Tag Archives: utah horse trails

Good trails, Western Trails

A tough ride on Loafer Mountain

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I have been looking up at Loafer Mountain for the past five years, wanting to ride up there and do some exploring!

Loafer Mountain, stands 10,687 feet, located just east of Salem, Utah.  There are a number of known trails cross-crossing Loafer Mountain, but only a few of them see much use.  One such trail is actually a service trail that runs from Salem, Utah, up a canyon, the name of which I do not know, eventually arriving at a cellular tower station on a hilltop at 9,000 feet elevation. This route begins at a Salem City’s water tank at the mouth of a canyon and climbs rapidly for the first mile, to a satellite installation. From there the road ascends more gradually to the Cellular tower, which stands on a mountain top, just north of Santaquin Peak and west of Loafer Ridge.

Yesterday, May 30, 2020, I decided was the day to attempt a ride up this service trail, pass over to Loafer Ridge, and return down Maple Canyon (sometimes called Water Canyon, due to the Woodland Hills water tank at its mouth). I had been told there were trails connecting the two canyons, but the condition of the trails was unknown, nor did I come across anyone who had actually hiked those trails…at least not recently.

I saddled up Copper around 7:30am, equipping myself with the essentials: lunch, a 2 qt military canteen, pommel and saddle bags with my emergency gear in them, my slicker and a light jacket, just in case, and a bottle of roll-on bug repellant for Copper, against the possibility of horse flies. We were on the trail by about 8am.

Within about a half-hour we were starting our ascent on the service trail to the lower satellite installation, where the service trail joins the old mining road from the Dream Mine. I’ve written about this trail before, here. The ascent that first mile is very steep and a horse that is not in very good condition will be exhausted by the time it reaches the satellite installation there. After that, the ascent is much more gradual, though still quite a climb.

I will also comment here that the trail is extremely rocky and though I try to leave my horses barefoot as much as possible, this trail should not be attempted with a barefoot horse. He won’t make it.

On the way up this service trail, there are some pretty nice views back toward town and looking on up the canyon. At one point, you pass an old mine opening that has been closed for safety reasons. Kinda cool, though.

We followed this service trail up to a saddle about a half-mile or so short of the cellular tower, where there is an unnamed trailhead. There is also some pretty nice grass, so I had lunch there and allowed Copper to graze for nearly an hour. I figured he was going to need the strength. There are some pretty spectacular views from there.

By this point we were at about 8,500 ‘ elevation, having ascended about 4,000′ in a matter of about 7 miles. Like I said, it’s a grueling climb for a horse. If you go on up to the cellular tower, you will be at 9,000’.

The trail up to Loafer Ridge, from this point, is closed to all but foot and horse traffic. However, the USFS has not left any way to get a horse to the trailhead, having closed it off with cables to preclude any vehicular traffic. We had to go around to the north side and climb a very steep, rocky bank, to get to the trail.

Once on the trail, it was easy to follow, having been blazed by use of ATVs, but it climbed too steeply in places for a horse. I detoured a couple of times to make switchbacks to make it easier on Copper. About 3/4 of a mile along this trail, I turned off and did some bushwhacking to avoid a hilltop and make our way over to a saddle below Loafer Ridge, where we needed to go. This was a very steep hillside, as are they all at this elevation on Loafer, but Copper handled it well.

At the saddle, we found a USFS guzzler with clean water. However, as the saying goes, “You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make him drink.” Copper wouldn’t touch it. He’ll learn. My trail horses know that when there’s water, you drink! This guzzler will likely be dry during the late summer/fall time of year.

You can’t see them, but on the hillside behind the guzzler, there are three elk. They were heading for the saddle and turned away when they spotted us. In the photo below, you may be able to pick them out.

After the guzzler, there is no more trail, other than a number of game trails heading in various directions. We chose a game trail that headed off in a southerly direction, climbing Loafer Ridge at a fairly reasonable rate for a horse. It eventually crossed an old service trail that comes up the eastern side of Loafer, probably from the small community of Birdseye, Utah, or near there, on US 89. It climbs another couple hundred feet or so onto Loafer Ridge, then descends slightly to a pair of large cellular repeater reflectors stationed on the ridge.

At this point I was very near the highest elevation of my ride, at 9663 feet. I bypassed a hilltop as I went around it to descend the other side into a saddle on Loafer Ridge. Apparently at some point I went up another foot, to my highest elevation of 9664 feet. The views from Loafer Ridge were spectacular!

After descending into the saddle, I joined an old trail that descends into the bowl below Loafer Peak on the northwest side. This is the top of what I believe is known as Maple Canyon, sometimes also called Water Canyon, due to the spring and water tank located at its mouth that supplies water to the municipality of Woodland Hills.

This trail is an old one, probably cut by a dozer. It does two switchbacks before disappearing altogether about 2/3 of the way down the hillside. By the time we reached the end of the trail, we were deep in a thicket of stunted aspen and thick undergrowth. I had been told there was a trail in the valley that joined the ATV trail further down Maple Canyon, so I decided to continue. I won’t call that a mistake, but don’t let anybody convince you that there is a trail down in there somewhere!

Getting down the rest of that hillside was a “butt-clincher” even for me! Copper really impressed me with his cool, collected temperament on that descent. It was truly some “Man From Snowy River” stuff.  When I first turned him downhill, to get through a thick area to a less dense one, the ground gave way and we slid all of twenty or so feet before Copper could get us stopped. We then traversed the hillside, going from open area to open area, slowly heading toward the higher end of the valley, to make our descent trail shorter. Copper had to move with his hind quarters lower than his fore quarters, as he moved sideways along the hillside, to keep from sliding farther downhill in the loose soil.  In the photo below, we started our trail-less descent about where the center of the photo is and made our way switchbacking some places and descending straight down in others. I was glad to hit more level ground in the bottom. I can tell you this photo does not do that hillside justice!

