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!

Finding a Way

From the first day I moved to Salem, Utah, the trail up to Santaquin Peak has been calling my name.  I can see it from my house.

The trail up the mountain, as seen from my house.

This trail is actually an ATV service trail for a radio transmission tower located right on top of one of the smaller peaks of the mountain. However, up in the tops of the mountains, which are part of the Wasatch range, this trail connects with a small network of trails that traverse the ridges, connecting Santaquin Peak and Loafer Mountain peak, and return to the lower lands surrounding them on all four sides.

Google Earth: Loafer Mountain, Utah

There are a number of points at which one could start a pack trip and access those trails, but the one I can see from my house is the one calling me.

The Dream Mine

The problem, however, is that the foot of this trail runs through private property located near the foot of Santaquin Peak, which is owned by a family corporation that owns the Dream Mine. In order to get permission to pass through, one has to know the right people. I know people who know the right people, but you know how that is.

Well, for the past couple weeks I have been taking rides toward the mountain, keeping an eye out for anything that looks promising as a trail to go around the private property on public lands and connect with the trail higher up, above the Dream Mine. Today I think I found a way.

I took a nice long ride on J Golden this afternoon and we decided to explore a little. We headed northeast on the Highline Canal road, out of Salem, practicing J’s run-walk (which gets better all the time). About the time we left Salem and entered Spanish Fork’s territory, we found a place where the canal is covered, which allowed us to cross over to the eastern side. At this point we were north of the Dream Mine area and there was no fence or “posted” signs (I’m still not sure it is public, but there was nothing to indicate otherwise).

Heading up above the Highline Canal road

We followed a trail up into the foothills and it eventually connected with an ATV trail that runs north-south along the base of the mountains. We took the north fork last week, so this time we headed south. After about a half-mile, the trail turned into Flat Canyon and continued to climb. We followed it probably a half mile or so further, before turning around. On the way back down, I spied what was once a road, which probably connected the mine to a spring in the canyon, now completely overgrown with thicket. Since the road led off toward the mine, we decided to give it a try.

The trail up Flat Canyon

As luck would have it, the old road connected with a fairly good two-track that, in fact, led right to the mine. We found an unlocked and open gate on this road. Since there were no “No Trespassing” signs and the gate was open, we felt comfortable passing through. We followed it up until I was sure the road connected with the service trail to the radio tower, then turned around and headed back toward home.

The trail we rode took us a couple hours and the climb was a good workout for J, whom I am working on getting “legged-up” for a trip up the mountain sometime later this summer.

The view coming back down

The discovery of this trail and the fact that it seems to pass above  and north of the private property of the mine (referring to the trail up Flat Canyon) has me excited. I may not be able to ride the trail I can see from my house, but at least I now know I can start my pack trip up the mountain directly from my pasture and return the same way if I want.

So, I am now officially planning a short pack trip, maybe three days, up in the mountains east of Salem, Utah, during which I will see if I can get horses to the top of Loafer Mountain and Santaquin Peak. Looking at the peaks and trails on Google Earth, it appears possible, but I won’t know until I get up there. Regardless, it should be a very nice pack trip.

I promised myself a couple summers ago, that I was going to ride over all the major trails on Loafer Mountain and its foothills. I’ve ridden a few on the south side, but have yet to actually make a serious try toward the peaks. I’m looking forward to it.

Well, let’s see now. What does my calendar show for June?

Doesn’t get much better than to take a ride like this in an afternoon, right from my pasture.

Freedom On the Back of a Horse

This evening I was writing in my journal and put to paper some thoughts about my love of trail riding and working with my horses. Thought I’d share them.

I used to tell myself that when I rode my horses I could think more clearly and that a good ride was what I needed to help me consider and have deep thoughts about any particular trouble or concern that was upon my mind at the time.

I was deceiving myself. It was just another excuse to go for a nice ride.

Riding my horses is my escape. It is freedom. No, it is more than that.

When I ride my horse, all of life’s worries, concerns, trials, and tribulations just seem to fade off into the background.  When I am on the back of my horse, there are no worries. There is no trouble. Things seem to be right in the world.

When I am riding the trails on my horse I am not old; there is no age. There are no struggles. No aches and pains. I have no appointments. I am not late for anything. I have not missed any calls. Nobody needs to get in touch with me. I am not in a hurry for anything. My greatest concern revolves around whether to take the right fork or the left fork of the trail…if in fact the trail should have a fork…not that it matters. There are no decisions to be made that have any greater import than those necessary to continue the ride.

There is only myself and my horse and the relationship between us.

I think that’s what I enjoy the most – the relationship between myself and my horse. I like the partnership between the horse and me that riding requires. I enjoy the challenge, for both my horse and myself, that a particularly difficult section of trail may present and the feeling of having successfully negotiated it. I find myself bragging to others about my horse’s sure feet and solid mind and the trails we have been over.  It gives me a sense of pride, approaching what I feel when my children are successful in their endeavors.

I love the feelings I get when my horses first begin to understand and willingly submit to new training elements I introduce. I even enjoy the occasional disagreements we have about how something should or should not be done.

Although I am not always as patient as I should be, neither are my horses. They forgive me and I them and we continue forward, one hoof in front of the other. One breath at a time. Passing from one scene into another. One valley to the next. Sometimes just to see what’s on the other side of the next hill or around the next bend in the trail.

It has taken me a long time to find the two horses I now have, Lizzy and J Golden. I have never been much of a horse trader, but I have bought and sold a few while looking for a pair with the qualities I have sought.  Highest on my list of qualifications? They must enjoy the trail as much as I. I think Lizzy and J do.

I once read a bumper sticker with the following phrase:

“Not all who wander are lost.”

When I am on a horse, the ride is the destination; where we are headed is irrelevant.

TH

Let’s talk about bits…

I recently saw a photograph on facebook that showed a horse with a damaged tongue. The associated post indicated the photo was taken by a vet, who said the tongue damage was from abuse from a snaffle bit. The vet said he/she sees this kind of tongue damage regularly.

Tongue damaged by a snaffle? I doubt it.

Quite frankly, I believe neither that the horse’s tongue was damaged by a bit nor that the person who wrote the post was a vet (I hate to be the one to tell you, but not everything you see on facebook is true). The ensuing discussion on the post inspired me to put down a few words about western bridle bits. I will restrict my comments to the world of western riding, as I have very little knowledge (regrettably) about English riding.

