This channel is about a guy trying to restore a large piece of land near Sierra Blancho in western Texas. Shaun said that most of the land in western Texas is degraded due to over-grazing and erosion. What would be an example of what the land would look like if it wasn't degraded? Is there a place nearby in the US or Mexico that could serve as an example?
Got this video right away. Keep up the good work!!
I wonder how often in rains like this in our desert. This is reall amazing to see all the water. Soo much potential for practicing and learning water management! Who would have thought!
Walking around in slides in between cactus and thorny stuff!
Amazing to see the amount of water washed away at a place which needs it so badly.
Thank you for showing the way to use check dams to make a road repair itself! That is already helpful to me on the property we are purchasing.
Those 3D video snippets are great.
I appreciate how much you talk, fwiw. Others have the option to speed up the video if they want
or use the mute button
Collect the vegetable, lawn, and dinner detritus from your home and neighbours and DFW area and begin composting…
Get some tools out there man! A wheelbarrow, a shovel, a maddock, a digging bar, and a metal rake. Again, trim your prickly pears bury them onto the edges of your gullies. Also, you’re nuts driving through that lol
Didn’t get far enough in your videos to see you are using LMNT! Great!
Seems like that area would be a prime candidate for Terra Preta "islands" that would be starting points for plant spread. If you bring in some raw charcoal, use the human excrement made on site, and use clay found in the valleys for terracotta balls, it should be doable with minimum effort. Just a thought 🤔
RTFM on the drone camera. You've set the camera exposure manually (to a value which is overexposing the footage you're trying to make). You need to set it back to "Auto" exposure until you are more familiar with how to set it manually. Thanks for the videos. Stay safe out there.
Ace video and love what you're doing, would be cool to see a no voice no cuts walking video around the ranch during another rain. Background music optional
There is definitely water out there on your property after the rains. It’s so interesting to watch the little changes you are making.
these graphific do so much to help us understand THANK YOU for putting in the effort on them
Thanks Shaun- Try the Fisherman's Sandals !
That road was nail biting!
man, your 3d imaging is so cool.
The editing was really entertaining in this one with the legend of Zelda and star wars references. Lol. You don't always have to make silly edits, I find the project interesting enough to have watched every video from the start as is. But the occasional silly edit is a definite bonus 😄
Thank you to your editor as well. The position on cards helps. And sth small like: Shawn: "it will be a long walk". Editor: 0,03 miles of 0,14.... is fun. :D
For any gullies crossing your road you will need a way for water to move through via a culvert or large rip-rap. Good luck.
Love watching all of your videos and seeing the progress that you are making.
After watching your channel for some time, I'm confident that the one all around piece of equipment for you is a larger than average backhoe with an extra wide hoe bucket.
There is no doubt that swale and berm constructions, Zuni bowls and bunds (or bathtubs as you prefer) will have a huge impact - if you build them on contour and lay them out so the uphill structure empties into the next downhill structure.
Compared to some parts of the world that are green with full grown trees - you get a lot of rain water. You just have to keep it on the land. A storm of that size in Andalusia, Spain would be a once every 18 months event, if they were lucky.
Mr Sean been following since day one ... for most city slicks living offgrid is off limits ... have been thinking about 2 crops you can do on that terrain ... one is Agave ... the other is Passion fruit tree ... also prickly pear ... but as we know is your choice after all ... will keep following to se the progress as a truck driver I pass there almost every week .... see you soon
Things will start turning green. Let it rain..................
Very nice low tech fix on the road wash out. A couple of kayaks would be fun...
I really like to watch your videos. Greetings from Ireland!
Speed bumps are better than nothing and can be maintained to raise the level of the creek bed for better infiltration and spreading water into the soil 👍if a road comes across the river some where it's a good place to add hight of the road to raise the hight of the river and slow down the flow ✌️
Shawn- if you have quick Trip there they have new Coffee that makes one cut at a time. IT IS EXCELLENT> good idea to use existing rocks to improve your roads.
I really appreciate when you use overhead shots that show where you are. I find those helpful. I also appreciate your commentary. I don't think you talk too much. Just sayin
Thanks Shaun for another great video! I appreciate you sharing this with us.
Thank you. Great episode. Glad you are doing well Shaun. Greetings from Houston. 👋🏽
Lol the Zelda hearts! And yes, please make more swales!
This episode reminds me: several episodes ago after you first crossed through some water and you asked a local about it later, he said something to the effect of "get a snorkel". You seemed to think he was joking (as if he was talking about swimming gear), but I'm pretty sure he was referring to a vertical extension to the air intake on your truck.
At the roads a check dam up streem will help the lower one catch more looking great 👍
The perfect time for those boots you promote...
To me, the most interesting part was at 11:20 or so. That was interesting, fun, and honestly is like a swale that doubles as a road.
I'm wondering if cottonwood/oxford canyons can be planted with trees and shrubs, to use them as a makeshift dams. Have you heard of beaver analogs? They're basically just wooden posts put into the river, that either form a foundation for a beaver to build on, or simply slow down the water and spread it out over the land. If conventional dams aren't an option, for several reasons, beaver analog type dams could work. The canyon is not exactly too treacherous, but it flows enough that it should be a major consideration for the projects goals, and slowing the water there will cause effects upstream.
