Bring on the snow

Trees up with lights, but no ornaments yet. I'm not sure how Fergie is going to do--everything's a toy! Crazy boy. I'm ready for days off with warm fires and lots of sewing! :) I am hoping for some real snow--not just the promise of it.

Love her! Wish I could sing! (oh and look like her!) :)

Birthday weekend!

 It's been a great three days of riding. Friday we drove to Weaverville and rode East Weaver trails: we rode up the JackAss Spur, around Howe Ditch, and took a wrong turn to Musser, crossing bridges over the creek twice. After we crossed the road and check out the map, we backtracked across the bridges and turned right which took us past the Day Ranch trail and down to the East Weaver trail.


Last year it was freezing! This year it was humid! Although I was very thankful for my chinks, I could have ridden in my tee shirt! There were hot pockets and cold pockets. The trail was a little slick and narrow in a couple spots and there was a tree down that we had to bushwack around, but otherwise, what a great day! The sky was very November-ish and pretty. We ate at Marino's  for breakfast and then had greasy hamburgers at the Nugget later. The Nugget is a no, never again. :(

When we got home, the boys put on a show. First of all, Jupes had gotten his halter off in the trailer and came bolting out. Shirley headed out with Star and Jupes would not stand still for me to rehalter and take his blanket off. When we finally all got up to the green gate, Shirley was yelling at Star to settle down and Jupes kept dancing on his toes, trying to see what Star was up to. Lynn and Big Zig were dancing around, too.

Shirley finally got Star loose and let him go. He started jumping around. I had let Jupes go and he ran off to his rolling spot. Suddenly, Ziggy went down by the gate and was rolling right next to it. Lynn had not even gotten his halter off or the gate latched. He jumped up and starting crow hopping and bucking and kicking his legs out. Both he and Star were twirling around and throwing legs out. Jupes jumped up from rolling and was bucking and humping, too. Ziva was jumping around trying to decided who to play with, but I was yelling at her to get away from them. Shirley was yelling at me to get away from them, too, but I was sort of trapped between them. Anyway, all was well, but we decided that maybe they had not eaten breakfast before we left that morning and were pitching a fit that Buster ate it all. :)

Saturday we all slept in. Then we rode on the back side of Hennessey. It was a fun loop. We started late and ended late. It wasn't too slick and everybody did fine.

Sunday, we drove to Underwood. We weren't very far when Shirley said that Star didn't feel well. So we turned around and came home. Even though it was short, it felt good to be ahorseback. We got to be together and with our animals for three days. I didn't get as much done as I need to at home (my house is a disaster!! and my grades are behind!!), but it was worth it.

We sure missed Alisa, Odie, and Keota. I am hearing that we may meet up in Redding, soon. We need to make decisions on pulling shoes or not. Last year, we pulled them and didn't ride after Shirley's birthday. We need to check the almanac--I think it's La Nina (colder). I hope it is wet and helps with our water situation. I am hoping for a white Christmas. :)

Your basic fall weekend

After much anticipation, Saturday dawned and Lynn and I headed to the Fig Twig Flea Market in Ferndale. All week the weather channel said it was forecast for 100% chance of rain. Going to a dressed-up flea market would be the perfect thing to do. What a disappointment. With fewer vendors, it was much smaller than last year and the offerings weren't all that great either. On top of that, it didn't rain and we could've ridden and then gone over. We got our groceries, some more yarn neither of us needed, and one more (unnecessary) project for me do before the holidays. At least the company was good.

Sunday started out comically. Poor Lynn. She has to put up with her mother and me. I was sitting enjoying that the time change, having a cup of coffee and reading FB. I was about to close my iPad when I saw that I had a new emails. I opened it up and wah-la: one said, "I'll see you at 7 unless it's raining." I looked at the clock and it was seven-o-something. Yikes! I jumped up and called Lynn, "Am I supposed to be there?" "Yep," came the answer. So I threw myself together and headed for Lynn's.

We got the horses the ready and after watching for the pickup to roll up, we heard the 4-wheeler coming slowly across the field. There was Shirley, "Are we riding? I couldn't tell what was going on down here." After an affirmative from Lynn, off she went to put on her riding bra and bring the pickup down. After planning to head out closer to 7:30 (thanks to the time change and earlier daylight), we didn't pull out until almost 8:30.

Sundays mean church and getting Lee's stuff ready for the week, so we tootled around the Hennessey Ranch again for a quick and enjoyable ride. I enjoy going backwards and riding down the ranch and then up counterclockwise through the woods. Lynn took lots of pictures of the fall foliage and I spent time looking at everything and trying to imprint it on my mind--there's a good chance we won't see it again in its fall splendor, as the new owners plan on putting in a lot of green houses. :(

Coming out, Jupiter's foot slipped and I think Ziva may have run into his back leg, which freaked him out. I told Lynn and Shirley that he's like riding a squeeze box or an accordion--all squeezed together and then springing out. He's silly.

Friday is Veteran's Day--otherwise known as Shirley's birthday! Alisa plans to join us for the weekend as we celebrate Shirley's 85th birthday ahorseback. The weatherman predicts we will be in the mid 70s all week, so hopefully it will dry out our trails enough to be safe. Although, it also is predicted to rain on Friday and then Saturday and Sunday are supposed to be better. Who knows--oftentimes the rain they predict stays more north of us. We haven't planned our rides yet, but I am already looking forward to hanging with my besties and my silly horse.

Backwards

Two days of great riding and a break in the storm system! Although it was supposed to get up to 76 degrees on Saturday--it did not. No matter--it was a great day of riding. We decided that it would be slick on Hennessey, so we rode Underwood. Just as we came over the first trail to the road, Lynn stopped and said, "Wanna ride it backwards?" Heck, yeah, we answered. Here we are at the "Tippy Turn." :)

It is so pretty! There are spots where we go uphill and never look back that are just beautiful trails. Everything looks so different. The horses were like, "Sheesh, I didn't realize how steep these downs are until we have to go up them!" Of course, Jupes thought, "Wow, grass grazing break already! I like this!" Well at least until we didn't stop there. :)


Lynn said a couple times that it was going to be sunny on the top--it looks lighter on the top and we'll see some sun. Not. It was misty and foggy. Still pretty and didn't "dampen" our fun, but it was cold.