There are, in general, two major categories of bridle bits for western riding: The jointed or hinged mouthpiece bit and the solid mouthpiece bit (the mouthpiece being the part that goes inside the horse’s mouth). There are numerous variations within these two categories and several minor offshoots as well.

Then there are bits with shanks and bits without. The shanks, when coupled with a chinstrap (also called a curb strap or curb chain), provide leverage on the mouthpiece, which is how the shanked bit operates. These are often called “leverage” bits and are correctly referred to as curb bits.

Some curb bits are made with swivel joints where the shank attaches to the mouthpiece. Frankly, I’m not sure there is any real value to this, but it is the current fashion over fixed shanks welded to the mouthpiece.

A bit without shanks is called a snaffle bit. Most snaffle bits are jointed or hinged in the middle of the mouthpiece. A hinged bit with shanks about two inches long is called a Tom Thumb bit.  These are often referred to as snaffles, but that is a misnomer, as it has shanks and operates by leverage. It is a curb bit. Snaffles do not operate by leverage.

Tom Thumb bit is a jointed curb bit

Because a snaffle does not operate by leverage and because most are hinged in the middle, they are generally regarded, although incorrectly, as gentle bits.

O-ring egg-butt snaffle bit

Snaffle bits are often used by horse trainers on fresh horses in the  breaking process. Many trainers, myself included, will use a snaffle bit only long enough for the horse to learn the primary basic commands (such as stop, go, left, right, back) and will then transition the horse to a braided rawhide bosal.

Braided rawhide bosal with horsehair mecate

Most of the horse’s training will be done in the bosal, which operates by pressure and bumping on the horse’s nose and under the bars of the lower jaw, until the horse understands well its commands and becomes compliant and obedient. In this way a horse can be trained without the risk of injuring or desensitizing the tender mouth. The horse will then be transitioned to a solid mouthpiece curb bit, that is properly designed and suitable for the use of the horse, after it is well trained. The stiff braided rawhide bosal is not a gentle training tool and a horse can develop calcium deposits on its nose and on the bottom of the jaw if the bosal is overused or improperly used. There are softer bosals that are of little use for reining training, but are often used as “bitless” bridles.

That said, I have discontinued using a bosal on my Missouri Fox Trotters once I start training them in their gaits. The bosal causes sores on their nose, due to the MFT’s head motion in its Fox Trot. I tend to transition them to the solid mouthpiece curb bit earlier than I used to do with Quarter Horses. My Fox Trotters are so easy to train and so willing, that I have experienced no ill effects from doing so.

Now that we’ve discussed some basics about bits, let’s take a closer look at how they operate.

First, we’ll talk about the snaffle.

There are a wide variety of snaffle bit designs, each with it’s purpose. Snaffles attach to the reins and bridle by a ring on each end of the mouthpiece. This ring may be round ( O-ring) or a D-ring.  The snaffle is not intended to be used with a chinstrap, but I have seen it done. Since the snaffle has no shanks, use of a chinstrap adds no leverage and the only function of the chinstrap is to keep the bit from pulling the ring into the horse’s the mouth if the horse is not responsive to a side pull or if the bit is improperly used. Some people use large rubber washers on the sides of the snaffle bit for this same purpose, as well as to keep the bit from pinching the sides of the horse’s mouth.

D-ring snaffle with copper rollers

There are egg-butt snaffles, that are round and larger diameter where they contact the bars of the jaws and narrower at the hinge in the center.  There are narrow egg-butt snaffles, as well as twisted wire snaffles that are quite aggressive and generally used for correction training and refresher training on non-compliant horses. There are “French-Link” snaffles that have two or more joints or hinges in them. Ironically, the gentlest of the snaffle bits are chain snaffles that are simply pieces of flat-link chain joined by the rings at the ends. There are snaffles that have solid mouthpieces as well.

Again, a snaffle has no shanks. If it has shanks it is not a snaffle.

Twisted wire ring snaffle – very aggressive – for correction training

I want to reiterate here that among most horse people, a snaffle bit is generally considered to be a gentle bit. One of the primary purposes of this article is to educate the reader about the true nature of how a snaffle functions and why it is a good and appropriate training bit for fresh horses in the breaking process, but, in fact is not a gentle bit and should not be used on a horse that is not completely compliant, except in its initial training.

A snaffle bit operates by three mechanical pressures that cause pain in the horse’s mouth. First, as the reins are pulled or as the horse resists the bit, the bit hinges in the middle, causing pressure on the bars of the lower jaws, just ahead of the molars. At the same time, the point of the hinge pokes into the roof of the horse’s mouth, again causing pain. Thirdly, the hinged snaffle has what is often called a “nut-cracker” effect on the horse’s tongue, causing pressure and discomfort.

Nut-cracker effect: pinches tongue, pressure on lower jaw bars, pokes into roof of the mouth

While the purpose of this post is to educate my readers to the fact that the hinged snaffle bit is not a gentle bit, I have never seen a horse’s tongue damaged by a snaffle, as indicated in the mentioned facebook article and I believe that photo is taken out of context and that the post is a fraud. I have, however, seen a horse’s tongue damaged in the way that photo depicts from being badly cut (not by a snaffle or any other bit) and surgically repaired, which is what I suspect happened to the horse in the photo.  It is virtually impossible for a snaffle bit to cause the damage indicated in the photo.

Having said that, I reiterate that a snaffle is not a gentle bit. Due to the pain and discomfort caused by a hinged snaffle bit, horses that continue in a snaffle past their initial training, particularly in the hands of an inexperienced rider, often learn to raise and shake the head and open wide the mouth to escape pressure from the bit. Raising the head positions the snaffle bit so that it pulls only against the soft edges of the lips at the sides of the mouth. Opening the mouth and raising the head relieves the pressure on the jaws and the roof of the mouth and most of the pressure on the tongue, thereby rendering the snaffle bit almost entirely ineffective. The rider then responds to this misbehavior by pulling harder on the reins in order to retain control, which exacerbates the situation.