Once in the bottom, I let Copper rest a little and get his breath. Meanwhile, I took a few more photos.

From that point, I started looking for that “trail” I was told about. If there was a trail, it was indistinguishable from the hundreds of elk and deer trails in the area. I tried following several of them, but they all seemed to either ascend or stay pretty level, while the valley fell away steeply. Knowing that eventually, I would have to descend anyway, Copper and I made our way down into the dry creek bed in the bottom of the canyon. This descent was pretty tricky as well, as we were back in the Spruce and Fir trees, with their attendant deadfalls blocking the way at every turn. Copper was pretty impressive in getting over and around and through some of those tangles, some of which were on steep hillsides.

Traveling in the creek bottom was actually a lot easier than I expected. I was pleased to find it was narrow, but pretty soft in the bottom, with no steep drops or cliffs. We ran into the occasional tangle of debris, but in those cases the deer and elk left us pretty decent trails to get up and around them.  That isn’t to say it was easy going, but it was easier and safer than traversing the steep sidehills.

We followed that for maybe two miles, before we came to our first and only deadfall that we could not get around. When we initially came upon it, I decided to try to go up the bank and around it on the right side. It looked like we could make it if we were very careful.

However, as Copper started up the bank, the loose soil began sliding and he began losing footing. I was concerned that Copper might get tangled in the three downed tree tops while losing his footing, so I unloaded on the uphill side.

As I did so, my downhill (left) boot didn’t come out of the stirrup. As Copper turned to get himself oriented to go back down the bank, I was still attached to the saddle! My left leg was stretched out with the stirrup pulled up over the top of the saddle, with my body on the ground trying to crawl uphill, not fully aware my left foot was still in the stirrup! As Copper turned, his right rear hoof came down on my right calf. At the same time, Copper paused, which let my left foot come out of the stirrup. Copper then got himself to the bottom of the bank and walked off a few steps, then stopped to wait for me. Lucky for me, the ground was very soft, which occasioned the whole debacle, and all I suffered was a bruised calf. Copper came through uninjured.

At this point, I realized going around this deadfall was not an option. I went to my saddle bags and pulled out my trusty rope-saw from among my emergency gear, which is actually a chainsaw chain with nylon loops for handles at each end. I have carried this thing in my saddle bags for years and this is the first time I have ever needed it. I’m pretty glad I had it.

I first tried to cut the large aspen log, with a diameter somewhat over 12 inches, but soon realized that was going to take a very long time, as the saw blade would stick as soon as it got over an inch deep. So, I reassessed and realized that if I removed the lower tree, a Spruce about 6″ in diameter at the point I needed to cut, Copper might fit under the large Aspen.

After about another half hour of work, I got the sapling cut and moved and other branches and debris cleared away. It was going to be close! By eyeball measurements I realized that the saddle horn would contact the tree, so I removed the saddle and hauled it a few yards down the trail. The photo below is deceiving and makes it look like Copper would have plenty of clearance. He was actually standing at least ten feet behind the log when the photo was taken.

Now, it was just a matter of convincing Copper that it was safe to pass under that big old Aspen log!

Well, that sounds easy, but it wasn’t . After about an hour of coaxing and sweet-talking, I finally got Copper to put his head under the log, but he wouldn’t go any farther. About that time a thunderstorm passed over, but luckily we got only a light sprinkle. Still, Copper wouldn’t move any farther. Eventually, he began to be bothered by bees and horse flies, causing him to have to move his feet. This seemed to make it easier for me to convince him to move his feet closer to the deadfall each time. Finally, I got his head and neck under the tree, nearly to his withers and could see he was going to clear with a couple inches to spare. I had to go slow, because I knew that if he pulled back and raised his head and bumped that log, I would never get him to pass under it.

By coaxing him on, inch by inch, I finally got him all the way under and past the tree. He still wasn’t sure, though, so I had to get him a couple feet past it, before he would chance walking forward.

With that out of the way, I re-saddled Copper and headed out again. The rest we had while I coaxed him under the deadfall served both of us well and Copper moved off at a good, strong walk. About another 200 yards or so along the creek bottom, we came upon the ATV trail at the point where I had ridden up and turned around a couple weeks before. Copper began to recognize where he was and moved right along, sometimes even getting into his running-walk.

We followed the trail to the water tank, mentioned above, and then followed the road into Woodland Hills. From there it was about two miles to home.

We arrived back at the stable at about 5:45pm, after a long and very difficult ride. Both myself and Copper were absolutely worn out.

After a good brushing, I checked Copper’s back for soreness and found none. I was very pleased with that. He has various bumps and scrapes on his lower legs, but nothing serious or that required any treatment. After a tough ride, Copper looked good, though tired.

I, on the other hand, was limping around with a bruised calf, which I well-deserved!

During the ride, we made an ascent of 4730 feet, making it 9,460 feet in elevation change in all. We traveled about 16 miles, although my tracker software, Ramblr, shows 15.3 miles. I paused the app twice for rest stops and forgot to turn it back on until I had gone quite a ways. You will see those gaps in the track. Our highest elevation was 9664, which is waaay up there! Here’s the link:

https://www.ramblr.com/web/mymap/trip/303226

So, another trail I have been wanting to ride was done. One I will never attempt again! It was a tough ride!