Sunday we rode the ranch. It was gorgeous with all the fall colors. Again we rode it backwards--going down the meadow to the barn and then up through the woods towards the back of the mountain and then out into the meadow and back up to the top. I really like the woods east of the ranch--it was another cool day without sun, but it makes the fall colors pop.

 Cows ahead!

It was a bittersweet ride because we may not ever get to ride there in the fall again. The property sold and the new owners plan to put in several huge green houses. :( That beautiful ranch will be destroyed.

It's supposed to rain again this week. I hope it does, but I hope we get to ride again next week. I sure makes my work week a lot better. Happy trails! :)

A Shooting Star

A great weekend of riding, but bumpy, too. Saturday, we were down in one of our small meadows on the Hennessey. Lynn had to go to the bathroom, so she and Zigs went off into the bushes. Shirley and I sat in the clearing and waited. Jupes and the dogs each got a bite of granola. Star--either because one of the his ducklings was missing or because he thought bear or something was in the woods--got freaked out. He backed into us and stared into to the woods.

Then he began twirling. I know you can hear Shirley, "Star! You old fool! Star! STAR!" I yelled at Lynn to talk to us. It didn't matter. Star could no longer think. He was a whiling dervish. Shirley rode the requisite 8 seconds, but her pickup ride wasn't there and she slid down the side. That was enough to make Star stop.

She's fine, but she probably strained her right arm as she hung on to the saddle horn. She's walking slowly and carefully, holding that arm--probably a little sore all over. She's okay. By the time she landed on the ground, she was pretty close to it and she landed on a slope--relatively gently. Still scary for all of us because we don't want her hurt.

We switched saddles and Lynn rode Star and she rode Ziggy. For awhile. Then Star started limping pretty good. He too probably strained a muscle. Rather than have Lynn walk while we both rode, I got off and she and I walked back to the trailer. Shirley commented that Zigs was certainly not as smooth as Star to ride, and he stops all the time (he must have peed at least twice).

I, too, put on show. We were walking the road and I saw something in the woods. I couldn't figure out what it was and I was staring at it. Then I stepped down into a deep hole filled with water. I stumbled into Jupes who nudged me even more. Thankfully I didn't get caught up in my spurs or his legs and fall INTO the mud puddle, which would have been hilarious, but it was pretty funny anyway as I sloshed and lurched through it. (Lynn laughed so much, SHE almost ended up in it, too--which would have been even funnier.)

Lynn lost her camera in the scuffle earlier. But on Sunday, we found it--pretty much right where she figured it had come off her saddle. She didn't have it in her bra at the time because it had already fallen out of there! Hmm. What's up with that? :)

Sunday, it was just Lynn and I riding and we had a great day. We rode the same trails in order to find the camera, but it was fun. Both boys were ready and willing and we took the trails pretty quickly and did some trotting and zooming around trees. We didn't see a single soul. It was great. That's what gets me through the week!

Chinks weather

Yesterday we rode on Underwood. It was sunny and blue sky when we started, but cool. We all "chinked up." :) I even suggested to Shirley that she wear her head scarf. When we got to the ridge, we could tell it was raining in a couple of pockets toward the coast. The breeze was definitely cool up there. By the time we reached the good grass spot down on the bottom for the horses to munch--the sky had completely clouded over and we felt a few tiny little drops. We finished our ride with some nice trots and I saw Ziggy lope along on the good loping trail next to the pond.

We drove to Gary and MaryAnn's place, "The Whole Maryanne Ranch," to see their new living quarters horse trailer. Boy is it nice. It's a two-horse, or in their case--a two-mule, trailer with a really nice interior. The shower has a skylight, which I think is a necessity, and it's large. The kitchen is functional and trimmed with oak; the appliances pretty big considering, and the sleeping area is large. There's an electric awning and an outdoor shower for when you are just too filthy to go inside (and when you have lots of tree detritus in your bra) to shower indoors. :) He showed us cool features for towing and setting up as well. They were really excited and proud of the deal they had made. They've already gone out twice and are looking forward to more adventures. We gave them some ideas and they shared some trails we could go to as well. It was fun.

While we were talking, Goldie and her partner Scooter came down to visit with the boys in the trailer. Of course only Ziggy could see them since he faces that way, but he's all Goldie cares about anyway. There was lots of stamping and carrying on in the trailer. I think it was Star who was not wanting Ziggy leaning over him to get his head out even farther so he could look at his girlfriend. Jupes stomped around because Star had to pee and you know Jupes hates pee splashing on him--even his own! (And my doggone lead rope now has pee on it!) They had a dog and a cat, both from Nancy's animals. They were born on the same day and have grown up together; talk about cute, they rolled around and hugged and bit on each other the whole time we were there. The dog was a blue heeler and the cat looked like Racer. :)

For all that, the best story of the day is about a party on Eagle Rock. Lynn thinks they made up the name, as the place she knows as that is not there. Anyway, we kind of know where they were going because of the tracks on the road. We met LOTS of cars headed down the hill, so we thought the party was the night before. We only met one guy in a truck and trailer headed out while we were riding, but then on the way home, we met a bunch of little cars headed up. Trimmers? Camping party? We don't know, but I bet they were cold--and wet--since it rained half and inch last night and this morning. :)

ANYWAY--there were signs that said, "Eagle Rock" with an arrow at all the junctions on the road. Then Lynn saw the best one:

"Eagle Rock. 

CAREFUL: 

Tippy corner." 

LOL. Happy trails, have a good week, and watch out for the tippy corners!