I am convinced that this misbehavior, or “fighting the bit,” is much of the driving impetus behind the “bitless” movement. Many people who change to bitless bridles and promote them as being safer and gentler than any bit, are those who, prior to switching to bitless, used snaffle bits on their horses for general use, believing the snaffle to be the gentlest of bits.  The misbehavior of the horse, then, leads them to believe that the horse will misbehave with any bit. The refrain I often hear in promotion of bitless bridles, “How would you like a piece of steel in your mouth?” is utterly without merit and ridiculous.  Most horses, once relieved of the discomfort of a snaffle bit, will change their behavior markedly after a short while, regardless of whether the transition is to a bitless bridle or to a properly designed and adjusted solid curb bit.

There is a very good reason why snaffle bits are commonly used in the initial breaking and training phase of a horse’s training. They are aggressive and painful bits. The hinged snaffle bit, in trained hands, quickly teaches an untrained horse the basic control commands, so that a horse may be broken to the saddle and trained safely.  It is pain compliance – No doubt about it. Once those basic commands are taught and learned, the horse should be transitioned to something else.

If a horse is compliant and the rider has gentle hands, a hinged snaffle may not cause a horse any more discomfort than any other kind of bit or bridle. However, most riders are not always gentle with their hands and most horses are not always compliant.

Now to talk about solid mouthpiece curb bits a little bit (no pun intended).

Solid mouthpiece curb bits have shanks that are intended to operate in conjunction with a chinstrap or curb strap, which gives the bit leverage, causing pressure on the bars of the lower jaw.  This also rotates the mouthpiece, causing pressure, via the design of the mouthpiece, either on the tongue or on the roof of the mouth (or both), although not with the pointed poking or pinching of the hinged snaffle. The shanks provide advance warning to the horse that pressure is about to be applied, allowing the horse to respond to a light cue, before firm pressure is applied.

The headstall attaches to the upper ring of the shank.  Some bits have a middle loop on the shanks, located at the same point in the shanks where mouthpiece attaches.  This loop is there for the purpose of attaching a second set of reins to the loop (which I have never seen done in western riding) or to use the bit as a snaffle (no chinstrap and no leverage), should the rider choose to do that. However, to use the bit as a curb bit, the chinstrap attaches to the same loop, at the top of the shanks, as the headstall (see the photos below). I have seen chinstraps improperly attached to the snaffle loop, which causes the bit to function improperly. The reins attach to the lower ring at the bottom of the shanks.

The tighter a chinstrap is adjusted, the quicker the horse feels input from the reins. The adjustment of the chinstrap also adjusts the position of the mouthpiece in the horse’s mouth as the chinstrap engages. I tend to keep my chinstraps fairly loose, as most of my riding is trail riding and I do not want my horse to feel input from movement of the reins except when I intend to give input.  The length of the shanks also affects how quickly the horse senses input from the reins, as well as the amount of force that can be applied to the mouthpiece. If you have a show horse and need the horse to feel input from even the most subtle cues from the reins, you might try a snugger chinstrap and/or longer shanks (many show classes limit the length of the shanks).  A properly adjusted headstall and chinstrap make a lot of difference in how the horse responds to a particular bit.

Most solid mouthpiece curb bits also have a port (the bend in the middle of many bit mouthpieces), which applies pressure on the roof of the mouth or on the tongue, depending on the design of the bit. Some solid mouthpiece curb bits look like Spanish Inquisition torture devices, but are, in fact, quite gentle in the hands of a trained rider on a trained reining horse.

Spoon bit for a reiner

These are often called “spoon bits” and have larger, elaborate ports, which allow the well-trained horse to sense very subtle cues via the port. Cues from the rider that may be imperceptible to a judge on the ground may be felt easily by the horse. These bits are not intended for horses not trained to them. Due to the look of them, many people unfamiliar with their use believe they are  cruel “correction” bits. They are not.

Medium port grazing bit

The port and shanks of a solid mouthpiece curb bit are designed with the use of the horse in mind. For example, the snaffle bit is generally intended for training or correction.  The bit commonly called a “grazing bit” was designed with a solid mouthpiece, a low or medium port, and fairly short shanks that are bent back toward the rider. These were designed with the rancher in mind, so that his horse might comfortably graze with the bit in its mouth, without the shanks getting in the way or causing discomfort.

Bits designed for gaited horses tend to have longer shanks and broad ports that are designed to go over the tongue with little or no pressure when the horse holds its head properly in its gait. The shanks are generally longer than those of a grazing bit and angled differently, providing more subtle cues to the horse’s mouth while in gait. A Western Pleasure bit (often a simple grazing bit) is designed to relieve pressure from the port on the tongue and roof of the mouth when the horse holds its head low and vertical, placing the port in a neutral position with a loose rein. A spoon bit on a reiner puts little or no pressure on the horse’s mouth while the horse is doing its work, but allows the subtlest of cues to be transmitted to and felt by the horse. Those are such technical bits that even the weight of the reins is important.

Robart Pinchless Gaited bit

I have found I like a bit made by Robart and marketed by Amazon for my Fox Trotter and my Tennessee Walker. It has a wide, rounded mouthpiece that has a steel swivel (not a hinge) in the middle, allowing single-rein control as well as normal neck-reining. It also has copper wire inlaid into the mouthpiece, which helps keep the horse’s mouth moist. Note also, the center loop, for use with a second set of reins or to set the bit up for use as a snaffle.

Imus bit, similar in design to the Robart bit

 A similar bit, marketed by several sellers, such as Imus, uses a copper swivel, however some people have told me the copper swivel wears out over time and breaks.

I have found this design, properly adjusted, to be quite comfortable to my gaited horses. Again, bits for gaited horses generally have longer shanks and differently configured mouthpieces than those made for Quarter Horses. Gaited horses generally hold their heads higher and at a slightly different angle than Quarter Horses while in gait, thereby making a regular ported curb bit somewhat uncomfortable to them. A Quarter Horse is trained to carry its head low and vertical, which places the ported mouthpiece in a neutral position, bearing no pressure on the roof of the mouth or tongue. The medium or high ported bit reinforces this head-hold training, while a bit for a gaited horse might prove uncomfortable or ineffective for the Quarter Horse.

