Because I don’t take my phone on trail rides (just Sara’s old emergency flip phone) I have no photos. So, enjoy these paintbrushes and cattle while I brag about our horses.
But wait! I have sad calves to share! These little darlings got weaned and wormed today. Much mooing is happening now. Sniff.
On to horses
Today we went on a much longer ride than usual, all the way to the far end of our property. To get there, we had many obstacles to face, and I’m happy to say both Apache and Spice were very brave.
Fiona (mini-donkey) was less perfect, but we treated her antics as horse challenges, so it worked out. She would not follow us into our first gate, so I tried to fetch her, but I only irritated her. Sara had to join me, and we finally herded her to the gate.
After that, we explored away. I felt bad going near our house, because it excited the dogs, but it was pretty. The day was glorious.
To get to the back, we had to go over a stream that was running pretty fast. Apache did it! He continued to march through mud and wetness like a pro trail horse. We went over logs, up and down hills, into unfamiliar territory, including some beautiful parts of Walkers Creek.
If you ride, this won’t seem like much. But it’s huge progress for us. He used to be pretty jumpy, and I used to be anxious about new things.
The best part for each horse was crossing the bigger stream going back. It was deeper and muddier. Sara took Spice over a spot that was more challenging than she realized, and Spice slipped, but she scrambled right up, covered in mud.
I went further down to try a different spot. By this time Apache was comfortable with the water, so he started playing. Sara noticed that, as he merrily splashed his face, he was sinking. So she said we’d better cross, which we did really well. When I got home I realized he’d gotten his belly muddy!
Another crossing had Spice so confident that she jumped it, which would have been more fun is she’d been asked to jump!
After a couple of adventures with Fiona and the sad mama cows, we finally ambled home. Everyone was really happy. If there hadn’t been annoying flies, it would have been perfect.
I’ll tell you what happened next tomorrow.