PS Alisa, you probably ought to ask Lynn for the chinks website and order some before Shirley's birthday--it may be cold and wet! :)

Eulogy of a good friend

I originally wrote the piece below on April 1, 2015, but then things changed. Brady had another year and half with us. He lost his place as boss, but everyone still treated him with respect. Life was getting harder for him, but he stilled called out with that deep whinny to Lynn when she came outside. He came to her immediately when she walked or rode the 4-wheeler to the gate. But it was hard. He was getting so thin and fragile. So this week he went on to greener pastures. The boys are missing him and pretty quiet. Today will be my first day in the field without him--so I'll cry here and promise to hold it together out there. :(

The love they shared was obvious. According to Lynn, although she saved him, he saved her, too. They went through a lot of difficult things together. It's so hard to let go. . .

*****
Today is a very sad day. It is the 20th anniversary of Brady making his home with Lynn. It is also the end of his beautiful life. Lynn fell in love with Brady at first sight. She tried to find someone else, but he was the one. She waited a month longer and finally loaded him up and took him to see Dr. Branch about his warts. Once there she got a chewing out over his neglected condition. Finally she was able to get the doc to hear her say that she was wanting to buy (i.e. save) this boy. So he assured her that the warts could be taken care of. That was all it took. Brady had a new home.

That day was the beginning of a love affair. Although Lynn has laughed and said many, many times that he was rough and never did the same gait twice, if she could, she would still be riding him. She recalls once and only once, they hit the perfect gait. It was like floating. He never did it again. But it didn't matter, he was her go-to guy forever. He took her up sand dunes in one leap; he slalomed like a downhill racer on a tricky hill at Buck's Lake; he ran so fast that tears streamed from Lee's eyes, which helped him to realize why Lynn loves to ride as much as she does.

He was patient; he was kind. He and Lynn understood each other. Lynn could raise her finger and tell him, "Put your head down," and he would. She'd whisper to him to "be tough" and he'd handle whatever life threw at him--just for her. He rode all the way to Montana to work cattle. Once he got out of the trailer, his head was high the whole time--he'd never been able to see so far! Lynn's uncle wasn't impressed and tried to get her to ride one of his horses. Lynn wouldn't have anything to do with that.  By the time the cattle drive was over--her uncle wanted to buy Brady from her. But we all know he's priceless.

He knew the word, "hat." He would instantly stop and wait while Lynn got off and retrieved it. (Of course this was back in the day before helmets.) He knew he had to stand and wait while Lynn trimmed trees or took pictures. When she didn't pay attention to him after he tried repeatedly to get her to look at him--he knocked her hat off and made her turn around to see the saddle had slipped around him while they were walking. The two of them had a perfect partnership.

He knew how to be a good herd boss. He was never mean, but if Lynn told him to bring the boys down, he got them down. He kept them back if she needed to have some space. He let anyone eat with him, no matter where their place in the pecking order was.

He's the reason she keeps looking for a new horse. She wants another one just like him. Brady had that spark--a fire--that's hard to describe, but you know it when you see it. She doesn't have that with Ziggy. Yes, Zigs is a good horse. He, too, would do anything for her. But he's not Brady. He's not high-headed and jigging sideways down the trail. He'll never knock her glasses off in his excitement. Brady just had attitude.

My turn came to ride him. She told me, "He's not a 'dude' horse, but listen to him--he's smart and he won't get you into any trouble." He taught me to be a rider. We went through bees and I zigged when he zagged. But he waited for me. The saddle broke and I fell off below the trail; the saddle slid back on his butt and he just stood and waited for us to fix it. We went too far and then walked out together. He essentially make me feel like he was saying, "Just stay in the saddle--I'll get you there." He had a heart that wouldn't quit. He gave everything his all.

On this saddest of all days, I know Ed is in Heaven with a supply of Oreos and red licorice waiting for him. Silly Indy is probably there and already getting on his nerves. But down here, we are mourning the passing of a family member and good friend.

Turkey Trot

Last Saturday we decided to ride even though it was the second week of hunting season. We left the dogs home with Lee and headed out. We parked and started going through our usual readiness routine: load up granola bars, water, and cameras. Put on helmets and chinks (it had rained) and spurs. It was at this juncture that I realized I was hearing something out of the ordinary. I finally listened to try to identify the sound. I stood up and saw the horses, Jupiter and Star, were staring intently toward the noise as well. I took a step backward to look down the road. The sound stopped and suddenly I was looking into 18 pairs of turkey eyes!!

The turkeys were standing in the middle of the road in a large cluster between the parking spot and the trailer house just below it (less than 20 yards away?). The sound I had been hearing was them walking up the road and talking to each other. When I moved, they realized we were there and they stopped. I got Lynn and Shirley's attention, but before Lynn could get her camera, they began to move again--this time southward across the road and into the woods right there. It was really cool.

We rode up Hennessey to the top and met not one, but two trucks road hunting. We told them a general direction we were heading (left road, up over the ridge to the pond). We just did a short loop to get the kinks out and have a little wind in our helmets.

Buying our chinks was such a good, good thing. It was nice to not be soaking wet from the thigh down. Every now and then, I would hear Lynn laugh as she got a wet branch across the face and Shirley and I told her to keep doing her job making it less wet for us. All of us had wet boots and the bottoms of our jeans were wet, but no one was cold. The top of the mountain was fogged in and it was a glorious way to begin the weekend after a long, hard week.

Kicking up some dust

It's been a good couple of weeks. School was postponed due to construction and lack of food services and I have made the best of it!! :) Although I had to work on Labor Day, I got to spend most of the weekend with Alisa and Lynn. We rode all over our new spot on Gray's Falls. There are tons of possibilities to explore over there. We rode along the fire break trail and it joined up with a trail we had already found. It is a good trail--thanks, fire crew! We'll keep it clear by riding it.

The next day, Mary Ann joined us and we went up Underwood. No bear this time, but it was a really nice morning. The company was good, the horses behaved, and the sun was shining--what's not to like?

Lynn and I went to Weaverville on Friday of this week--hoping to ride to Bear Basin. We almost turned around and came home. Lynn decided we'd look and reassess from the top of Oregon Mountain. Then our stomachs prevailed and we drove to Marino's, hoping it was open. It made our morning to find it open and serving breakfast. All the while we were looking out the window. It sure looked smoky.

