GILBERT, AZ — Two weeks ago, Georgian and her husband Kevin Glosser were ready to capture exciting images of the lunar eclipse from their south Gilbert neighborhood.
“I had my camera, my Nikon, my tripod, I was hustling out to see it,” said Georgian.
But an even more stunning sight would soon steal their attention.
“There were a lot of them, that was the most I’d ever seen, there had to be twenty at least,” said Georgian.
That night, under the partially concealed moonlight, a herd of cattle trotted right by her home and down the street. A frequent ritual found within the Adora Trails community off Riggs Road.
“This is the wild west I guess, and especially people who moved here from out of state really get a kick out of it,” said Georgian.
The free-range cattle wander in from the nearby reservation on a near-nightly basis, moseying down streets, grazing in parks, and of course leaving evidence of their presence behind.
“We walk all the time, and you see the cow piles. You don’t see the cows, but you see what they leave,” said Lynnae and Chris Johnson with a laugh.
There’s also the risk of trampled landscaping and the potential danger of aggressive run-ins. While clearly not ideal, most here in this community still enjoy the sight of old Gilbert colliding with the new.
“They wander back through there, eating the brush all the time, and then at night come to greener pastures so to speak,” said resident Walter Lees.
“There’s not a whole lot we can do about it because those cows are protected, they’re reservation cows, you know they were here before we were so we’re fine with it,” said Chris.
One resident from Iowa told ABC15 that seeing the cattle brought back memories of home, something that always brings him joy. As the agriculture that dominated the area continues to disappear, these cows remain a reminder of all that is shared in our wonderful and rapidly changing desert paradise.
“It’s really sad to see all the farms disappearing, this kind of gives us that feeling of what it used to be like,” said Georgian. “I think it’s cool, I love it.”
Neighbors tell us the HOA is in contact with the rancher who will wrangle the cattle from the area if the herd fails to leave or grows too big. Most times Georgian says they make their way right back out to the reservation once they’ve had their fun.