It is true, that any of the above bits may be used cruelly by the rider and that non-compliance of the horse may cause discomfort or even pain to the horse. However, that is less likely to be the case with a properly adjusted solid curb bit than with a snaffle bit. Additionally, the length of the shanks on a curb bit provide a little advance warning to the horse that pressure is about to be applied, whereas the snaffle provides only direct pressure on the bit. This is why horses may learn to respond more precisely to a curb bit than to a snaffle.

In case you are wondering, I am not a proponent of bitless bridles. I have nothing against them and I have seen some horses function better in a bitless side-pull bridle than with a bit. However, I believe that to be the result of faulty training or handling earlier in the horse’s life or possibly a health or injury issue respecting the mouth.  My horses handle well with a solid curb bit and I have experienced nothing that makes me think a bitless bridle would better suit my needs or theirs. I make no recommendation one way or the other. I prefer a bit.

So, the moral of this story is this: If you regularly ride your horse in a hinged snaffle bit and find your horse developing the habit of opening its mouth, raising and shaking its head, or general disobedience relative to the bit, try moving to a properly designed and adjusted solid curb bit and see if that behavior doesn’t change.

You’ll be surprised at the results.

Did I mention that a hinged snaffle is not a gentle bit?

TH

P.S.

Since I first posted this article, I have learned that the damage to the horse’s tongue, depicted in the featured image above, was probably caused by a rubber band tongue tie, which is used in some disciplines, such as racing, to keep the horse from getting it’s tongue over the bit. Occasionally, such a tongue tie is improperly installed for one reason or another, and forgotten, causing damage as seen in the photo. I will restate here that such tongue damage is impossible with a snaffle bit.

Book Review…sort of: L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future, Volume 34

Hey folks!
 
My daughter, Amy Henrie Gillett, is one of the authors recently published in Volume 34 of L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future Anthology, currently available on Amazon and all other major booksellers. I believe it will soon hit the New York Best Seller’s List.
 
Amy’s story is entitled “All Light and Darkness.”
 
Now, in our family we all knew Amy would eventually make it as an author, but when I read her story I was amazed. I was totally captivated by the depth and breadth of the development of the story and the characters in such a short story. Her beautiful descriptions and the feelings they evoked in me as I read held me spellbound.  She is a true story-teller!
 
I am mostly a reader of biographies and historical fictions, not often delving into science fiction, but All Light and Darkness has changed that. I can’t wait for Amy’s next story, although I hope it will be a full-length novel. This taste of her work, in this anthology, has left me hungry for more.
 
I highly recommend the anthology to all readers. These are the best of the best up and coming writers and their stories are wonderful. I guarantee you will not be able to put the book down until you have turned the last page. I look forward with anticipation to see future stories coming from several of these authors….including my Amy!
 
 

Finished my repairs on another old saddle…

I finished the repairs on another old saddle last week. Thought I’d make a short post about it.

This is an old saddle I bought just prior to my big horse pack trip in 2015. I was looking for a good saddle for the trip and happened to find an ad in KSL Classifieds for a couple saddles in Price, Utah. After a little dickering I picked up two saddles and some extras for $380. I wrote a post about the purchase, which you can read here.

The better saddle of the two is the one I have been riding ever since, but the other was in pretty poor shape. It was an old ranch saddle, probably made around the 1940-60 time frame.  It had a good rawhide-covered wood tree and was a well made saddle, although not what I would consider top-grade. It was a good, solid work saddle in need of repair.

The seller apologized for it’s condition, confessing he had lent it to his son, who left it in his garage and let his dog chew on it.  He had done some repairs to the saddle himself, however, so the fleece was fairly new, but the saddle strings were mismatched and several conchos and other attachments hadn’t been stained or oiled. In other words, it needed a lot of work.

(Click on the photos to see the gallery full-size)

It sat in my workshop, stacked on top of the bones of several other saddles in need of repair, until last month, when I finally got around to taking a good look at it.

It was evident I needed to replace the seat jockey, although I toyed with the idea of just trimming off the ugly and selling it. I finally decided this was a good learning opportunity for me, since I aspire to eventually be a decent saddle maker.

I started by disassembling the saddle and removing the cantle binding. Then I pulled the seat jockey off the saddle. It revealed a seat on the tree that had been inadequately prepared before the seat was applied. While this is evidently a custom-made saddle (it is definitely not a factory-made production saddle) there is no maker’s mark, serial number, or any other identification of the maker or saddlery. These kinds of saddles often come from small shops where the saddler makes one-off types of saddles intended for sale. In order for the saddler to make a living at it, he often cuts corners and skimps on things that don’t show in the final product, but can make the saddle less comfortable and durable. That was the case with this saddle.

I found the seat to be composed of a tin strainer tacked to the seat with a thin layer of leather covering the front half of the strainer, and the seat jockey applied directly over the tin and rawhide on the seat. In my rebuild, I followed a better practice of covering the seat strainer and seat with a layer of heavy leather, which is then skived to make a smooth seat. That is then covered by the seat jockey, creating a much smoother, more comfortable, and more durable seat.

I also made a new front right jockey, as the original one had the corner eaten off by the infamous dog in the garage. In order to make this piece look as original as possible, I had to search out and acquire the correct stamping tools for the tooling. Search as I might, I was unable to find one of the stamping tools required, so I made one out of a 3/8″ by 6″ bolt. I thought it imitated the original stamp pretty well. One would have to look pretty closely to see the difference.

I cut out the raw seat from a piece of Herman Oak 13/15 oz leather I had bought for the purpose. I wet it and let it case overnight, then stretched it over the saddle, using my saddle-making stand, cranking the seat forming belt down tight. I used the old seat to help me determine where the ear cuts should be at the sides of the cantle, where it meets the tree. Once formed and marked, I pulled the seat jockey back off, cut the ears, and tooled it with the stamps I had made and bought, imitating pretty closely the original patterns.

That done, I was now ready for the part I find the most tedious of the whole affair: the cantle binding.

I cemented the formed and tooled seat jockey to the tree with Barge contact cement (Barge is the brand normally used by saddlers, as it was originally formulated for leather), making sure everything was properly aligned and straight. I trimmed the excess leather from the back of the cantle, leaving 1/2″ to form a good, rounded cantle. I made a cantle binding out of a piece of about 10 oz leather, skived thinner on the back side (the part that is on the back side of the cantle) to make it easier to form to the contours of the cantle. I edged and put a stitching groove on the front side of the binding, then wet it and let it case overnight. I then formed it to the cantle and tacked it in place. I let it get almost dry, before cementing it with Barge contact cement to the cantle.