We didn't take the cutoff to Hwy 3; we headed back toward home. It looked like the horses just got to go for a ride. We stopped to get some diesel and then headed toward home. As we neared the Hwy 3 junction, Lynn asked one more time, "What do you think?"

Let's do it! So we headed up the hill--both of looking at the sky and praying it would be better. We knew we could always turn around and head home. It just got clearer and clearer--bluer and bluer. We turned the corner to the parking spot and GEEZ! Horse trailers and trucks everywhere! It was the day the CCC broke camp and came home. We got to tell many of them how much we appreciate them. One of them replied that he appreciated that we were using the trails they worked on. :)

We met a nice hunter, who had three loose horses on the meadow above where we stopped. I am glad we did not go on up there--not knowing the horses were there. We had decided the plane wreckage could wait another year for us to visit. He visited with us for awhile--long enough to see Jupes decide to roll with the saddle on in the tall grass! Doggone it. He did not get to his back--I was pulling for all I was worth, trying to get him to get up. Mike, the hunter, said he was in the video, glassing us. I never did see him, but he said he saw us take our selfie and I am sure glad we didn't do anything embarrassing. :)

We were dust balls when we arrived in Weaverville for dinner. The dogs were no longer black and they were tired babies.

Bear Basin

Mules shy, too

Last weekend we rode both days again. Mary Ann and Goldie came both days. Saturday was uneventful and fun. Goldie prefers to ride in the back and having Jupiter back there made her nervous, so back to the front for us. That makes Jupiter happy and Ziggy happy because he wants to be by his girlfriend. He rolls his eyes at her, but he has gotten back to normal and letting his tongue hang and stopping to pee. If she's going be his girlfriend, then she needs to accept him the way his is!

Gary says Goldie watches for us to drive up to the trail-head and then looks for the horses when she gets home. She likes being with them. :)

Sunday started out rough with Shirley upset and yelling at us about our dogs having no manners. She left her threats dangling and unfinished, but it won't be good if one of them hurts Happy. From now on, we are to put them in the pickup or keep them in the house until Happy can get into the truck safely. It set the tone for the ride. :(

Coming up the road, right before the dumping/shooting area, Ziva was on the little hill and I called her to come with me since I was in the front of everyone. It still makes me a little nervous that she might get kicked by Goldie. Well, she is a good girl, so she bailed off the hill and came up the road to me. I heard a little commotion and then Lynn cried, "Oh my gosh! She's off!"

The mule, and thus the horses near her, all shied when Ziva jumped down on to the road. Somehow, Mary Ann went over sideways on her mule--her stirrup was left on the saddle. Maybe mules aren't as smooth when they shy--Heaven knows we've all been through some big shies. Anyway, that road is hard-packed! Mary Ann said she was sore, but she climbed right back on and away we went.

We went to the turtle pond and down and around. I have decided that bears are my best friends--there are lot of diggy holes that look like they could be ground bee nests. All around  the mountain, our trails are torn up and scratched up. We have decided that the bears are taking care of our potential bee problems. We have had a lone dive bomber pester us for long stretches, but no problems with bees in the ground. Yay! I hope the bears are enjoying them, because I am happy, happy for them. :)

Overall, it was another good ride and a new trail for Mary Ann to experience.  This weekend, Lynn got to take off Friday and head over to Quincy Thursday night. She and Alisa and Alisa's friend are out and about having a great time, making wet blankets in eastern CA. Next weekend is Labor Day and Alisa's birthday. She is coming here and we are going to explore our new Gray's Falls trails with her. I can hardly wait.

BEAR!

Sunday, Lynn and I rode alone on Underwood. First, we pulled out or kicked out star thistle. Both of us thought of the weedeater about the same time. We made a plan to go back one evening (when it's not so dang hot) and eradicate it from our parking spot. Anyway, we spent some time pulling weeds before getting the horses out.

There was a big, fresh pile of bear scat right by the trailer. It was obvious, somebody had been eating the berries right there. Luckily, we both managed to avoid stepping it while we were getting the horses ready to ride.

It was a good ride. We rode along looking for bear, but not seeing any. We actually didn't see any wild animals. Both dogs stayed pretty close and came when called--a positive. The horses behaved and there were bees flying around, but we did not see any ground nests. We trotted and had a pretty good pace most of the day. On the last leg of the trail, Lynn said she wanted a picture of the pond. It was full of cattails and whatnot. So instead of turning we rode along it toward the south side.

Right when Lynn stopped near the water's edge, I heard a deep, warning growl. It brought me up quick as Jupes was stepping through some down branches--I wasn't sure what I was hearing. Lynn said something about how unusual it was, but at the time I didn't realize it was Haley. She was far enough ahead of me that I thought it came from the thick underbrush. I just knew that it wasn't the sound of Jupiter's feet on the wood. The next time I heard it, it was a definite growl. I still didn't realize it was Haley, but I said, "I think we should get out of here." So we both turned the horses back toward the trail and rode back to the trailer without incident. We trotted and swooped around the trail--it was fun. (Alisa picture the spot where Keota always lopes so prettily.)

Walking down the dirt road back to the trailer, Lynn told me that it had been Haley growling. She said, "Haley doesn't do that." So we decided it probably had been a bear having a snooze in the brush by the pond. After brushing the boys, but they were still tied to the trailer, I started brushing Ziva, I love Underwood, but dang! the burrs are awful! I was near the trailer tire, when Ziggy whirled around, eyes and ears pointed out toward the brush to the east. Jupes followed suit. I looked at both of them--high alert. So I thought, I probably shouldn't be down near their feet brushing my dog. I called her to come over to the road and I continued to brush her. Haley was near us.

