Juneuary, June Gloom, Just a June to Enjoy

Always on the hunt for wild flowers, but these might be my favorite. 

Well, I got behind! It's one month later and we have been pretty consistently riding every other day. What more could a girl ask for?! June's weather has been unpredictable, but we have stayed true to our summer hours of being on the road between 6:00 and 6:30, which gets us home around 10:00 before the heat hits. 

We've ridden up Underwood twice, once without the dogs and once we did the Pond's Loop and checked out all our old trails we haven't been on in awhile. I am happy to report that the wild duck houses are still up! On the day without the dogs, we saw a covey of baby quail. At first we thought it was a momma calling them and getting them to catch up with her, but I think it was too small for a momma--it must have been a teenaged babysitter because she seemed small. lol. They were so cute. We actually cut our ride a little short because not only was it cold, it was windy and neither of us like being out in the woods when the branches are creaking and pinecones are flying!  Underwood

June has been full of flowers; the show keeps on going. We have seen flowers we've never seen before and carpets of flowers that are usually pretty sparse. 

 Cool orchid/fungus flower! 

We rode Lynn's favorite trail backwards one day and on our way back down the hill, we scared up a grouse. He was pretty close to us and both horses were surprised and gave us some a pretty good shy action. That always makes me laugh. We rode Brushy Balls and there were lots of detours around down trees and the brush seemed even more thick than usual. We ended up on the skid road on the south side of the creek and had to make our way back across to the regular trail so the girls could get a drink. We did some much needed trimming on Cobweb Alley and we have ridden forwards and backwards. I have been bonked on the head with limb I did not see, adding to my neck pain; Jupes slipped and jarred my back in a way that was new and continues to be a little achy, but all worth it in the long run.

Next it was time to take the side by side out to Little Happy Camp to do some trimming and make sure the road was open. We wore our chinks to protect our legs from the spines on that awful tree. It was cold, so we had coats on as well. Crazy that it's the day after the Summer Solstice. :) 

I had my camera in my hands ready to catch a bear and we did! My pics aren't great, but I was snapping as fast as I could. He was beautiful and shiny and a big guy--probably 400 lbs. 

Look for the dark spec.

That's his big hinny going up the bank on the left.

I wish I would've got him running up the road. He was gorgeous.

We also saw a huge grouse--up close and personal. So fun.

It was a good day!

 

May Flowers

 May has been a beautiful month. Every time we go up any trail on the Hennessey, it seems like there are more irises than before. Carpets of them, clumps of them. Some have spaghetti flowers intermixed with them.  If purple is the first flower, irises are the longest blooming flower. I am watching for our tiger lilies, but so far the only orange we have seen are Columbine flowers. We are so blessed.

May 7: we backtracked looking for my bracelet. The time before was a crazy, boonie-crashing, good time, but I broke a lot of branches across my shoulders and head. Somewhere, I lost my little gold bracelet. With Lynn's hawk eyes, we will probably find it one day. Bracelet 1, Riders 0

May 8: the young mother from the trailer met us once we parked. She had news and wanted to give us the heads-up--coyote babies and parents yipping all night and very close to our trail to the ranch. We heard them as we got ready to head out. Not going that way! I worried a little about big Z for a mile or so. She is always behind and not as fast as she once was. 

We rode around on the other side and had a great time. I wanted to see the Turtle Pond; it was dried up enough to use the get-on rock. T/C is doing so well! He barely even gives mud, puddles, or little creek crossing a second thought. Amazing. Turtle Pond

May 10: Lynn said, let's ride my favorite trail. Or at least let's try and see how far we can get. It was clear and easily navigated. The top where she put a few sticks to mark a sort of fence, still had one upright marker and we scooted though the brush to the road. It was fun. Lynn's Trail

On the way up the east side, there is a bit of a mess where we by the road (near last year's bee nest). She wants to clean it up and grabbed a branch to break and yard off. Well, it was bigger than she realized (6' long and two hands around). She grabbed it and it fell on her head, leaving a pretty good hole in the screen of her helmet and giving her a headache and jammed her neck. Not good.

Later, we were crossing a downed tree and she decided to move the pieces of wood that the motorcyclists had put up to use as a ramp over it. Nope. Put back down. Scorpion! A big one.

May 20: Solo ride I had a dentist appointment, so Lynn, T/C, and KD went for ride up Hennessey by themselves. She said T/C did really well, but he wanted KD right in front of him for security. 

May 21: Clinkers! Pablo was supposed to put on new shoes last Saturday, but broke down. Jupes has been needing them and today I am surprised we made it all the way back without losing one. We took a short ride so I wouldn't have to walk too far back if he lost one (or two). lol Like I always say--it doesn't matter to me how long we ride, as long as we ride. 

Hobbit's House Trail (coming down the east side)* Now also known as the Live Oak Spur.     