TH

 

Good trails, Training, Western Trails

I Had a Good Day Yesterday…

March 2, 2019

I got up early…but not too early, had breakfast, hitched up my trailer, and headed out to see the horses. I enlisted the help of my son-in-law to help me catch-up Oreo, who was to be taken to Harrisville, Utah to meet her prospective new owner, Cindy Boccia. Oreo is a little reluctant when it comes to being caught in a big pasture, so I knew it would take a few minutes. After allowing the six horses to run around the 3-1/2 acres for a while, they finally decided they’d had enough fun and games and settled down to be caught – Oreo last of all. We haltered and tied each one, after which Oreo stood to be haltered.

We loaded Oreo and Apollo into the trailer and I headed north toward Kaysville, where I picked up Jon Tanner and his yearling filly, Luna. Since we were to meet the Brand Inspector at Cindy’s place, we decided to bring Luna along to get her inspection done as well.

Once at Cindy’s place in Harrisville, both Luna and Apollo received their brand inspection. While that was going on, Cindy and I let Oreo out into her smallest corral, which was probably about a 75′ diameter round pen with a run-in shed on one end, so that Cindy could see how Oreo is to catch. After just a little effort, Oreo stood for me to halter her. She has been improving in that area over the past month or so, but she is still stand-offish. I am sure she will continue to improve and will eventually come to be haltered, under Cindy’s care.

Cindy, Jon, and I then loaded Apollo and Oreo back into the trailer and the three of us headed back to Kaysville, where we dropped Luna and loaded Jon’s Missouri Fox Trotter mare, Maya (Luna’s dam).  We then headed over to Antelope Island State Park for an afternoon ride.

Looking out toward Buffalo Point near White Rock Bay

For those unfamiliar with Antelope Island, it is an island in the southeastern part of the Great Salt Lake in Utah. Over the years, the State of Utah has used it as a breeding ground for the state’s herd of buffalo, antelope, and bighorn sheep. Each year the state holds a buffalo roundup, where they gather the buffalo, cut out the surplus and sell them at auction.  The roundup has gained national fame and multitudes of people with their faithful steeds gather to participate. Registration for the event is held online and the available slots are filled many months in advance. The populations of buffalo and other animals are left to run wild, but are managed closely for health and numbers.  The park service has created a number of trails for equine, foot, and bicycle traffic on the island, making it a prime trail riding experience for those who enjoy a relaxing day ride, while being able to view wild buffalo and other wildlife of the island. For further information, see their web page at:

https://stateparks.utah.gov/parks/antelope-island/

Between the ears, looking at a buffalo herd

Just a word of caution, buffalo are dangerous critters and they have no tolerance for the intrepid rider coming in among their herd. Do not think of them as cattle! Always stay well clear of them. There are more human deaths in Yellowstone National Park from buffalo attacks than from bear attacks!

The weather was not perfect, by any means, however. It was cold and a little breezy, with gray winter clouds hanging low over the mountain tops. We were unable to see the Wasatch mountains east of us. However, the temperatures were not too bad for riding, as long as one wore a couple layers and a good coat.  We saw several other horse trailers parked in the White Rock Bay parking lot, but encountered no other horses on the trail.

As the real purpose for this ride was to allow Cindy to get acquainted with Oreo, we planned for only a couple hours on the trail. There are a number of trail options, each differing in distance and elevation changes. We chose one that would take us around one of the hills on the island, offering nice views, both of the landscape and several small herds of Buffalo. There were slight uphill and downhill grades, as well as some long flat stretches where we let the horses stretch out their legs and get into gait for a ways.

Cindy getting acquainted with Oreo

As both Oreo and Apollo are Tennessee Walking Horses, Cindy and I put our horses (she on Oreo and I on Apollo) into their traditional running-walk, for which the Tennessee Walker is famous, while I coached Cindy a little on how to recognize the various gaits and how to teach her horse to select and stay in the running-walk. Oreo has been unschooled for a number of years and prefers a stepping-pace. She will need some correction to learn to stay in her very nice running-walk. Cindy picked it up quickly and will have Oreo gaiting perfectly within a short while.

Cindy on Oreo and me on Apollo

We discovered that Oreo wasn’t familiar with velcro. Cindy went to pull out her water bottle and when Oreo heard the velcro come loose, she shied and side-stepped a bit.  She also became a little uneasy at some bicycles, but was easy to handle, even when being skittish. Cindy handled her well under all situations.

Apollo, still a bit unsure on the trail, shied at a row of monster horse-eating boulders at the trailhead, but I was able to convince him to walk between them. Thereafter, he was fine. He shied along with Oreo at some bicycles, but handled the whole situation quite well. The bicyclists were very accommodating, in allowing us to have the horses stand and observe the fearful objects until they realized they were harmless.

So it turned out to be a good trail training day for both Oreo and Apollo and a nice exercise ride for Maya.

As the weather began to deteriorate, we headed back to the trailer, arriving just ahead of the snow. By the time we were headed back to Harrisville, the weather had taken a turn for the worst and we found ourselves driving through poor visibility and falling snow. Still the roads were not bad, just wet.

Me on Apollo (L) and Jon Tanner on Maya

Jon and I dropped Cindy and Oreo off at her place in Harrisville, where she and I prepared all the paperwork for the transfers of ownership for Oreo and Apollo. Once Cindy has had Oreo a while and has decided they will make a great pair on the trail, she will send in the paperwork to the Utah Department of Agriculture and Food and the ownership transfers for Oreo and Apollo will be finalized. As always, with my horses, I offer a 30-day trial period, during which the prospective owner may evaluate the horse, and if, for any reason, they do not feel the horse is right for them, I will take the horse back and refund the purchase price. In this instance, the purchase price is Apollo. Cindy and I have agreed on a trade, horse for horse.

Jon and I then headed back for Kaysville, but took a slight detour en route for a nice Philly Cheesesteak sandwich at a local sandwich shop.