Suddenly a big bear stuck his head and shoulders out onto the road about 50 feet from us. Haley saw him instantly and took off running, with Ziva hot on her tail. I yelled, "Bear!" and starting hollering for the dogs to come back. Lynn came flying over, but the bear had already retreated back into the brush he was coming from. Both dogs stopped and looked at the spot (maybe they could still see him) and then ran back to us. Yay!!! Both horses remained on high alert, looking at the area where the bear was headed--maybe there was more than one? Yay, I got to see a bear--well, half of it, anyway--AND, most importantly, everyone was safe.

Another perfect day ahorseback!

Hobbit's Wild Ride

Wowza! It's been three weeks since we've ridden. Lynn has had lots of unfortunate and blessed events that kept her from having "wind in her helmet." But today we were ON. We rode Hennessey backwards. No not backwards on our horses, the trails, silly. First thing we noticed is that a lot of our regular trails have new down fall and many hanging branches that used to be up and out of our way. I don't how Shirley stays so clean and unscathed, but Lynn and I had branches across the face, cedar down our shirts, and Lynn's shirt got hung up on a branch and ripped two holes in it! At the regular granola stop she had to shake the tree detritus out of her helmet.

Jupiter led most of the first part of the loop and he was on high alert today. The first scary thing was my helmet got scraped by some branches and he coiled up and sprung out away from the sound. Next I scraped my boot on a tree--again, he coiled up and sprung away. Then there was a big, gray bush. I think it's been there all along, but remember, we were going the opposite direction. He whipped around and told Star, "You go first old man." He was willing to go up and sniff it once Star walked by it.

It was an overall great ride. Although Lynn said more than once, "Geez, this is Hobbit's Wild Ride!" It took me probably an hour to realize why it sounded it familiar: there's a children's book called The Wind in Willow and it has a chapter called "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride." (And there's a Disneyland ride by the same name! That's probably how crazy our ride was today.) We even had a jack rabbit! It stopped and looked at us then took off again. Thankfully, Haley did not catch it and all the dogs came running back without incident!

Looking forward to tomorrow. . .

 Ready and willing!

The end of a great ride: no bees, happy dogs, wet blankets.

Just talking (posting) to hear my head rattle

It's been a week since our fun vacation at the Guest Ranch. I am the lucky one--I don't have to work--and yet, it feels like it's been a very long time since we were in NM; even though, Lynn and Shirley keep listening for Tim to ring the chow bell! I have a list a mile long of things I want to accomplish before the craziness sets in, but sometimes I find myself spinning in circles or just sitting down to listen to the trees and toss Ziva something to catch. The latter makes me feel a little guilty, but mostly, I really like it. I think I am lazy at heart. :)

Yesterday, Lynn came and got Ziva for a haircut and kept her all day. I finished a baby afghan and went to his shower. It was the only homemade present there. Probably, I am only one who has given him anything homemade--I sent flannel receiving blankets before he was born, as well. I think I am a throwback to earlier times. (I just remembered, someone gave him a rattle they had woven from Native materials. I made one for my friend's baby eight years ago--I was so proud of it; that's way harder than knitting!)

When I picked Z up, we went out to see the horses. I think it's been almost three weeks! When I called to Jupiter, his head came right up. I told him maybe we would ride on Sunday. He looked like, "Okay, whatever. Do you have a granola bar?" :)

The weather has been pretty great--we had rain off and on all day Friday. I got lots done outside; so when it was raining at 5:30 am Saturday, I called Lynn and asked her if she just wanted to stay home and work in her yard. She worked so hard, she went to bed at 8:30. :)

Today was another cool morning. It rained overnight and was dawning pretty clear, or as Shirley said, "The event had passed." At least according to the weatherman. The horses were easy to catch and ready to have their halters on, even Star. We rode up the Hennessey and had a great time. It wasn't a long ride, but, it sure felt good to be in my own saddle and on my best boy. Lynn said she wished she could have merged Smokey's personality with Ziggy's smoothness. Shirley was just happy to be on Star.

We only rode a few hours, but it was nice. There was a cool breeze rustling the trees and the boys seemed happy to be there, too. I think they like getting off The Place--even if it is work to pack us up the hills and down. There was one horse-eating branch that almost got Star, at least according to Jupes. Star kicked a fallen branch of some length and it swung up and tangled in his tail. He did not even notice, but Jupes turned his head and stepped sideways, giving it a wide berth.

Tomorrow, Alisa is riding with her new riding partner on a trail neither of them have been on before. We are all excited for her new adventure and especially that she feels good on Keota and is off having fun again! I heard Odie got into some wire and I hope he is doing well--he's such a sweet boy.

Vacationing with the BFFs

After months of anticipation, the girls and I met up and headed for Geronimo Trail Guest Ranch in New Mexico. What a great time! We rented a 4-Runner and stayed in Old Town Albuquerque. Before we drove out to the ranch (a four hour drive), we shopped for turquoise jewelry. Then we went up on the Sandia Tram for dinner and beautiful views. Our tram guide explained that "sandia" was Spanish for "watermelon", which describes the color of the rocks along the way. We had a great dinner and the views were spectacular. On top, the temperature changed from the 90s to the 60s and it was spitting rain and the wind was blowing. All week long we had beautiful weather--lots of thunder and lightning off to the distance and the temperature was in the 80s to low 90s. The sky in New Mexico is big and color was a deep turquoise blue; we saw lots of stars at night (even a shooting star) and beautiful cloud formations all day. It was as if our hosts had ordered up the perfect weather just for us.

Day 1

Getting to know our horses.

Shirley & Lips (dark chocolate bay)

Alisa & Blue (blue roan)

Lynn & Smokey (small bay with attitude)

Me & Jasper (red line back dun)

Met our fellow campers: Norby, from Switzerland (riding Rooster) & Anna, originally from Poland, but has lived in Chicago for 12 years (riding Casey) and the cats: Scaredy, Garfield, and Clementine.

