FOGLE TANK

years ago while working at the forepaugh cattle co I was witness to a a mishap that could have been bad but turned out kinda funny.  in the fogle pasture there was a dirt tank. it was big.  it had just been cleaned and it was a small lake. 40 feet deep, a hundred yards wide and a quarter mile long. the dozer operater who cleaned that tank had no idea how to slope the sides. just straight up and down for a long ways.  it had been a good wet summer and tanks were full every where, many runnin over. the fogle tank was as full as it could get and not blow the dam,n out.  the spillway had run water for a week. the pond was backed way out into the desert, with water knee deep a mile away from the tank. three of us were there that day checking fences, looking for some neighbors strays and just getting things ready to turn steers into that good country.  the days were still warm after cool to frosty mornins. we all had coats but the horses had broke a sweat sloggin through that muddy ground. late in the afternoon, after making a big circle and putting 30 head of silly trotty old inbred cows back across the fence we were on the way back into headquarters. as we came to the tank Gordon decided to water his horse, we turned in behind him. as he rode up to the head of the tank Russ told Gordon about the steep sides and to not ride into the tank. Gordon looked back with a don't tell me what to do look and rode on. russ and I pulled up and took a trail down to the lower end where the water was shallow. as we reached the lower end we looked up and Gordon and his horse were swimming in the middle of the tank.
! Gordon was still in the saddle but that ole horses was tiring fast. Gordon would swim him back to the bank where he fell in but the horse couldn't climb the wall out.  we finally convinced Gordon to let the horse swim down to wherte we were. there they climbed out to dry land. that horse was quivering with fatigue and the water was runnin off in little rivers. Gordon got down, sat down and poured water out of his boots. them played hell pullin them blouchers back on over wet socks.  it was still 5 miles to headquarters and it was a tough , wet ride on a give out horse , soakin wet and the sun goin down. but he never watered his horse on that end again!