After dropping Jon and Maya at his place in Kaysville, I headed back south for Salem. When I arrived home, it was snowing heavily and the roads were beginning to get slick. After dropping Apollo at the pasture, I nearly jack-knifed my trailer while making a turn into my neighborhood. Luckily, I was moving slowly and a little pressure on the gas pedal straightened everything right out. It was nearing 8:30pm when I backed my trailer into its place at home. I was glad to be back home to enjoy a warm evening indoors with my good wife.

It was a good day all the way around.

Me on Apollo, my new 16HH Tennessee Walker gelding

 

Western Trails

The Highline Trail to Naturalist Basin

I have been pretty busy lately.

At the end of May, my horse pasture landlord called and said he had sold the land and I needed to find a new place for my horses. We were lucky enough to find a suitable location that very week, right across the street from the other location, which is very convenient to my home. The place needed quite a bit of work to make it horse-safe again, since it hadn’t had horses in quite a while. That took a solid week of dirty, sweaty work, the kind that is good for the soul: post hole digging, repairing fence, hauling hay…

I have also been working on redesigning and replacing my front lawn (wife’s idea). There is so much construction going on in our area lately, that we couldn’t get a landscaper to even return our calls, much less give us a bid. So, wife and I have been in DIY mode. I finally got the sprinkler system redesigned and installed. And, it actually works! Yesterday I tilled in 8 yards of compost into our rock and clay “topsoil.” Maybe next week we’ll get some grass in.

On top of that, I have been trying to get some things done on my regular part-time job, which pays most of my horsey bills.

Then, a good thing happened. A friend offered to pay me to train one of his horses. Well, not really train him,  but more like tune him up. He’s a Tennessee Walker nearly 17 hands tall and lean. Nice looking horse. He has had some good training, but wasn’t hitting his gaits like he should. So, I have been riding him two hours in the mornings and coming home to ride my own horses for another hour or so. I’m getting some good miles done on horseback lately. Looks like I may be “tuning up” several more of my friend’s horses. It will certainly help with the horsey bills.

Then, last week Jon Tanner, who I believe knows about every horse trail in Utah, texted me to ask if I wanted to head up to the Highline Trail on Saturday. I had to tell him I’d get back to him as soon as I knew whether I could go. I had a load of compost coming on Friday afternoon that would need to be moved from the street to the yard, so I was thinking I wouldn’t be able to make it.

Happily, when I got home from training my buddy’s TWH on Friday morning, there was the load of compost in a big pile on the street. A couple calls to another buddy landed me a small tractor with a bucket and by about 3pm I had the entire load moved and spread over the front yard. So, a call to Jon confirmed that we’d be heading to the High Uintas the following morning.

L-R Easton, Caden, Amber, Jon

As things turned out, the group Jon had going with him all cancelled one by one and it looked like it would be just Jon and me…which is no problem at all. I posted the information on my facebook page, just in case anybody else wished to join us. That brought in Amber Pierce and her two boys, Caden and Easton.

Jon and I met at 9am in Kamas, Utah, where I put my Missouri Fox Trotter, Lizzy, in his trailer. The trailhead parking lot is a bit restricted and fills up quickly on busy days, so we normally consolidate when we can. Amber and her boys met us there at the trailhead.

Equine parking area at Highline Trailhead

The trailhead for the Highline Trail is on Route 150, also known as the Mirror Lake Scenic Byway, between Evanston, Wy and Kamas, UT, right at the Summit/Duchesne County line, just north of Mirror Lake (the trailhead is in Utah). There are two parking areas, one for cars only and the north one for horse rigs. As I said before, the lot can accommodate several fairly large rigs, but on busy days can fill up with non-equine parking pretty quickly. The parking lot has two entrances, so turning around with a trailer is no problem. There are restrooms, but no running water. A water trough is provided for horses right at the trailhead and riders will cross a number of running streams along the trail. There is no camping allowed at the trailhead and parking requires either an annual permit or a $6 fee.

The trail starts about 10,350′ elevation and the highest point is nearly 10,700′. While the trail is pretty rocky, I have ridden it on a barefoot horse, as has Jon. Our horses have good, hard, healthy feet, and they were tender by the end of the ride, but it’s doable. I recommend shoes or boots. If you try the trail before the July 4th weekend, you’ll have to expect to cross numerous deadfalls, but it’s no problem. There’s always a way around them. There are several man-made wood path sections, crossing muddy areas, as well as several stream crossings, but there are no sections of this trail that I would consider particularly technical or challenging. It is appropriate for riders and horses from advanced to accompanied beginners. The scenery is spectacular including waterfalls, small lakes and numerous streams. Most of the lakes and streams have brook trout. Expect to pass numerous hikers and their dogs, however, since this is a Wilderness Area, there will be no bicyclists.

The trail, according to Ramblr, is about 6.3 miles (to the point at which we stopped for lunch in the basin) and is an in-and-out trail. You will follow the Highline Trail until the fork where the Naturalist Basin Trail turns northeast and the Highline Trail continues southeast toward the Four Lakes area. That fork is at about the five mile mark and there is a sign marking the two trails. The place where we generally stop for lunch and turn around is at the entrance to Naturalist Basin. The trail actually continues a bit farther, but we generally do not follow it out.  The in-and-out is about 5-6 hours, depending on the pace of your horses and how long you take for lunch.

The trailhead is about 2 hours from my home in Salem, Utah. Jon and I normally meet at Kamas, combine our resources, then head on up. It is about 30-40 minutes north of Kamas, Utah. I think it is a little shorter coming south from Evanston, WY. Jon and I generally make it back to Kamas around 5-6pm, at which time we enjoy a delicious hamburger and fries at a small hamburger joint there in Kamas, before heading our separate ways. That’s how the trip went last Saturday.