Horses (the ones I remember!):

Johnny, big bay colored draft horse

Rio, big Appaloosa

Strawberry Shortcake, pony

Buffalo Gal, paint movie star

Red, small sorrel Morgan

Ned, the old guy

Shadow, big black

Lightning, a paint

Toto, a sorrel

Bucky, a buckskin

Hank, sorrel

Emmett, a blue roan who lost a shoe

First we went on a short ride out of the ranch to the east with Meris & Kelly. Saw Mimbre cliff dwellings, cows, a rabbit. (On drive here we saw 2 antelope, a herd of elk, and a cattle drive; Lynn and Alisa went into a swoon over a cute cowboy in the wash.) Meris explained that the Basque people, who were sheepherders, came along after the Mimbre people left and lived in the cliff dwellings. They changed them a little by adding wood and rock structures.

In the afternoon we went out with Seth and Kelly and turned left and then went south. We went up on "top of the world" to two overlooks. The first one was a sneak peek at our ride for day two. It looked down on Taylor Creek. The second one, Seth said we could see AZ and 365 degrees around was the Gila National Forest—approximately 3.3 million acres.

That night we played Uno with Meris and Kelly; Shirley made Lynn draw tons of cards. I won one, Alisa won one, Anna (pronounced Onna) won two, and Kelly two. We ate quail for dinner—a first for me.

Day 2

All the wranglers went on a picnic ride with us (all day). We went south west and rode all through Taylor Creek and The Narrows to Beaver Creek which is the Gila River headwaters. This was the playground of Geronimo. He was born near here and grew up around here. It was fun going through all the water. It rained on us, but we dried off during lunch. We looked at more sunken Native homes and saw more pottery shards. It was an awesome ride. At the picnic spot, one of the trees had been recently struck by lightning and was all twisted and broken. We saw a huge carp in the swimming hole.

On the way out that morning, she asked us if we wanted to trot and lope. I definitely want to work on loping and getting the feel, so I emphatically said, “yes!” We loped along the road toward the trail; to keep the horses from competing and going really fast, we stayed in a single file line. Jasper is tall and Shirley’s horse, Lips, was way slower than him, so we did not lope as far as I had hoped we would. Jasper had to slow down and just trot behind Lips.

In the evening, Norby played his flutes—one made out of a small pvc pipe, one beautiful dual Native flute he had ordered and just bought from his AZ Native friend—and a digeridoo he made from a pvc pipe at the campfire. The coyotes howled and came closer to our campfire! We loved it.

Day 3

We rode into Taylor Creek and Cox Canyon. We went up over a ridge where we could see Black Mountain and the Mogollon Mountains (Meris pronounced it Moggyowin). We saw more Mimbre cliff dwellings and Basque dwellings. We went into a big one where it had a bed frame, fireplace, and table. The floor was deep silt and the air was cool. Alisa and the others cooled off in the creek in their clothes, including their jeans. Even Shirley waded in. Lynn and I did not. However, we took off our tank tops and dipped them. We left at 10:30 and did not get back into the cabin until 6:00. Today, we loped along the trail. Jasper loped really nice and when he felt me become a little unbalanced, he went into his trot until I was comfortable and then loped some more. It was fun.

After dinner, we ate s'mores and sang campfire songs until 10.

Day 4

I asked Shirley if she was having fun; she’s been so quiet. She said she was just glad she got to come and be with us girls. She said this was the best thing. Her horse was no Star or Buster--he was a "ground pounder" in her words, but she also said (in front of her!) that Lynn was like her right arm—she needed her in order to feel whole. J She said she had always wanted a daughter so she would have a best friend and someone to share the things she loved. Pretty cool—tough to get her to say it out loud, and especially TO Lynn—but, definitely a heartwarming, cool statement.

Jasper mostly trotted today--we only loped a little; I think he was a little lazy and really just wanted to stay at the ranch. We went to Beaver Canyon today for our picnic. Although we went along Taylor Creek, we were high above it before dropping down to where the two come together. Unfortunately Hank (or was it Toto?) threw a shoe and Seth had to walk back to camp from there. He had to walk through our favorite part--the narrows--afoot. Lots of water in his cowboy boots!

We saw a large herd of mule deer heading up the mountain and lots of cows today; including a red bull that was blocking our path. Meris said he has challenged her twice. He does not belong to the family who owns the property we crossed over and they had come to look for him yesterday, so his rightful owner could take home and get him off their property. We had cows bellowing for their calves and we had to stop to let one loud, insistent, and long horned cow by us and then one cow who was following her put on a bucking show. What fun! I love cows. There were more Mimbre and Basque cliff dwellings, tin mine markers, and the Keeper of the Canyon's face to look at today. 

We played Apples to Apples with Meris & Kelly that night. It was a hoot. They are both so fun to be with.

Day 5

Leaving the ranch was kind of sad—everyone hugged and it felt like we were leaving family. I do hope we see them again. Along the way, we stopped at the Winston store—more shopping! The doorbell was the sound of an elk. Later, we accidentally took a wrong road which dead ended at Monticello. We lost some time, but saw two road runners.

Upon arriving in Old Town Albuquerque, we shopped some more. Everyone bought jewelry and gifts for the people at home (especially the dogs’ babysitters!). Lynn bought a new suitcase to carry all our new stuff, and then we went to bed. Not too much sleeping happened and then it was 2 am and time to get up.

Shirley gave us a scare at the airport and needed a wheelchair, I got flustered and couldn't unlock my suitcase to remove my extra 2 pounds, but we had easy flights and Gordy was Mr. On-The-Spot and we set off for Quincy.

Shirley slept most of day in the car--poor thing had her head hanging and probably had a painful crook in it the next day, but she wouldn't admit she was sleeping and just prop her head more comfortably.

Happy poodles met us at all three houses and after I loaded Shirley's luggage on the 4-wheeler and she sped off, I am sure she was met by a wagging Happy.

What a great vacation! I love being with those three women more than anything and getting to ride in new country is priceless! I will be ready to do it again next summer and every summer thereafter. J

Party like we on vacation!

Wahooo! We are almost on vacation!

