Working Longears
by Terry Turnquist
From the April 2001 issue
Mike Stork of LaValle, WI doesn’t just sit in front of the TV during the long Wisconsin winters....he has a few mules around his farm and he likes to keep himself and his mules busy during the winter. When you live in Wisconsin and LP prices are on the rise, you might as well give your mules some exercise. Making next years heating wood is a good way to do just that.
Mike has two larger mules, which he uses for the wood working. The team is composed of two 11 year old geldings. They make up a formidable wood pulling team, and together tip the scales at 2,400 pounds. They are strong, but gentle enough for Mike and Debra’s 8 year old daughter, Kim, to control. Of course both his daughters, Kim and 7 year old Kallie, have been around mules all of their young lives.
The day we spent hauling trees out of the woods was a very enjoyable time for both the workers and people who were there to just enjoy the show. It gave Mike a chance to give his mules some exercise and get the timber to a more accessible area. The working area was a ravine covered with more than two feet of snow and a small creek at the bottom. This creek needed to be crossed with each load. The creek was actually not much of a problem for the team, as they used their strength to just pull the trees right over or through the shallow water.
Mike is a long time mule skinner, having owned and worked with mules since 1974. He was born in River Falls, WI, spent some time in Missouri, and for a time raised and sold mules. The Stork’s now have five mules, two horses, and a few goats and llamas. The Storks live in a very pleasant area to keep and raise both mules and children. It seems like they do an excellent job of raising both.
This was not the first time I had visited the Stork’s, but they always impress me on how the younger girls get along with the mules. The huge animals seem just to allow the little ladies to do about what they want with them. Occasionally they just jump on the mule’s backs as the mules are feasting on hay and grain in their stalls. These little ones are so at ease around the mules that there is common respect between the mules and the young people.
As I watched these two mules pull the tree limbs through the snow with such ease, I remembered that most people think of mules as work animals. While many of us use our mules for saddle, most likely the history of the mule is weighted more heavily toward the ability to pull loads or plow fields. It seemed Mike’s two mules were ready to do a days work and not get too tired in the process.
We only worked them for a couple of hours as we had some equipment failures. We managed to get most of the wood moved before the evener got bent. Mike will need to put some of his repair talents into the rigging before the next day he takes his mules to the timber. It seems the mules were stronger than the rigging, and so next time they will hitch a heavier evener to the mules.
Mike told me that in 1983 he took three reporters from a Milwaukee newspaper, on a three-day pack trip to a state park in Wisconsin. I understand the reporters had no experience on mules, and so Mike had to provide them with some good riding mules. The story has it that all the people had a good time and no one got hurt. That is probably a tribute to Mike’s mule skinning ability.
The Storks and I had an enjoyable day in the woods. Soon we had to put our snow shoes back on and head for the house to get a warm brew. We had a wonderful day in the woods and even accomplished some things needing to be done. Thanks to the mules, Mike and his family will have a bit more fire wood for next winter.
I promised Mike I would come out to see him again and maybe take my mule along for a little trail ride. That is of course if she quits leaving me in the dust or snow. It seems my 7 year old, 54” molly, out of a quarter horse is a bit better at quick turns than I am at staying aboard. I should have asked Mike if he gives riding lessons to older, but not so wiser, gentlemen. It would be a very embarrassing moment indeed, if his little girls could ride my mule better than I can. After seeing them around the mules, it could turn out that way, too.
LaValle, WI hosts an annual mule show the first Saturday of August. If you are visiting our state during that time, stop by and see the show. This year will mark the 18th year of the show. Hope to see you there.