I don't know if its a good idea to try to significantly dam it up, because it might have negative effects downstream, but its definitely something you could experiment with. I'm actually kind of curious why the canyons are so barren. They get good sediment and water. Maybe it's just too intense? Sounds like it should be planted with cottonwood trees.
Building 1-2 foot tall weirs probably shouldn't be a problem down stream but will drastically slow erosion and water speed. Especially in flash flood type events these will help many people from having more severe property damage.
Keep up the good work. Glad to see you staying safe out there.
Wow! That road catche\s a lot of water. Maybe youi can plant tomatoes in there. Some maple trees would be nice.
11:26 I am like, NO BRO...Those sand bags are being put the wrong way.... 12:08 AWWW SHEIT
You are the Prince of Swales
You made it back!!!!! I bet it smelled great after the rain. The Creosote bush puts off a smell that has to be experienced. Used to spend a lot of time in the desert down the road near Ft. Hancock and remember the aroma of the Creosote after it rained.
Oh man. You are so right. I can smell it right now. Nothing like it!
Yes! That and the smells of the desert in general. It's not what one would expect
If you find a shopping cart and replace the wheels with larger offroad ones you can have a mobile dirt sifter slash yard wagon dumptruck adding hardware cloth you can size the rocks gravel or pebbles that stay in the basket.
I would also use other natural materials like brush, branches , small & large logs etc. In other words dead wood, nothing live unless it has to be removed.
it would be really helpful to put the date of each clip in the corner, especially for when you're going back in time for a bit.
Great input!
Great job Shaun! You are in safe this is the inportant :-)
You should add some seeds to the checkdams, eventually the will help fixa the rock and sediments
Where the roads wash out you should put big pipes to allow water flow under the road and fill dirt on top for the road. Just a thought.
When you lay rocks to catch sediment lay them out in a level U as read looking downstream rather than a straight line that encourages the flow to spread out and slow down to drop out whatever solids are being carried by the water. When there is water pressure it compresses the structure together making it less likely to wash out unlike a straight line that goes in to tension but there is nothing keeping the loose stacked rocks from spreading and coming loose. Also when you add height and width to the structure later, place the next layer a little toward the upstream side of the last layer.
Toyota needs to sponsor one of your videos. I was hoping to see some flowers after that rain. A couple of thoughts. 1. Find someone with a paramotor, (or learn to paramotor.) 2. spread seed before a rain comes. keep up the good work
@3:02 Ouch. But the Health - Doom like editing 😅 👍🏽
Your in for a treat when they flower after a flood.
You should install a few cheap and easy culverts to help keep your "roads" from washing out.
I love the desert vegetation!
Might be a good idea to build some coverts so that you have some land bridges that will not affect your rain flow. Would also mean better roads for you
A tip for helping those sandbags stay in place is to put a strand of barbed wire on top of the first layer, then put on the second layer of sandbags so it becomes like sandwich. That will help lock them in place.
Have you thought of using a drag mat while driving in your property to level the roads?
LMNT is a game changer
Judging by the view of that slope there is allready a little bit of terraces forming you can probably make them more efficient easily.
By the way the place below the road in 10:19 could a good place for a Zuni Bowl. The bowl will fill soon with silt and gravel and you will add to the lower dam and forming the next Bowl....
WELCOME TO THE DESERT BROTHER.
Waiting to see this thing go green
As you can see there's a lot of water out there you just need to catch it in the soil and a forest will grow 👏✌️👍
An idea I had a few years ago. Using the Tesla One Way Water Valve concept, you could absolutely leave the main channel wide open. But on the fringes, put in the shapes (reverse tear drops) of the Tesla valve. This will force the water back in on itself and create a massive slow down. This will give you a ton of silt. Again, not changing the main channel, but integrating the main concept of the valve to slow the water, spread the water, and acquire all of the upstream silt/dirt. I'm not sure that makes sense...
was about to goto bed but saw shaun uploaded... sleep can wait!
oh my... flip flops in the Texas desert with snakes! Yikes.... not a good idea. Get you some snake boots. Being out there isn't worth the risk. Bob Hansler (Survivalist, Bushcraft, and Primitive Skills Instructor of Texas) on his channel you can learn what may happen when bitten by a rattler. He had to have Kidney Transplant after being bitten. You may enjoy his content as well. You have a family don't take unnecessary risks, especially when your so far out from civilization and flooded roads. I enjoyed the video... just had me shaking my head lol "WHAT ON EARTH IS HE THINKING!"
Yea I was thinking the same thing, plus him lifting all the rocks to find the scorpions, poison centipedes, and friendly Tarantulas. It was only during the rain though, he had boots in that earlier video. If he actually manages to get this land greener more wildlife should start showing up. It'll either provide him some nice videos or a gofundme-I-got-bit campaign.
Anyone else think the guy behind the brush at 11:16 might be creeping up on Shaun at first? :o
😂 That's my buddy Brandon
You could lay some pipes on top of you dams and hump the road up over the pipes so that in flash flood conditions you're relieving some water pressure while preserving your road materials and labor time. The dam would still hold the expected amount of water.
Clearly need a bottle of window cleaner and paper towels. That was one filthy truck, lol.