Last weekend we rode with Goldie the mule and her person, Mary Ann. It was another great day of riding. Ziggy fell in love with Goldie and was unbelievable--his ears were forward the whole time, his tongue was in his mouth all day, and he did not go pee one time! Star of course was a little sideways, silly boy, and Jupes wanted to look at her, but kept his feet moving. I told him, "ride your own shoes!"

We went backwards on our trails and it was like they were all new. Even the branches were bent the opposite way so it was a little brushy, but Mary Ann said she liked it brushy! :) She wore a cowboy hat that she had to hang on to and now she has decided to get a helmet. (The way we ride, it's probably a good thing!) She is ready to do it again!

Me, too! We've had several great weekend rides and beautiful days to do it. Yay--it's summer!!

Bells, birdies, and stars

Church bells ringing, ringing--oh wait, it's only Saturday! Well, actually you could tell me anything and I would have believed it. I sort of lost part of the ride on Saturday! I had my bell rung! The first time ever.

It was a gorgeous, first day of a long weekend. We rode up the Hennessey and went to our new trail on the right. Everything was going well--well as good it goes some days (broken breast collar that snapped when Jupes stumbled into a hole, Shirley freaked out by a steep upgrade, caught between a cow and her herd--it started to follow us up the mountain), but overall good. Then something weird happened. Honestly all I remember is being in a tree and a sort of a flying sensation. Shirley said she turned around to tell me to watch out for the swinging branch--maybe I kind of remember that, but Jupes had already moved away from it toward the tree.

I guess I got clotheslined. I have had few scrapes and a bruise on my forehead (under my helmet's visor!). Lynn said she saw me about two feet from the ground. I was straight out, like a belly flop, but I turned and tucked my right arm under me. Then I hit the ground and she heard the air explode out of me. Then I didn't move. I scared her.

The next thing I knew was I hearing a horrible rasping sound and realized it me making it. I do not remember talking to her, but she said I told her I was not broken, but could not catch my breath. She said my eyes were going around in circles. She said I said, "I think I had my bell rung." I asked her to help me get up because I guess my spurs were caught and I couldn't get my legs under me. Then I got up, walked to Jupe, took him to a log and got on. It wasn't till later that Lynn got more worried.

I guess I asked her about four times if she knew where we were. I don't remember any of that. Later she asked me if I knew where I was now--I was kind of snarky, like "Yeesss." I didn't know why she asked me.

Anyway, I'm fine. Sore, but not broken. It hurts to cough or blow my nose (my chest) and my arm is a little sore, but everything works.

We tried to ride on Sunday, but Buster wasn't having it. We went up Underwood. Shirley got into trouble immediately on the trail and had to bail off. Lynn rode him on the road and he was fine, but once she started him on the trail again, he went kind of ballistic. His back end was trembly and I could see his muscles twitching. So we went home. He is hurting, I guess. He's fine on the flats, but not on the steep hills. Shirley was not interested in getting Star and trying again.

Monday was perfect! Again we went to Underwood. Everyone was perfect. (Although I did hear Shirley yell at Star once, "Star, you old fool!") It was a glorious day; I do not think it could have been better. We rode up to the top of the ridge and looked over and then down and around and up and down. :) I loved it.

Midnight snack

I had a scary adventure with Lynn last night--a breathless midnight call, "Leave your dog at home. The horses are out and I might need help. Don and Mom. . ." If she continued I don't know she said; I either just breathed out, "Okay," and hung up on her or I simply wasn't awake to process the rest. Maybe it was that I was freaked out and heading to find clothes.

Ziva had eaten three pairs of my underwear earlier in the week (I know!! Three!), so in my panicked state, that was one of the things I focused on. I ran to the dryer and pulled out jeans and frantically pawed through until at last I found some. I also found my riding bra. All I could think of was we would be running in the tall grass and I need support.

I ran out to the garage barefooted and grabbed my muck boots where I sat on the front seat and put on socks and stuffed my jeans down into them. I had grabbed my bright orange rain jacket as well, thinking it was probably raining and I would be more visible than in my black feeding slicker. So it's obvious that I was awake and cognizant. But I couldn't get the car started. Then I realized I need to slow down. I was putting it in gear too fast and it was dying. Before I realized it, I was at the top of my driveway. I don't think I truly was completely awake and functioning until I hit 299, where I did not even pretend to stop at the stop sign.

Through all this, Ziva was laying on the bed. Barely one eye cracked open. That girl is a sleeper!

As I flew toward The Place (also know as Ten Firs), all I could think of was foundered horses. I could hear Shirley's voice in my head. I couldn't imagine how they got out, but I could imagine my horse especially, eating himself into being dead. The closer I got, the more questions peppered my brain. How did they learn that either one or all of them were out? What if they were eating next to the highway instead of the field?  I stopped freaking myself out with questions and prayed the rest of the way. Not only was I concerned about horses, but Shirley and Don's safety and health. I desperately worked on my breathing. My heart felt like it was pounding through my chest and I couldn't breathe.

I slowed down as I started up the passing lane--scanning, scanning. No lights in the field, no big, dark bodies near the road. I parked and then Lynn was on the four-wheeler next to me. "Get on!" She handed me the big spot light and we headed to the green gate. Shirley pulled up behind. After I unlocked the gate, dropped the chain that locks it, and dumped the grain bucket Lynn handed to me, Shirley hollered at me to go with Lynn, she'd get the gate.

As we drove up the hill to the "trailer court," dark shapes stirred. Eyes flashed. One, Two. Three. Four. Oh God there's four--I knew it, it's Jupiter out eating too much and missing--Lynn said she could hear me sucking in my breath with each count--FIVE!  At the same time, both of us saw that last dark body move away from the other one, "They're all here!" She breathed. "Our horses are all here! And they're sleeping." I breathed. They were calm and although surprised and circling toward us, they were acting as if nothing untoward was going on. They were happy about a snack, that's for sure. Although Jupes and Star probably thought that we were going to try to catch them to go out for a ride. Brady probably told them we must be going someplace new and fun to leave this early! But they settled down for a quick bite of grain (albeit a small one, since someone dumped the bucket earlier! Sheesh.).