You can take a look at my Ramblr link here for complete details.

This trail is one of my favorites in the state of Utah. What a great way to spend a Saturday on a horse. It just doesn’t get much better.

In fact, I’m heading up there with another group this Friday!

Western Trails

A Couple Rides in Capitol Reef National Monument, Utah

During the weekend of May 25-27, 2017, Jon Tanner and I headed to Capitol Reef National Monument, southern Utah, to ride with the Utah Missouri Fox Trotter Association (UMFTA) and a few other friends. It’s a ride I have been looking forward to for a while.

Since both Jon and I were taking only one horse each, and since he lives up north and had to pass by my way anyhow, I threw in with him. He picked up me, my horse, and gear on Thursday afternoon about 2:15. We enjoyed a comfortable ride down in his nice rig and arrived at our destination sometime around 7:00 pm or so. We met the rest of our gang on private property that adjoins Capitol Reef, of which the owner is a member of the UMFTA.

On Friday morning, after a fine breakfast, we got saddled up and ready to head out about 10:00 am. That’s when the fun started.

I had brought my new horse, J Golden, figuring this would be an excellent training opportunity. This was officially his sixth and seventh rides, so he was pretty green, but hadn’t given me any trouble so far. Well, he was excited to see all the new horses and people and to be in a new place. As I tried to mount, he began fidgeting around. I reined him in on the left side and turned him a couple times, trying to get his mind on his business and to stand still, so I could mount. I thought I had him in check, so I pulled myself up. As I was swinging my leg over the saddle, however, J moved into me, which caused me to be over-balanced to the off-side. My right leg swung over as I hung on and I inadvertently jabbed him in the side with my spur. Well, J felt that jab, and not knowing what had happened, and with all the excitement, he immediately launched into a full-fledged bucking spree.

Here I was, hanging onto his right side, off-balance, never having gained the stirrup, and I knew I wasn’t going to stick this one out. I might have when I was 30 years younger, but I knew I wasn’t going to make it this time. I just picked out a nice spot on the lush, green grass and dove for it. I belly-flopped right where I was aiming and watched J go romping around the camp until he was caught up by my riding buddies.

Okay. So, no harm done. I was still in one piece with no broken parts. Even my cell phone survived.

Second try was more successful and once we were all gathered around, we headed off toward the monument boundary.

Jon Tanner on Spirit

Friday’s ride was over a trail that took us up on top of the “reef” known as Capitol Reef. It is a ridge of rock that runs roughly north-south over a long stretch of south-central Utah. There are a number of canyons that run through the reef which offer some spectacular riding, but this day we headed up on top to see the expansive views it offers. It was a dry ride, about 6 miles in, to a point of rock which marked the end of our trail. We could go no further, due to the terrain.

We had lunch on that point, after which we headed back to camp. While I forgot to start my GPS at the beginning of the ride, I remembered at the lunch stop and at least tracked it back.  The trip back was 6.4 miles. The entire ride was only about 4 hours. I haven’t yet figured out how to post the trip on the blog, but here is the link:

http://rblr.co/So3p

The view from our lunch stop point was amazing. I’m sure the visibility was in excess of 100 miles.

We spent a nice, relaxed evening back at camp, where our group all pitched in for a nice camp dinner. I took the opportunity to see how J would do with hobbles. I was pleasantly surprised to find that he reacted very little and the experience was pretty much a “yawner.”

J’s firs time in hobbles

That evening Jon and I shared his high-line. I have a high-line kit I bought a couple years ago, but have never used it, so I had Jon teach me what it’s all about. After stretching the high-line tightly between two cottonwood trees, Jon taught me the rule of 7s. The high line is to be 7 feet high, the horses tied 7 feet apart, and the lead to be 17″ long. He showed me how to tie the loops to attach the leads to the high-line as well. Pretty handy. I normally tie to a tree or picket pin, but those methods are sometimes less practical, less safe for the horses, and leave more disturbed ground in the tie area than the high-line. In areas where it is practical (or required) I plan to use the high-line in the future.

J and Spirit on the high-line

In the photo you will notice our leads are a bit longer than 17″. We tightened them up at night. It still allowed enough rope for the horses to lay down if they wished.

Our ride the following day (Saturday) was up Pleasant Creek, which is one of those canyons that pass through the reef. Pleasant Creek runs year-round and truly is a pleasant little creek. We crossed it a number of times, so if you have a horse that doesn’t like water, by the end of the day, he’ll be fine. Apparently, J got a little dehydrated the previous day, so every time he crossed the creek on Saturday he took the opportunity to drink deeply.

I have to apologize for not taking enough photos on the rides. This was J’s first ride with a group, so he was quite a handful. I had to hold him back the entire two days, although he was better the second day. At the end of each day of riding I felt like I had been doing curls all day with weights. I was able to snap a few shots with my iphone, but I didn’t even try with the Gopro.

Below is a small gallery of some of the views we saw, as we passed through Capitol Reef on the Pleasant Creek trail. We stopped near the visitor’s center at our halfway point. We took a look at the petroglyphs there and ate lunch on the banks of the stream. On the way back we found some more petroglyphs on the canyon walls. The few photos I took do not do the trail justice. It was a very beautiful canyon and a very pleasant ride.

The Pleasant Creek ride was about 13.4 miles and took us about 6 hours. I regard it as an intermediate ride. While there was nothing particularly difficult, there are a couple places where the trail is a little tricky for a beginner, although with a little coaching even beginners could handle it easily. It was not particularly challenging for the horses.

