Northern Nevada cattle ranchers are at a critical junction. Nevada's vast federally owned rangelands, where thousands of head of cattle are permitted to graze each year, are all but played out from months of extended drought. The withered grasslands, combined with a lack of drinking water, have forced Nevada cattlemen to begin bringing herds in early to feed on private pastures or on hay grown and stockpiled during the last two seasons.Once the feed on those meadowlands and stockpiles is gone, ranchers either will have to buy hay or start trimming their herds to avoid to the expense of feeding …