Now the hard part. I marked the stitching holes, front and back, with an overstitch wheel with a 6-stitch-per-inch wheel on it, so I would know where to insert my stitching awl and where it should come out of the leather on the back. Sadly, my expensive Craftool Pro awl wasn’t up to the task and I broke three awl blades in the first six stitches (those blades are $16 each). Pushing an awl through an inch of good leather is tough! The blade has to be strong and sharp. The Craftool Pro blades were simply not up to the task.

Happily, my local Tandy store takes customer service seriously and they refunded my money for two awl blades and the haft (Craftool Pro hafts are made to only fit the Craftool Pro awl blades) and allowed me to put that toward their lower-priced awl haft, which accepts a variety of blades, and to buy a set of their lower-priced awl blades, which are not as well made, but are much stronger.  That leaves me with a credit at their store, which I will have no problem using up in the near future. Thank you Tandy, Orem, Utah.

Anyway, back to the cantle binding. I took my new awl and blades (these blades run about $5 apiece) and sharpened them on my water stones, then polished them on my strop. I broke one more blade through the last stitch of the cantle binding, but it wasn’t nearly as painful.

One of the marks of an excellent saddle maker is the stitching on the back of the cantle binding. An excellent saddler will show nicely spaced and aligned stitches on the back, while a less expert saddler’s stitches will be misaligned, and poorly spaced. I am here to tell you that is a skill that is developed by strict practice and many, many stitches. Mine is admittedly pretty mediocre, but not too bad for my second cantle binding. Many saddlers nowadays avoid the entire issue by either using tacks rather than stitches, or by using hidden stitches, on the back of the cantle. One technique is to split the leather on the back of the cantle binding and stitch under the flap, then glue the flap down to hide the stitches.  I think I may try that next time, however, I have to say I truly admire a saddler who leaves exposed stitches on the back of the cantle that are perfectly spaced and aligned. It is truly one of the telltale marks of an excellent saddle maker.

 

I was pleased with the finished cantle binding.

The next step was to stain the new leather to try to make it match as closely as possible the original leather. I decided on dark brown stain. I prefer Feibings Pro Dye and have had good luck with it in matching original leather finishes. The Pro Dye is an oil-based dye, which I find penetrates and finishes more evenly than the alcohol-based dyes.

First, since my shop was cold with snow on the ground outside, I placed my gallon container of Fiebings 100% Pure Neatsfoot Oil in water in an old crockpot cooker I have in my shop, and heated it. Warm oil penetrates leather better than cold or room-temperature oil. Once it was warm, I applied a heavy coat of oil to the entire saddle, including under the skirts and the backsides of all the parts, both old and new, as well as the saddle strings. Once that had soaked in, I wiped off all the excess oil, then applied the stain with a piece of fleeced sheepskin. I applied stain to the entire saddle, considering that the original color of the saddle was faded and uneven, as evident in the above photos, and that the stain would help hide marks on the pommel from the dog’s gnawing on the leather. It worked pretty well. The original leather was darkened to a nice dark brown. However, the new leather lightened up a bit as it dried and took on a mahogany hue with dark edges – pretty, but exposing obvious restoration. Personally, I don’t like my repairs to be obvious. I like them to return the saddle to as much of an original look as possible, while returning the saddle to serviceability.

I followed the dark brown stain with a coat of Fiebings Pro Dye in Chocolate. That did the trick. The seat jockey, saddle strings, new conchos, latigo carrier, and new right front jockey, now blend in well and it takes a closer look to determine that they are, in fact, restoration/repair pieces, rather than original. I like that.

The final step in the repair was to replace the rigging straps that connect the front rigging ring to the rear rigging ring, and to reassemble the entire saddle. I still need to make a pair of stirrup keepers, but other than that small detail, the saddle is ready for service. I’m happy with the outcome. My skills are definitely improving as a saddler.

Sadly, after all that work, the saddle is just a tad small for me. It measures a 15″ seat, but rides like a 14″ seat, due to the angle of the pommel swells and the extra layer of leather I installed to improve the seat.

So, this saddle is ready for another 75 years or so of faithful service.

 

Finally finshed the repairs to the Hamley!

Those of you who have followed me for a while will remember that way back in about October 2012, during a training session, my mare, Penny, blew a gasket and let off a bunch of steam. In doing so, she went down and as I made my exit, my spur caught the seat jockey of my Hamley ranch saddle and ripped it. The spur also left a long scratch across the seat. Then, Penny wallowed around on the ground a bit, trying to regain her feet,  scratching the pommel pretty good. When she got her legs back under her, she jumped up right into a large oak tree, punching a stick about the size of my index finger right through the cantle binding. Luckily, both Penny and myself were ok, but the saddle took a beating.

Just a few days later, I went to mount Penny, who was wearing the Hamley, and the on-side stirrup strap broke. As I inspected things, I noticed that the rear rigging was about to break loose as well. It was time to put the Hamley on “injured reserve” and start looking at repairs.

(Click on the photos to see them full-size)

Now, it’s not like I ruined this saddle. If you are familiar with western saddlery, the name Hamley should ring a bell. Hamley, Pendleton Oregon, has been making quality saddles since 1883. They are one of the few saddlers still in business from the days before the horseless carriage came into vogue. In fact, I sent the serial number of the saddle to Hamley and received a Certificate of Authenticity, confirming that the saddle was made for my wife’s uncle, Earl G. Richins, and that he paid $154.50 for it in 1947. Cool!

So, this saddle belonged to my wife’s uncle until he passed away in 1974. Then we think it passed on to his sister’s husband, who rode it until he was in his 90s, when the ranch he rode for apologetically told him they couldn’t use him anymore, because they were afraid he’d get hurt. Well, he also passed away and the saddle eventually passed on to me, being the last of the family with horses.

With that little history, it won’t surprise you that the saddle had been through several repairs during its lifetime. One stirrup leather had been replaced by scabbing in a section of new leather in order to retain the original tooling on the outside. The other stirrup leather had been changed altogether…the one that broke…and the tooling did not match the original. Also, the skirts had been re-fleeced at least once and the last time it was done was a poor job. The skirts were curled around the edges and the fleece was wearing out. The rope strap had been broken and replaced long ago, as had the original saddle strings. In other words, the poor old saddle was in need of major repairs…again.