Here is the Ramblr link: http://rblr.co/So3t

The trailheads for the two trails we rode may be accessed from Highway 24 off of Notom Road. Go south from Highway 24 about 6 miles to a dirt-track road. Park wherever it looks like a good spot there off the road. Head southwest to locate Pleasant Creek, then follow the creek westward. You will eventually find the trail leading into the Monument. The trail up on top we took on Friday is a little harder to find. From Notom Road you will take a wash northwesterly until you see a knoll with a rocky rim around it near the top. Some folks call this formation a “Mexican Hat” or a “Chinaman”. It’s the only one in the area near the wash. Take a look at the links I posted and look at the maps with the satellite layer on. Keep in mind that our starting/ending point was private property, so look for another access from Notom Road.

A nice ride for a couple days. I’d like to take the Pleasant Creek ride again sometime. Maybe once I get J a little farther along in his training, so I can spend less time controlling him and more time looking around.

 

Western Trails

Jones Ranch Creek and Rock Spring Trails, Mount Nebo, Utah

I have a goal of riding all the trails that head on the Mount Nebo Loop Road, south of Payson, Utah,  within the next year, so I try to hit a new trail every chance I get. As I get through those trails, I will start on the trails on and around Mount Loafer.

My rig in the Jone Ranch parking area
My rig in the Jone Ranch parking area

Yesterday, my wife and I tried a new trail which heads at the Jones Ranch parking area about 9 miles south of Payson on Mount Nebo Loop Road. It was a nice three-hour ride. Linda rode my mustang Jimbo, and I rode my paint Quarter Horse, Reno. I ponied my Fox Trotter, Lizzy, along just for the exercise and because she really wanted to go with us. She got pretty upset when I took the other two to the trailer and didn’t take her.

The Jones Ranch parking area is adequate for even pretty large rigs to enter and turn around. There are no services offered. There are some primitive campsites around the parking area, but no hookups or conveniences. Some folks set up camp and spend several days riding out on the various trails. The best campsites seem to be right at the trailheads, so expect to have folks passing through or next to your campsite. These trails are “multi-use” trails, so they are open to hikers, horses, bicycles, and motorcycles. Most of the trails are well-maintained and fairly well-traveled. Expect to pass other folks on the trail. Dogs are allowed and not required to be on leash, as long as you are outside fee areas, like Payson Lakes.

On this ride, Linda and I chose to ride the Jones Ranch Creek trail, Forest Trail #123, which heads south from the parking area. The trailhead is on the south side of the road and continues southward. Again, the trail is well-marked and well-traveled. Can’t miss it.

Linda on Jimbo
Linda on Jimbo

The trail starts out climbing at a slight grade and heads up through spruce and fir forest, as well as aspen groves and a couple of nice open areas. It crosses two or three spring-fed creeks and is a very pleasant ride, suitable for even the very youngest and most inexperienced of riders. The elevation at the trailhead is around 7,000 to about 7,200 feet. This trail is about three and a half miles long and ends up back at Mount Nebo Loop Road near the Payson Lakes ranger station a little higher up the mountain.

The “scariest” obstacles we encountered on the trail were a couple of places where small culverts have been placed and covered with gravel and lined with landscape timbers. Our horses sort of eyeballed them, but passed over without complaint. There is plenty of room to go around these bridges if necessary. There is one gate to be opened and shut about 3/4 mile from the trailhead.

Junction of FT #101 and #097 looking at Mount Nebo
Junction of FT #101 and #097 looking at Mount Nebo

About two miles up the trail, the Rock Spring trail, Forest Trail #101, intersects it. We elected to take the Rock Spring trail to check it out. This trail heads southwesterly, climbs a bit, then descends, then climbs again, offering some very nice views of the surrounding area. Again, this trail is not challenging and is suitable for anyone who enjoys riding in the mountains. We followed it about a mile and a half, then turned south on an intersecting trail, Forest Trail #097, that shows on my USFS map as a “Jeep Trail”.

We followed this trail south, climbing steadily, about another mile and a half to its head at Mount Nebo Loop Road. I noticed that near this trailhead, on the south side of the road, there were a few nice primitive campsites. It occurred to me that one could set up camp here and enjoy several days of nice riding.

IMG_2111At this point we turned around and headed back. My USFS map from about 1967 or so, showed a separate trail paralleling trail #097 back to Rock Spring Trail, so we decided have a look. It is not marked and started out as a two-track that descended into a canyon (ergo the “Jeep trail designation on the map), ending at a “yurt” type domicile. We avoided that and tried to continue on the trail indicated on the map. Following my GPS we found where the trail was supposed to be, but it was nowhere to be found. It appears that it was a trail at one time, possibly used by the old ranchers, but through disuse it has simply disappeared. We bushwhacked for about a half mile to get back to Rock Spring Trail. The bushwhacking wasn’t bad, as the terrain has a gentle slope and the vegetation is not closed, like an oak thicket would be, so I actually enjoyed just following my nose. My wife, however, did not enjoy it and expressed concern that I might be lost (Word to the wise: Don’t try bushwhacking in the mountains with someone who isn’t comfortable with it). Alas, we found the trail right where we left it. Of course, I knew where we were the whole time.

On the way back, on FT #123 looking northward at Mount Loafer
On the way back, on FT #123 looking northward at Mount Loafer

The ride back to the trailhead was as enjoyable and relaxed as the ride out. It took us two hours to get to the Forest Trail #097 trailhead and, as usual, about half that to get back to the Jones Ranch trailhead.  It was a very pleasant three-hour ride in which we covered just under five miles (we take things pretty easy).

