Although the fires are not close enough to be a threat, the smoke is very thick here- but not always . I have squeaked in 4 short rides in the last few days.
The morning sun...
and tonight's setting sun.
We had spotted a trail to the river that we knew would lead to another trail on the south side of the river, that some friends of ours use. So we decided to explore it.
I'm glad I was saddled up that day! These cement blocks in the following photo are set to prevent people in quads and other vehicles from driving on the dyke, and in this set there is enough space for a horse to walk through them. We had Tay and Goose with us, and Tay was right in front of Gussie as we went through the gap... and she stopped to investigate something. Right under Gussie's nose. Of course, Gussie scared Tay as she almost stepped on her, and that scared Gussie, who panicked and tried to turn in that tight space and of course she couldn't, and ended up scraping her leg and freaking out, whirling, kind of bucking. (You can see some of the hair on the cement in the photo that Shayla took as she rode Sassy through the gap). I stayed on! My one rein stop instinct kicked in and I had a good grip on the big ole saddle horn on the Wade saddle. Gussie didn't seem hurt, not limping so we continued on and stood her in the river for a bit as we made our way across.
It was another steep trail that lead up to the hay fields on top, but the landowner had it fenced off so we rode back down. The silly dogs bailed off the steep side of the hill and had to climb their way back up to us, a couple of times. But it didn't wear them out!
The next morning Gussie was stocked up in that leg, so we went for a ride to the river just for some hydrotherapy for her.
We are getting rather a lot of bareback riding in this month!
Gussie was reluctant to go through the gap in the cement so we went around it. Today we went down again for hydrotherapy, I sure do love having that river close by! Shayla rode Rose this time, and we went to a spot with more current.
Headed across for a photo shoot against the beautiful rocks....
The fall colours are starting.....
and I'm back in long sleeves! The nights are cooling off. We actually have rain in the forecast!
On the way back I schooled Gussie about facing her fear of going through the cement. I got off, and led her through- she grabbed her butt and rushed through, so I turned around and asked her to go through, slower.
Once she would stop on the way through and relax, I used the blocks as a mounting block to get back on, which was also good for her. Tomorrow I'll ask her to ride through without the groundwork.
Apparently I neglected to post about my ride on Beamer the other day- my bad! I have him on Protandim now and he seems to be sound enough to ride, so ride I did! Hence my new cover photo. A nice trail ride down through the bush to the river and back.
My happy place! He always has his ears on me, so I pushed them forward in this goofy photo:
I think I can ride him a couple of times a week now. If it isn't too smokey tomorrow we have a ride planned to explore trails further upstream, and I'll be taking Gussie on that one.
Riding day 56, 57, 58 and 59
9 comments:
Oh my!! Such great times exploring trails & making memories with your riding buddy. You live in a gorgeous area, photos are just beautiful. Keep 'em coming! Glad Beamer is feeling better, bet he is happy to be out spending more time with you. I haven't ridden in an arena since last Spring, and it's been a year since my trail accident. Your posts are a good reminder of why it's worth getting back in the saddle, and into nature. You look so happy-n-fabulous!!!
I'm happy for you and Beamer. His knee looks so much better! You are so lucky to be able to ride them out to that river. You and Shayla are taking full advantage of that. Beautiful photos of the sun, too.
I enjoyed your pictures so much! And I rejoiced with you when Gussie conquered the concrete blocks. I always chuckle at the different things they decide to worry about...oh, and love your expression "grabbed her butt". Perfect. You're doing such a good job with her. I can see BB's wisdom and common sense in practice and that makes me smile. :)
Oh, and I am SO JEALOUS of all your gorgeous riding trails and of your river. Always a blessing to be close to a river! Ride on cowgirl, ride on for me!
Glad to hear the Beam Man's doing better. And fall colors already? You must be higher elevation than we are, cuz we're just, plain hot and dry. And smokey, like you too.
C- I think its drought stress that is causing the fall colours.
So good to see Beamer out and the river is fabulous. Sorry you are still dealing with smoke. I can't imagine.
Shirley, can I ask you something? Why is is that a lot of folks ride bearback instead of using a saddle? Isn't a saddle a little safer? Do you have better control when you use a saddle? I'm just curious. Seems to me that riding bearback, its too easy to slip off the horse? Or, is it more comfortable to ride bearback? What is the better option for a noob?
I grew up riding bareback. It gives you good balance and helps you to really feel the way the horse moves. For most folks, saddles are the better option as far as safety goes and as a tool to do a job on a horse. It's more comfortable for the rider and if it fits right on the horse a saddle distributes the pressure of a rider over a larger area.
Good to know :) Thanks for the response! :)
Great photo of you and Beamer!! He is looking good! :)
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