Now, I have aspired to become a saddler for many years, although I had never actually done anything more than a few minor repairs on my own saddles and one major rebuild of the pony saddle I learned to ride on as a kid. However, in doing my research I found that having Hamley rebuild this saddle was way beyond my reach financially. Since the saddle was in such poor shape to begin with, and since so many repairs, of varying quality, had already been done to it, I decided that the value of the saddle couldn’t be degraded much more if I did the repairs myself. So, the decision was made. I would use the Hamley to improve my knowledge, skills, and experience as a saddler.

Over the years since 2012, I have acquired the basic tools that all saddlers seem to have. I have also acquired the basic skills that saddlery requires. Several months ago I disassembled the Hamley and removed the damaged parts. However, the rest of my life made me put the Hamley on the back burner. Then, during about November last year (2017), my wife received a telephone call from her cousin, the daughter of Earl G. Richins. She was asking whether we knew the whereabouts of some of Earl’s belongings. She was only about 13 years old when Earl died and, due to some unusual circumstances, some of his belongings had passed on to his siblings, rather than to his young children. That included my Hamley saddle.

My wife told her about the saddle, the needed repairs, and asked whether she would prefer I reassemble it and leave it as original as possible, or whether I should do the repairs needed to make it a serviceable saddle again. She never really answered the question, but said she would like to have the saddle. I decided the right thing to do was to go ahead with the repairs and give her the saddle in working condition. After all, it was her father’s saddle and she was the rightful owner.

Last week I finished the last of the repairs and reassembled the saddle. This afternoon I took it on a shake-down ride, to make sure my repairs meet muster and are comfortable to ride.

Here is a list of the repairs I made:

  • Replaced the torn cantle binding
    • Oiled and stained the cantle binding to match the color and patina of the original leather
  • Replaced the old rear rigging leathers
  • Replaced both stirrup leathers
    • Tooled the stirrup leathers to reflect the design of the original tooling on the saddle
    • Stained the stirrup leathers to match the color and patina of the original leather of the saddle
    • Cleaned and stained the sweat leathers (which had been replaced in an earlier repair) to match the original color and patina of the saddle
    • Replaced the Blevins Buckles with new, better ones.
  • Replaced the old cinch latigo with a new one
  • Replaced the rope strap
  • Made new stirrup keepers
    • Tooled the stirrup keepers with a “R” for Richins.
  • Stained the scratches and gouges on the seat and pommel to hide them
  • Refleeced the original skirts (hand-stitched)
    • Added backing to the skirts to stiffen them and keep them from curling
    • Replaced the saddle strings with 1/2″ heavy latigo strings
  • Patched and stitched the rip in the seat jockey.
  • Oiled entire saddle and gave it a nice finish.

I have to say, I’m very pleased with the way the saddle turned out.

The one repair I’m not proud of is the repair to the tear in the seat jockey. I used waxed poly thread and it would not take stain, so the thread stands out white against the dark leather of the saddle, making the repair very obvious. It’s serviceable, but way too obvious. That was a lesson learned and a mistake I will not make again.

So, next week I will give my wife’s cousin a call and make arrangements to return this saddle, which is hers by right of inheritance, to its rightful owner.

I think Earl Richins would approve.

Book Review: Black Range Tales, by James A. McKenna

I just finished reading Black Range Tales, by James A. McKenna, which I enjoyed very much, about the old mining days of the southwestern United States, particularly southeastern Arizona and southern New Mexico, where the Black Mountain Range is located.

The first printing of the book was published by Wilson-Erickson (New York) in 1936, just four years before McKenna’s passing. The current edition is published by High-Lonesome Books, Silver City, New Mexico (2014) and includes a historical introduction by M.H. Salmon, providing a researched backdrop to set the documentary in its proper historical and literary perspective.

The book is not a fictional work, per se, but is more a collection of memoirs of an old miner, whose tales are sometimes told from the “last liar wins” perspective.  It produced chuckle after chuckle from me as I read McKenna’s tales.

Despite the tongue-in-cheek nature of McKenna’s stories, he effectively captures the overall historical backdrop against which all these stories are told, giving the reader a true mental picture and feeling for what the life of a miner in the old west was like and the trials and tribulations those true pioneers endured. The stoic, practical, and even humorous manner in which they faced them, are clearly manifest in McKenna’s relation of the “facts” as he remembered them.

Below is a short excerpt from the book, one I particularly enjoyed from a story entitled “Danny’s Trouble with the Devil”:

“…Here comes Danny on a dead run. There must be something wrong in the tunnel.”
“What’s up now?” I wondered.
As he rushed up, excited and out of breath, he yelled, “I got him sure this time, and there ain’t been a muff out of him since I struck him!”
“Who?”
“Who else but the devil himself,” said Danny, pale and trembling.
“Tell us what happened,  said Canfield.
“Well,” he began, “I was pounding away on the drill, sitting down to it, as the hole was not high on the face of the tunnel, when I heard the mine car coming. Of course I thought it was Jimmie, though I did wonder why he was pushing it in at that hour. I kept on drilling till the car ran plunk into me. ‘Jimmie,’ I screams, jumping up, and there staring at me out of the dark, his eyes burning like two coals and his horns straight up, was his majesty himself. I cracked him a good one right between the eyes with my four-pound striking hammer and down he went like a thousand pounds of rock. Over the car I went, and you know the rest.”
“Well, Danny, come along, but I can tell you beforehand you’re going to have to pay for Kinzie’s white steer, ” said I.
(End excerpt)

McKenna fills the pages with story after story, citing names, places, dates, and even topography, all of which add beautifully to the color and credibility of each one. Sufficient detail is provided to allow one to locate many of the sites referred to in the stories. The stories are handily compiled into several chapters, each chapter containing several stories and each with a title to give the reader a hint at the topical content.  The book comprises 300 pages.

I truly enjoyed the read, particularly since I have spent some time on my horse exploring some of the areas he refers to.

Maybe you will enjoy it too.

Click on the image and you will link to the book on Amazon.com.

It’s been a while since I last posted…

Seems I have been so busy with life that I seem to be forgetting to live.