April Rides

Roller Coaster Section  

Coming down from the top

Saturday, Apr 12:

We headed up the Hennessy and went to the turtle pond. It was amazing!! There are several new logs that fell into the pond and the water is way past the get on rock. Indy's frog pond is also full of water and boggy around the sides. The streams are running everywhere and the big puddles on the road toward Deadfall Ridge are huge. TC barely hesitates and went right through them. KD ran everywhere and Lynn said it was "shades of Hailee." :)

Wednesday, Apr 16:

We decided to try Cobweb Alley. All our trails are new adventures because we don't know if there are going to be trees down and or bushes to cut back, but we thought we’d try. I was concerned that it would be slick right by the spot where it is deep and I thought the creek would be rushing and the idea made me a little nervous. However, it was not bad and Jupes was super confident. Lynn had to get off and cut down a small tree that fell across the messy part of Cobweb Alley--but that is so normal for us. There were waterfalls, trillium, and purple and yellow flowers everywhere. Again TC just plowed through all the water and boggy spots.

Saturday, Apr 19:

Lynn asked me where I wanted to go, so I chose Gray’s Falls. It was dark and cool. I was wishing I had worn my chinks! There was a lot of fresh bear scat, but we did not hear or see him. We took the boys out before breakfast and on the way home I could hear Jupiter’s belly rumbling. 

Tuesday, Apr 22: We rode on the ranch. We did a lot of boonie bouncing and I have the bloody facial wounds to prove it! I think Jupes forgets I’m taller than he is and he just wanted to get through the trail where the tight branches touch him as quickly as possible. We had broken, snapping branches all around us. Crazy new thing: the blackberries have been weedeated (not completely, but a wide swath along the creek). We wondered why and who?

Thursday, Apr 24:Tired Horses

Cold! 45 degrees at my house, 41 at the trailhead and 46 when we finished our ride. Definitely chink weather and like knuckleheads, we did not put them on. Before we left The Place, Lynn said the horses ran and ran. They're out on the grass by snack bar full-time now. They were having fun--turning on the afterburners and didoing in the trees. When Lynn went to catch them, they were just standing there breathing hard, already sweating and spent. Jupiter must have thrown himself down and rolled; he was a mud mess! They looked at us like, “What? It’s Thursday--our day off!” We didn’t ride real long because they were tired!

April is ending this week. It’s been a fun month! Unfortunately, I am working at school these last few days and we are taking them to the vet for shots; then I am getting my new stove and finally, I have a meeting in LA, so my riding days are done until next week (hopefully Wednesday). We’ve had some April showers, so there should be some new May flowers!

Easy Eight

Tuesday, we met Cathy and Roany at Jelly’s Ferry. When I got to Lynn’s, she already had TC and Jupiter tied up to the trailer. Her plan was to take TC saddled already and then unsaddle him and brush him out over there. He seems to have a bit of a “cold back” and does better going saddled. Trying to brush him out would have taken too long and it wasn’t really light enough to see just how bad he really was. Lol

Jupes met me with pinned ears and a pushy attitude. I guess none of them found the breakfast hay. They were running around in circles. When they finally saw her and realized the hay was out, they settled a little. She grabbed TC and tied him up outside the gate. Jupes was HANGRY. He put himself around the side of the board by the gate and locked his legs. He was not, NOT, going. FORGET IT! Lynn got him out and he was not happy. Once it was time to put them in the trailer and he saw the hay bags, things got better. 

Once we got to Jelly’s Ferry, we all brushed out our muddy, hairy boys. I was a little worried about how Jupes was going to behave. This is one of his spots where he sometimes misbehaved.  We think it is probably the wide open spaces and he’s not used to it. Thankfully, he was great!

TC was a water warrior!! He did so well. He did jump over one little creek, but mostly he just powered through, even drinking some several times.

The trails were nice and no snakes were visible. Definitely an answer to prayers! We enjoyed a pleasant temperature and were able to wear tank tops. The grass was green and plentiful and Roany and Jupiter enjoyed snacking.  

Dusty, Kate, and Ziva had a great day. There was a lot of water to drink and some shade and easy trails. Dusty and Kate ran and ran. Ziva conserved her energy, but did really well. 

Jelly's Ferry Relive

These are the kind of days I hoped we'd have once we were both retired. It's the best! I am so glad we have Cathy and Dusty to join us. We are looking forward to riding much, much more.

It begins!

Mar 25, 2025

First ride of the year--first week day ride of Lynn's retirement! Woohoo!

We've had a great winter of rain and snow and wind. We finally got shoes and decided to venture out. We decided the ranch was probably the easiest and quickest (I had a scholarship Zoom scheduled). Right off the "git" Jupes got spooked by the big culvert pipe. It was raging full of water; but I don't think that was what did it--I think it was because it was humming. 

Anyway, we turned right off the road and wove our way down to the meadow. There we saw turkeys! Quail were flying everywhere, too. We stayed high on the west side of the meadow because it was sure to be boggy closer to the creek.

