Today I have been thinking about the horses we’ll be taking on the big ride. This year we’ve decided to take only two pack horses. We feel like there will be more feed along most of the way this year, due to the […]

Day six, for Dad and me, was both tough and wonderful. We had made our first fifty miles and all was well. Now we had entered the first range of mountains along our route: the Chiricahuas. We were excited to get […]

To review a bit from my last entry about the first leg of our Mexico-to-Canada horse pack trip last year, we left off with the end of Day Three and Dad and I camped in Half Moon Valley, just outside the Chiricahua […]

As I was looking through the video footage of last year’s first leg of our Mexico-to-Canada horse pack trip, I found a video we did, documenting our process of making camp one evening. It was Day Four of the trip […]

This is essentially the second part of my gear review of the pack saddles Dad and I used on the first leg of our Mexico-to-Canada pack trip we started in April. This post, however, is specifically about paniers […]

Those of you who have been following my blog awhile know that I did quite a bit of research on various configurations of pack saddles before finally settling on the Decker-style Phillips Formfitter pack saddles, […]

This afternoon I picked up two saddles, a bridle with a good D-ring snaffle, an old, but good saddle pad, and a rifle scabbard, for $380.

I have been looking for a saddle to take on the big ride, because it […]

Now that my wife and I are settled in a house here in Salem, Utah, I have been able to get at least some of my tools out of storage and into my little workshop out back. Some of the first things I brought are my […]

I recently bought a used horse trailer. The process of elimination that brought me to this particular trailer might be educational for others. Thought I’d post a few comments and photos about how I went about it […]

Today I finished my first pair of chinks. Of the three pairs of chaps I’ve made (batwings, Arizona shotguns, and these), these were the most complicated. However, my skills and knowledge have improved a little […]

 I just finished reading for the second time one of the most enjoyable books I have ever found about the life of a cowboy back in “the good ol’ days”. Dakota Cowboy, My Life in the Old Days, by Ike blasingame, i […]

Finished! Well, almost. I just have to apply a leather finish to them.

The chaps are batwings, made from patterns from Bob Klenda Saddlery. Bob is a well-known saddle maker, who makes some beautiful custom […]

A post on the facebook group Talking Horse got me to thinking about my first mustang.

I had just moved to Farmington, New Mexico and was in a position, for the first time since high school, to be able to keep […]

How many times have you been out riding in the winter and had your toes get so cold they hurt? Let me tell you a couple of tidbits that won’t make you feel like you’re in Hawaii, but will help you keep your “to […]

This morning I had one of the most pleasant conversations I’ve had in a long time.

I called Bork Saddlery Hardware to get some specific information before I order some saddle horns and a pair of Decker pack […]

I’ve been busy remodeling the master bathroom in my house these past couple of weeks. Doesn’t leave much time for messing with the horse or working on the saddles. I’ve been trying to do some research on pack […]

Often, new horse owners, and sometimes long-time owners with no formal training, have a hard time getting the bridle on a horse and getting the horse to accept the bit. Here is a short tutorial on how to properly […]

In response to a question on a horse forum I participate in, I posted a short instructional on the proper and safe way to mount a horse in a western saddle.  It occurred to me that it would make a good post he […]