Hehehe. That sounds really good and rolls off the tongue nicely, but it really isn’t the truth. The truth is that I have, in fact, been busy, but not so busy that I couldn’t take the time to hammer out a few posts. I have been lazy and remiss. That is the fact. My mind has simply been on other things.

So, I’ll catch everybody up on what has been going on and what I have planned for the not-too-distant future.

Chief, brand new, not even an hour old.

First off, I’m sure my readers are aware that my mare Lizzy had her colt on September 14. He’s now two months old and growing fast. He’s a handsome fellow and will be a credit to his sire and dam. He was born a sorrel and white tobiano, but has since changed colors drastically, to black and white. He is still showing some sorrel highlights and there is some sorrel still in his mane and tail, but I’m pretty confident he’ll end up black and white. His registered name will be Touch the Clouds, named after a Sioux war chief from the late 1800s, known for his great height (he was about 6’5″ and 260 pounds by one account) and strength. His barn name is Chief. I have the papers in process, but had to call the Missouri Fox Trotter Horse Breeders Association and have them hold off when he started changing colors. His photos and description would have been wrong! I sent in a DNA kit as well, so he’ll be “gold-papered.”

Chief at one month, changing colors

Over the past several months I have been working to earn money to pay for some improvements on my place in Eagar, Arizona. I had actually planned to spend the money on refurbishing my horse trailer and finishing out the camper compartment this year, but after spending some time in Eagar with my parents and spending some time walking over and dreaming about my 20 acre parcel there, I decided my priority should be getting that place to where it can be productive and actually pay for itself.

So, a couple months ago I bought a load of 4-1/2″ pipe, so I could  rebuild some fences, start a pipe fence on one side of the place, and build some corrals and a pole barn. Dad and I got started on it a few weeks ago.

In the process, I came across a tractor in Eagar that had been sitting in a yard for a long time. I made the owner an offer, which she accepted, and I took it home.  Drove it home, actually…well, to my place there in Eagar. So I am now the proud owner of a 1962 John Deere 3010 Diesel tractor and several implements, all in need of some tender loving care to make them work again. I don’t know what it is about old stuff, but I thrill over making broken stuff work again.

My JD 3010 Diesel with post hole digger

The tractor is now running and working, after adding about $2,500 in parts to the initial cost of $1,500 (and $500 for the implements). I’m told I’m still under the value of the tractor, so I’m happy.

Last month I bought a new heavy-duty three-point post hole drill and a couple augers, which ran about $1200. Dad and I punched a bunch of holes with it and set some fence corners and line posts as well as all the upright posts for a pole barn and corrals. I also spent about $1,500 for lumber for the barn and shed roofs. Now I need to save up some money for the metal roofing and siding and some pipe for the pipe corrals and fences.

The corrals will be 16′ wide and 42′ long with a 32′ X 16′ hay barn at the east end and a shed roof covering the south end of the corrals. I like the plan and will likely expand it to add more corrals as the need arises.

Setting posts for corrals

As I increase my little herd, currently three horses and a colt, most of them will be kept on the place in Eagar most of the year. Several close relatives also keep their horses there. I hope to end up with several more horses and a couple mules eventually.

The plan is to split the 20 acres into four 5-acre pastures, with the southernmost being used for barns, corrals, arena, training area, and trailer parking. The other 15 acres will be pasture, which I hope to be able to irrigate from a well. There is a dry irrigation pond at the northwest corner of the place that used to have tail waters from two irrigation ditches running into it. A number of years ago the ditch company put those ditches in pipe and the former owner of my place sold off the irrigation shares, so the pond is dry. My intention is to hire somebody to expand and deepen the pond and level out the banks, so that it actually resembles a pond about an acre or so in extent. I hope to have a well drilled near it and install a windmill on it to fill the pond and maintain a constant flow. I will then irrigate the whole acreage from the pond.

My place, looking northward

My place has a well down at the southwest corner that has been tested at 65 gallons per minute. I’m in the process now of getting it back into working order – new pump and controller, well head, etc. However, 65 GPM is a bit low to effectively irrigate the whole 20 acres. If I can fill that pond from a separate well with a windmill on it, like plan to, I can irrigate directly from the pond at the flow rate I need to maintain the proper pressure and flow rate to the sprinklers.

As I was working all this out in my head (since I don’t actually have the money to do it right now) it occurred to me that my place might make a good place for folks coming to the White Mountains with their horses to stop over. I participate in a number of forums and facebook pages about horses and I have noted that every day there are folks seeking “horse camps” where they can park their living-quarters trailer overnight as they pass through the area, or for several days while they ride local trails. I posted a query to one of those groups to try to gauge the interest and see whether it would be a good idea for me to try to place several short-stay RV spaces on my place for horse-campers. I was surprised by the response. It appears there is plenty of demand for such a place, even in little old Eagar, Arizona! There just aren’t enough places that cater to horse folks.

I also received more than one query in the responses about long-term horse boarding on the place. Maybe I’ve found a way to make the place support itself after all.

So, my plan is to approach the Town of Eagar and find out whether they will allow me a permit to install maybe 10 short-stay RV slots on the place, along with a bathroom and shower, with full hookups and a dump station. If the town allows it, I will start with five spaces and go from there. l’m not sure they will allow it. If not, I’ll just look at boarding horses. We’ll see how it goes.

And now for the grand finale – for this post, at least. I have set the dates (tentatively) for the next leg of my Mexico-to-Canada trek. Dad and I have discussed ways to make our pack trip a bit easier for our better-halves to deal with. We decided that if we cut it up into legs of 7-10 days, rather than a month at a time, we might just be able to finish the ride before we’re both too old to ride.

So, since we had to stop in 2016 at Flagstaff, Arizona, having made a grand total of 555 miles since we started (at least that’s what the GPS said), we plan to start right where we stopped and go to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Yes, we will be crossing the Grand Canyon on this leg…finally! As close as I can figure, the distance to the South Rim is about 108 miles. The distance rim-to-rim is about 22 miles or a bit more, so we’re looking at a grand total of about 130 miles. Toss in two rest days and maybe another day at the Grand Canyon as a fudge-factor, and I think this will be a 10 or 11-day trip.