Then we went over the creek and back into the woods towards the big pond/lake. From there we went out on the east side of the creek. Jupes was jiggy from the beginning. So not comfortable. So when Lynn said, "Whaddya think? Head back?" I was ready. 

It was short, but felt good to get out.

April 4, 2025

Another weekday ride! We went up Underwood. Lynn thinks it's been since early summer maybe since we came up. We avoid this spot, as much as we like it, when the stickers come out. Well, this day we had snow!!  In the snow were turkey track (I never knew how big their feet were!), big momma bear tracks next to a yearling sized track, and maybe either coyote or fox tracks.  

TC started off spooked this ride. He kicked the mounting block, which made a hollow, deep sound he was didn't recognize. But the longer Lynn sat waiting for me to reset the block and get out from under a tree branch to get on, the more she felt his back relax. Off we went. 

What a gorgeous day. Lots of sun, green grass, and water running everywhere. TC was perfect. He didn't baulk at any water crossings or muddy fields. Because of the number of trees down and branches blocking our way, we had to get off once to navigate. He went right through the squishy mud. Once we remounted, we had to go through a bit of a grassy pond to get to the road and he did not hesitate at all. 

We spent some time up at the top where the sun shone down on us and brought on a great sense of peace. It was a wonderful day.

 

Unpublished draft from Sept 10

Just found this post in my list: it's the one that didn't save and I tried to rewrite it. I guess I gave up? Anyway here it is:

August rides come to an end.

I started writing this draft at school while students were busy and I didn't need to teach or ride herd on them. I forgot that the server at school does not like blogs. Like we are protecting students online--what a joke; they can go anywhere and do anything on their phones. So I lost the bottom half and I never came back to put in the pics, but here is a little bit anyway.

Shoes

Pablo came to trim and shoe the boys on Saturday. Of course he was an hour and a half late. AND he brought his pretty little girlfriend, so I figured it would take even longer. One of the scariest things happened while he was doing Zig's feet--Ziggy pulled back. HARD. He even went down. All the horrible things I have ever heard came screaming into my brain. Jupes was freaked as well and pulled back to get away from whatever scared Zigs and Ziggy's feet as well. It was over pretty quick. Thankfully he did not land on Pablo, who is young and quick and got out of the way. Everything was fine. No one was hurt. But Ziggy's brand new, never been worn halter was shredded from the third hole to the first. 

Lynn's Favorite Trail

We gave the boys Sunday off and rode on Labor Day itself. We rode Lynn's favorite. Unfortunately, the motorcycle riders have found it and created their own messy trail on top of ours; however, they couldn't get all the way through. We stopped at the good grass snack area where we have seen what we think is a rogue elk's markings. When we started off, it became very clear why the motorcycles turned back. More trees have come down. Lynn walked it and put limbs upright like a fence along the abyss/creek canyon so we would know to stay to the right. We made it to the road pretty easily.

Yak-kedy Yak, Sputter, Gag, Silence

The following Saturday we took off for an early ride. I was jabbering on about my trip to Oregon to take my niece to college. Gnats flew all around us. I was sputtering and spitting and Lynn was laughing. Suddenly she was gagging, too. I think we swallowed some bugs.  

Bathroom Stop

Zigs Wild Ride 

Can't remember what I was going to say! Dang it.

"I Have an Idea"

 

I have no idea where to start! We have ridden so many times since my last post. I do not know where the time has gone. Everyone is saying Lynn will have to get a job after she retires; Lynn will need to stay busy; Lynn will miss all the social interaction with customers and need a job to get her out; Lynn will . . . WELL,  I think Lynn is going to be incredibly busy and extremely happy to not have a regular job. LOL. I have not had the time to do this silly blog and I'm retired, but busy. We are going to ride (Jupiter's shoes are good until late December) and she has a list a mile long of things she wants to do. I think maybe people don't realize just how nice it is to do things on your own time schedule and not one dictated by a job.

Some rides I missed writing about that were super fun: we met Alisa and took Jupes, TC, and Zigs up to Cathy's for a weekend. We went with Karrie Ann and did some fun road riding, a little boonie bouncing, and a wide flat meadow with a bit of bog at the end. It was fun. I took Ziva this time and she got along fine with Karrie Ann's dogs on the trail (the mean one at the house scared her). It wasn't dusty and she stayed right along with us. Second day we went up by Little Grand Canyon and out and about through the woods. It was another fun day.

I don't think I wrote about Cathy coming over. We took her on our trails and on the new Ranch loop and rode around. I love it down there. 

 Our Gray's Falls ride now has a rest area. The rest of the ride is a little disheartening and frustrating, but I liked the BnBs. :)

So anyway--it's fall. The leaves are gorgeous and the air is crisp. There's more, but I have things to do and have to get out of my pjs. LOL.