My horses were barefoot on this ride. I pulled their shoes and trimmed them all in the past week. They got a bit tender toward the end of the ride, due to the sharp rocks on the hard trail. None of the horses got stone bruises or received any injury, however, and were simply a little tender toward the end. I feel like this trail is suitable for barefoot horses for a day ride, but if one were camping and riding for a week in that area they might get uncomfortably tender.

Me on Reno, ponying Lizzy
Me on Reno, ponying Lizzy

Trail notes:

From the junction of #097 with Rock Spring Trail (#101), you can also head northward and explore several other trails down in that area. You can get back to Mount Nebo Loop road at two or three other places as well. I’ll be riding and reporting on those trails in the future.

 

Great Western Trail, Western Trails

We’re down to the “brass tacks…”

Well, we’re getting down to the proverbial “brass tacks.”

In six days I will load up my horses and gear and head for Arizona. I have a number of things I still have to get done this week, but we’re about there.

Dad and I would like to re-open the same offer we made last year:  Anyone who would like to ride with us for any portion of the ride is welcome to join up with us for a day, for several days, or any portion of the trip. The one condition is that if you plan to join us for more than a couple days, you will need your own pack animal and supplies.

Last year we had Joshua Jensen and Al Smith join up with us as we made our way through the Chiricahua Mountains and their help was indispensable to us. We would never have made it through the Chiricahuas without their guidance.  They also made it possible for us to get through some nearly disastrous difficulties as we passed through the Safford, AZ area. We will be forever grateful to Al and Josh.

Thanks also to Jesus and Araceli, who gave us a place to stay and keep our horses at the Bar M Ranch on our first night, to the Pattons, who brought us a bale of hay at our camp on the Gila River, and to all the other folks who have pitched in to help us during our preparations and during the trip. Thanks also to my son, Nate, and to the Sniders, who both donated funds to help us out last year.

Thanks to Anna Halford, who made a horse pack trip across South America, for her kind donation to this year’s trip, and also to my best life-long friends, Dan and Jackie Graber for their donation to the cause. Jackie also hand made beaded hat bands for Dad and me to decorate our hats for the trip.

Also thanks to Aaron LeSueur and Dick and Jean Goodman for their help and support with our transportation needs last year. Thanks also to Dick and Jean for putting us up for a couple days as we passed through the Blue Wilderness Area.

This year, Gwen Kahler has offered her place near Flagstaff, Az as a stopover place for us. We will rest a couple days at her place, while we get new health certificates on the horses (so they will be current for our passage through the Grand Canyon National Park), have the horses re-shod, if necessary, and purchase a few supplies.  Gwen will then ride with us for a few days, as we head on north toward the Grand Canyon. We appreciate her help very much and look forward to meeting her in person.

Kelly and Tina LeSueur (my sister) are planning to meet us at the Grand Canyon National Park, to assist us with resupply and logistics as we prepare for our passage through the Grand Canyon. Thanks very much for your help. Wish you were going with us.

Thanks to Cyndie Edelblute, my sister, who has cheered us on all the way.

For our ride this year, we will be departing on Dad’s 82nd birthday, May 23, 2016, from my pasture at 217 N. Poverty Flat Road, Eagar, AZ, 85925. We expect to start making tracks around 10:00 am.  Anybody who would like to ride with us a few miles and give us a good sendoff is more than welcome.

From there we will head westward, through town, and head out on State Route 260 toward the White Mountains. We will generally follow that route until we find USFS 117, which we will follow past Green’s Peak, keeping north of the White Mountain Apache Reservation. We will make our way westward, following various Forest Service roads to get to Show Low. We will then follow the Rim Road past Show Low and eventually join the Mogollon Rim Trail/High Line Trail. We will follow that westward until we join the Arizona Trail near Washington Park. We will follow the Arizona Trail northward past Flagstaff, stopover at Gwen’s place, then head on to the Grand Canyon National Park.

We have reserved a campsite at Mather Campground, at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, from June 25 through July 2. We have GCNP Back Country Permits for two nights, June 29-30, for our passage through the Grand Canyon. We will descend the South Kaibab Trail, spend a night at Bright Angel Campground (equine camp), then ascend the North Kaibab Trail and spend a night at the North Rim Campground, before heading north on the Arizona Trail to the Utah border.

From the Utah border we will head north, crossing US 89 where it makes a big northerly jog east of Kanab. We will follow that canyon north until we join Paria River, which we will continue to follow northward until we get near Canonville. We will take Willis Creek westward toward Bryce Canyon. We hope to be able to cross through Bryce Canyon, if we can make arrangements with the park service once we arrive, however, failing that, we will take the Grand View Trail around the south end of Paunsaugunt Plateau and on around to Red Canyon. We will make our way over to Casto Road, which we will follow up to Panguitch, Utah.

Panguitch, where Dad was born and raised, is our goal for this year. We expect to arrive there about July 20 or so, just in time to ride in their Pioneer Day parade. Dad will also plan to attend the 64th Panguitch High School reunion for the class of 1952.

As for mileage and time frames, we estimate 150 miles from Eagar to the junction with the Arizona Trail, another 220 miles from there to the Grand Canyon South Rim, 34 miles from there to the GCNP border, and about 66 more miles to the Arizona/Utah border. We estimate about another 150 miles from there to Panguitch, making a total of about 620 miles. We expect the trip to take us about eight to nine weeks, traveling about 15 miles per day and five days per week.

We expect to make the Show Low area in three days. We should make the Arizona Trail junction about June 5. We should make Gwen Kahler’s place at Flagstaff by about June 16. We have reserved an equine camp space at Mather Campground, as I said, from June 25 through July 2. We hope to arrive there about June 25, giving us a bit of a buffer and respite before making the canyon passage on June 29-30. Those dates at GCNP are the only hard dates for the entire trip. From there we expect to make Bryce Canyon by about July 14 and Panguitch by about July 20. Except for the portion of the trip on the Arizona Trail, for which the mileage is actually measured, we have added a 25% buffer to our mileage estimates.