So we patted all of them and told them to go back to sleep and headed out to find this other "small, red horse." Now that I could hear over my beating heart and prayer loop playing in my head, I heard Lynn's story. A truck driver saw a horse by the east driveway. He stopped and blocked the driveway and walked up to Bev's house to tell her. She went to her neighbor's house to call Shirley, who called Lynn. Lee was dispatched off to Hawkins Bar and 299 in general to put on the flashers to slow and warn people. We drove to the bottom of the driveway, Shirley jumped in with Don in the truck, Lee pulled up and said he saw nothing--no horse between The Place and Hawkins Bar. Lynn and I drove both 4-wheelers up the highway to the east driveway. Lynn flashed the spotlight all through the trees. No horse. We drove across the highway to Suzy-Q side. Again, no horse. We went home and put all the halters and 4-wheelers away.

I hung out with Lynn and Haley (who was over the top excited!) for about half and hour and then drove home. Shoooo. Breathe.

When I got home, I was wide awake of course. So I put on my new Tony Lama's and clomped around the house. Ziva got up to see what in the heck I was doing! (I'm trying to see if they are going to rub. I truly hate sending stuff back. It's such a hassle AND I need boots!) Finally, I went back to bed and read for a bit.

Adventures in horse ownership. Like they say, "It's always something!" Thankfully it was something with a positive outcome. Hopefully that other horse is safely home, too.

Ingenuity and a little tape

It's spring! Flowers are blooming and springs are running. And yep, the girls are riding. Well, sort of. Still no shoes! Doesn't he know we're ready to go? Schedules are meant to be amended! It's been eight weeks--let's roll!

Okay, rant over. Hopefully our shoer will show up this week. Daylight's burning people.

Both Jupiter and Ziggy couldn't fit in the largest boot, so Lynn taped them to protect their tender feet. (She should make a commercial for tape. Duct tape is no longer just a guy's thing!) Ziggy lost his on the meadow, but Jupes kept his on the whole ride. Buster wore all four like a champ.

We tootled around the bottom meadow where water was running and the ground was soft. The only guy feeling his oats (well, his alfalfa) was Buster. Shirley got to have a carnival ride. He wanted to buck and crow hop a little. I think he and Jupes are competing on the trail again. Buster likes to be in front and I don't think he's the "boring" horse that Shirley thinks he is. Thankfully, she got him under control with a minimum of fuss.

Unfortunately, what started out as a wonderful day ended on a sad note. My little hiss n spit baby had been slowly declining. The vet thinks she might have had stomach cancer. So I had to let her go. My heart is broken and our house is a little emptier. For such a little thing, she a had a huge personality.

Barefootin'

Last Saturday was our first ride of 2016. It's been four months!! It felt so good to be in the saddle; however, the boys don't have shoes on and they were less than happy about it. All of them tried to find the softest ground to walk on. Thankfully it's all pretty soft and wet.

We tried out our chinks! They are awesome. They kept us warm and dry and the branches that have overgrown the trail did not hurt. Shirley says she'll wear them all year. I don't think I will able to as I think they will be hot. The jury's still out on whether I will take them to New Mexico or not. I love the fact that our hostess says she rides in them every day because they make her "look cool!" I think we are totally going to like her.

The best news of all is about Alisa and Keota. After a year of recuperating, she rode her big boy and all was well! Yay! I know that it must have been hard to climb up and be calm those first few minutes. After all of my falls, I was able to get back on without a lot of thought--so less trepidation was involved. After my broken arm in 2014, I rode at least part of the way down; but when I got back on in Feb/Mar, four months later, I was more cautious for sure.

Not only was her injury way more serious than a broken arm, Alisa had to wait a whole year to, as Shirley would say, "Get back on that horse!" That's a lot of time for thinking and worrying. But she did it and he was good. Keota is super smooth and easy gaited, and although she loves Odie--her forever horse--he is a little rougher than Keota.

So we are all off to a good riding year. I hope we all have a "fall-less" year with lots of wet blankets.

Brush Work

We are all excited and happy about El Nino--we want the rain, the snow, the cold weather that keeps that snow on the mountaintops. We want that water for summer. BUT, all those wet blessings mean no riding for us. So we did the next best thing, we walked a few of our trails.

With the extreme downfall at 10 Firs, aka The Place, we were worried about the potential downfall and getting around on our trails. However, they were not bad at all; in fact, only one tree was down and it didn't impede our regular path. Now, we only did the east side of Hennessey, so the west side might be a different story, but everything looked good. We trimmed branches and bushes that have either overgrown the trail or were ones that we always wished were gone.

It felt good to be outside and exerting our muscles a little. The dogs loved it and were running and playing on the trails. There was water running everywhere. Unspoken and aloud, both of us said prayers of gratefulness and wishes that the water would remain all year.

It was a wonderful day.

the pictures

I know, I know--we need the rain

We have not ridden since Veterans Day. November got busy and cold. It rained 10 inches in December AND we had a white Christmas! Yay! The boys have had their shoes pulled and are happily barefoot in the woods. Hopefully that will help strengthen their hooves so they will hold their shoes better. They have had an exciting winter so far with hundreds, maybe thousands of trees cracking and splitting and falling down around them.  They are alternately wet and muddy and dry and muddy. :)  Everybody looks good: Brady and Star are furry, Zigs is pretty lean, and Jupiter and Buster are pretty fat.

Lynn and I are envious of Alisa, who is starting another class. She is going to take Odie, who will be happy to be with her. He is not as smooth as Keota, but the two of them trust each other and Odie will help ease Alisa back into the saddle after a year off. I sure wish Jupiter and I could take some classes together--I know I do a lot of things wrong with him and I would like to be a better rider. I told Lynn I am nervous to ride anyone else, since I have gotten comfortable with how Jupes and I do things and it would probably not work with another horse. :( I also hope he calms down some this next year and stops throwing temper tantrums when we are on the trail.

In two weeks we get to hang out at the Bull & Gelding Sale! I can hardly wait.