So, I will be applying for a back-country camp permit for the Grand Canyon for May 1 and 2, 2018. Which means we’ll be departing Flagstaff on April 23, 2018. If we have a mild winter, that time frame should have good grass growing along our route to keep the horses in weight without us having to haul all our feed and should have the water sources along the route full. At the same time, it should get us through the Grand Canyon before the mad summer rush begins.

We will end this third leg of our trip at the North Rim, where we’ll be picked up to return us and our horses home. That should have us home by the weekend of May 5.

A couple of my riding friends have expressed a wish to make the trip with us, so this should be fair warning to them! I’ll get in touch with you shortly, so we can all plan toward it.

Me and Chief

 

Remembering one of the best and worst days of my life

This afternoon I was re-watching a few segments of video I took while my dad and I were trekking across the arid lands of southeastern Arizona, as we embarked on our Mexico-to-Canada horse pack trip in 2015. It inevitably brought to mind the adventures we had on the second segment of the trip, from Eagar, Arizona to Flagstaff, Arizona in 2016.

It is a curious thing to me, how different the two trips were. As I prepared for the trip in 2015, it seemed like everything just fell into place. As we packed across southeastern Arizona, it seemed that every near disaster resulted in a simple learning experience for both men and horses. It was as if we had protection and help from above. It was as if some power unseen was smiling upon our efforts, saying, “Let me help you accomplish your goals.” I believe we had help from our Heavenly Father.

The trip in 2016 was different. Not that I think the Lord abandoned us, but it is apparent to me, in retrospect, that he had other things for us to learn. From the beginning, even during my preparations, things didn’t go smoothly. In the couple of months before we started, I had to get an axle changed out on my trailer, I blew the engine in my truck and had to have it rebuilt. On the trip down to Arizona, fully loaded with all my gear and horses, I blew two tires on the trailer and had to stop in Blanding, Utah to have them replaced. I learned that on a Sunday, there is only one tire shop open between Spanish Fork, Utah and Flagstaff, Arizona…and I had missed it way back at Green River. A kindly soul in Blanding opened his shop for me and replaced my tires. I was sorry to have disturbed his Sabbath Day.

The day Dad and I started out on the horses from Eagar, Arizona, which is home for Mom and Dad, the wind was blowing directly out of the west at about 50 miles per hour, gusting to well above that. At 7,000 feet elevation, that was a cold and stiff wind into which we faced, as we headed west on US 260 across a treeless high plain for the first ten miles. We made camp shortly after we entered the trees not far from Greer, Arizona. We made 13 miles that day and we were beat at the end of it.

Camp about 13 miles west of Eagar, AZ

When we arose the next morning, it was to an empty camp. Our horses were gone. They had headed for home, which was Eagar for two of them. I was lucky enough to find them stopped at a fence less than half a mile from our camp. That day, Dad and I, following a topographical map, attempted to cross through an area from one trail to another. After trying several routes and being stopped by thick stands of young ponderosa pines, choked with undergrowth, we gave up and backtracked. We ended up following US 260 another three miles or so, until we found a gate in the USFS fence that took us back toward the trail we wanted to locate. By the time we had gotten back where we had hoped to be before noon, it was time to be looking for a campsite. We made a total of about seven miles that day, but deducting for the backtracking we had to do, we effectively gained about 3 miles on our trip.

We were lucky enough to find a nice camp area at Fish Creek, with good grass and plenty of water in a stream close by. We let the horses graze, making sure we had at least one tied at all times. but the next morning the loose horses were gone. After having tried a number of combinations to allow our stock to graze, and having to track them down five different times over two days,  we learned that if any three of those horses got together, they would head back down the trail. During our stay there at Fish Creek, we learned that we had to keep three of our five animals tied at all times, and only allow two to graze freely at a time. We kept up that protocol the rest of the trip.

Camp off of Fish Creek

On the fourth day of the trip, Dad and I made our way from Fish Creek, into the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest, headed toward Show Low, Arizona. We figured to take two days to reach Show Low, where a friend of ours was to meet us and continue with us a couple days. We made a good 17 miles that day, as I recall, and made camp in a nice treed area not far off the road, near a small creek, just at the north end of Gillespie Flat.

Crossing the White Mountains east of Show Low, AZ

That day, Dad and I followed US Forest Service roads, as that was the best way to cross the area. It was one of the most pleasant days of my life. This was the kind of day Dad and I had envisioned all those many years ago, when we first spoke of such a horse pack trip. On this day, the fourth day of the second leg of our big pack trip, we rode side-by-side through the mountains, taking in the beauty of the White Mountains of Arizona, talking of life, aspirations, experiences, religion, faith, and just enjoying each other’s company as father and son, doing something together that we had dreamed of for many years. The riding was easy and our pace was relaxed.  Even the horses seemed to have enjoyed the ride that day. We made camp that evening, two men, father and son, with full hearts, at peace and content with our world.

Ranger, on his last day.

That was the night Ranger, a horse with which I had truly bonded and which had become my favorite trail partner, with which I had hoped to complete my Mexico-to-Canada trip one day, got tangled in his lead rope in the middle of the night and broke his leg before I could free him. He was a horse with which I had expected to spend many pleasant miles over many years in the saddle. That was the night I had to put him down. It was a heart-wrenching experience for me and one I will never forget.

The following morning, Dad and I were able to contact a friend, who came with his trailer and hauled us back to Eagar. After a couple days of grief and consideration, we decided to continue the trip. I had brought Lizzy from Utah with me, but had left her at my pasture in Eagar as a backup horse, in case we had a horse go lame. I continued the trip with Lizzy as my primary horse. She handled the trip well and turned out to be the best trail horse I have ever had, even better than Ranger. The rest of our trip was enjoyable and pleasant, but that last day before I lost Ranger was the highlight of the trip.

Since then, I often think of that day and the power of the emotions  thoughts of the events of that day bring to me, from the joy and fulfillment of riding and conversing with my dad, doing what we enjoy most, to the loss of one of my favorite friends, Ranger. While I miss Ranger as I ride mountain trails on my other horses, I remember the joy and contentment I felt as I rode him alongside my dad, as we made our way through the mountains on that last day of Ranger’s life. It is a good and pleasant memory.

One of the best days of my life.

In Camp on Gillespie Flat

For horse and mule packing, camping, and trail riding in the western United States

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