Last year, we had planned to attempt to make it from the US/Mexico border to Eagar, AZ as a “shake-out” trip, and, if all was well when we made Eagar, to continue on to Panguitch. By the time we made Eagar, however, we knew we would not be making the second leg of the trip. We started the trip later than we wanted, because of some unavoidable delays, then pushed harder than we wanted, in order to try to make up time. Regardless, we ended up averaging only 15 miles per day. We did 355 miles in 28 days, traveling 6 days per week. The trail was about 50 miles longer and took a week longer than we had estimated.

This year we feel a lot better prepared for the trip in a lot of ways. We feel we have a better selection of horses for the trip and we have pared down our gear selection to what we absolutely know we will need. We will have only four horses with us this time, rather than six, so handling the stock will be much less of a chore. Most of all, we feel we have a much better feel for planning our travel mileage and time. Most of our trail will be on the Arizona Trail, rather than making our own trail, so we are much better able to plan for mileage, camps, water, etc. There is little worry about crossing private property and our planning is much more accurate.

This year we plan on averaging 15 miles per day and traveling five days per week, rather than 6. We have planned for a mid-week rest day, in addition to our regular Sunday rest, which should keep our horses in better shape and make the trip easier on Dad and me physically. It will also make it so we can make up time, if necessary, by omitting the mid-week rest day on occasion.

We expect to find much better grazing for the horses through most of this year’s route, as compared to last year’s passage through the low desert areas of southern Arizona. We also expect most of this year’s route to be much easier traveling. Most of the trail will be better maintained than what we traveled last year, as well, which should help, and there will be fewer extreme changes in elevation. Last fall and winter the weather provided some much-needed moisture throughout northern Arizona and southern Utah, so we expect water to be less of a concern for us. We are starting later in the year, which will be hotter, but will also provide better availability of grass for our horses, which will allow us to carry less feed with us.

As we did last year, we will be posting regular updates on the website and facebook during the trip via satellite. Our followers will be able to keep track of our progress by clicking on the “Map” link on the main menu of the website.

Overall, we believe the hardest part of our trip is behind us. This leg of our big pack trip is the trip Dad and I have talked about for more than forty years. The “Crown Jewel” of this trip will be our crossing through the Grand Canyon on our own horses. This is something we have talked dreamed about since I was in high school. We almost attempted the trip 34 years ago, but life got in the way. We are finally going to be able to do it. We both feel it is somewhat of a miracle in both our lives that we are both in a position to be able to do this while we are both healthy and strong – together.

I am thankful for a father who raised me up with a love of the pioneer life, horses, and all that goes with that. I am grateful for a true pioneer heritage, forefathers who crossed the plains in wagons and settled much of the western United States. I am thankful for my wonderful mother, who actually brought horses into our family when I was young. I am grateful for my excellent wife, who has supported and helped me in preparing for and making this trip. What a marvelous thing it is that all these things have come together at this time to allow Dad and me to make this trip.

This is our chance to join with our pioneer heritage, to live some of their life,  experience some of what they experienced, to be, at least in a small part, what they were.

This is my gift to my dad.

Happy Birthday, Dad.

 

 

Great Western Trail, Tack and Gear

Thirty days until I head south to AZ to start the second leg…

I’m sitting here at midnight and can’t seem to get my mind to slow down. I have a thousand thoughts running through my head about the upcoming adventure. There’s a lot to be done in the next thirty days.

Today I received the last piece of horse gear I’m going to buy for the trip. I bought, through Outfitter Supply, a Five Star 1″ wool felt saddle pad with a spine relief cut-out. I like the look of it and have high hopes it will save my Fox Trotter’s back when he starts losing weight during the trip. On the first leg last year, both my Fox Trotters lost weight in the latter part of the trip, causing their spine to contact the underside of the saddle. They both got a sore spot that turned to a calcium deposit from pressure on their spine from the saddle cantle area late in the trip. Hopefully, this saddle pad with the spine relief will alleviate that problem.

I have had a pretty tough schedule this past month, earning money to finance the trip and trying to get in some good rides to start “legging-up” my horses, as well as getting my truck and trailer into road-worthy shape. On the way home from my trip with Dad to Moab a few weeks ago, I blew the engine in my truck. I just got it back this evening with a rebuilt engine, new A/C system, and new injectors. Hopefully it’s ready to go. I actually got it back over a week ago, but it had an oil leak, then on the way home from the trip to Swinging Bridge last week the radiator fan stopped working and I nearly ruined my new engine. I took it back to my mechanic, who got everything squared away and I got it back this evening, hopefully for good.

In the next month I will need to accomplish the following, while keeping up my work and other duties as well:

  • Buy 4 new tires for my pickup
  • Get horses shod
  • Get health inspections on the horses for their travel to Arizona
  • Pay ahead on my DeLorme Explorer account (my GPS unit)
  • Contact news outlets regarding our pack trip
  • Purchase horse and people feed for the trip
  • Get the trailer brakes adjusted and bearings repacked and check front axle
  • Put pockets on Dad’s chinks
  • Make a rifle scabbard
  • Finish documenting the first leg of the trip on the blog!!!
  • Replace latigo and billets on my saddle
  • Replace saddle string on my saddle
  • Check on my hotel reservations in Panguitch
  • Get our trip support arranged arranged for

Yep. Lots to get done.

I’m going to do my best to get the rest of last year’s ride fully documented on the blog before we start the second leg on May 23 this year, so stay tuned.