Monthly Totals

October 2014
410 minutes = 6.75 hours with Morgan

330 minutes = 5.5 hours - Bill and Majesty

Wasabi's saddle time 2014: 
Jan - Jun - 5 hrs
July - 2 hrs
Aug - 1 hr
Sept - 0 hr
Oct - 0 hr

Odd Situation.

Tuesday, October 28th  20 minute ride 
Solo

I decided to take a quick ride with the remaining 20-30 minutes of fading light.  As I saddled up, I heard quads going by but I didn't pay much attention to where they were.

Heading out for a nice quiet ride

Morg and I dashed out the gate and headed on our "normal" route up to the sand dune within sight of our house.  She seemed to want to be riding, because she took off in a trot and never slowed down ... until we went up the sand dune and cut right ... then she completely stopped.  

A blur of motion as Morg and I cruised down familiar pathways

I looked up to see three men standing around and two quads.  Odd.  I asked if we could pass through, because I wasn't sure what the proper etiquette was for situations such as this. I mean, what does one say?  "Hello, pardon our intrusion on your ... um ... suspicious gathering"?  And really, why were they hiding on the back side of a sand dune?  Wives looking for you or something?  One of the men said we were real quiet. What is an appropriate response? Apologize or say thank you?  I merely nodded and that seemed sufficient.

Sometimes her trotting makes for the most interesting pictures ... love the swirling motion of this one

I said we'd be out of their way in a moment and Morgan and I were off again clambering down the far side of the dune when she spotted another quad in our way.  Hmmm. This must belong to the guy that was standing on the sand dune, but why was it parked at the bottom of the tallest sand dune. Odd and odder.

The light was fading fast, so we had to hustle ... no time to wait for the camera to focus

We skirted around the quad (with Ms. Morgan snorting challenges at it the whole time) and went on our way.  Once we got to the salt flats, I asked Morg to head around another sand dune ... I figured she was making good time and we needed the extra mileage.  Once we were on the backside of the dune, one of the quads fired up and started heading our way. I decided to cut the ride short and head home on a path parallel to the quad.  Once we entered our gate, the other two quads came down the road right behind us. Great, now they know where I live. Guess Bill will have to accompany Morg and I for a while to be on the safe side.

Safely in our front yard, we stopped by Morgan's favorite snacking area

Goatly Madness

Came home from running errands to see this ...

Yep, that's our goat "Eclipse" hanging out on the porch

Here's her "wise and all knowing goat" face

Silly goat.  I adore her antics.

Wasabi thinks she's awesome

Saturday, October 26th  30 minute ride 
Rode with Bill & Wasabi

Morgan: Wait ... she's going?

Me: Yep, and we're going to have fun.

Me: See? We're having fun

Wasabi: Come on you guys ... you're slow

Morgan: Pffft. I just don't want to be anywhere near you.

Morgan moved as far away from Wasabi as I would allow.

Wasabi: Look at me being well behaved!

 Wasabi: Hey, Morgie, watch me run to the gate and back!

 Wasabi: Did you see me?  Did ya?  I'm awesome.

Me: Hey Wasabi? This is what awesome looks like!

Sunburns Suck, Sunsets Don't

Tuesday, October 21st  10 minute ride  
Solo

Got home with about 20 minutes left before the sun slid behind the mountain.  I tossed a saddle on Morgan and headed out the front gate.  We did a quick two block ride at a steady trot just to stretch out her legs and spend some time together.  It was nice to be with my Morgie girl today watching the sun change from pinks and reds to darkness.

One of the ladies from Sunday's ride sent me over two pictures:

Morgan getting a neck scratch and a hug. Love that mare!

Look ... a picture of all four of us!

Mountain Half-Marathon ... where Morgan tried to decapitate me ... several times

Sunday, October 19th  3.5 hour ride - 13.1 miles
Mtn. Springs Ride
Rode with Bill & Majesty, Meggan & Zanadee, Robert & Chevy, Pam & Faith, and R
And five dogs

Meggan invited us to join her and her friends for a ride in the mountains about an hour from the house.  We loaded up our horses and left the house bright and early.  I didn't think about bringing sunblock, because it's mid-October ... it should be chilly!  Needless to say, I got my first major sunburn of the year. In October.  *shakes head in disbelief*

Starting out ... our guide for the day was "R" and his sorrel horse and two golden retrievers.  I think red might be his favorite color. :)  Leaving the property, it felt like we were on top of the mountain.  We traveled down to the "road" and found ourselves on a plateau.  

Morg and I weren't used to all the trees and several times I found myself ducking.  At one point, I was digging around in the saddle bag looking for spare batteries when I looked up to find Morgan and I were basically in a tree ... we were both spitting pine needles for a few seconds before we backed out and went around it.  Lesson learned ... don't fiddle around for the first 20 minutes when you're in a new environment.

We came upon a grassy area, which kept the horses a bit busy ... inspecting the area, not tasting the local grass of course.  Majesty and Morgan had never been in grass that tickled their bellies, but after a few minutes, they walked in it without snorting. Until they discovered the muck.  Once they heard the sucking sound of their hooves freeing from the mud, they both said no thank you and tried to turn around.  It took some work, but they made it through the marshy parts and were rewarded with a snack.

This is the only picture of Morgan and I together from the ride.  Poor Morgan, she has no head.  Poor me, I have no feet.

Lots of "ups" and "downs" along the way ... some of it rocky, some of it smooth.  The horses really had to work those leg muscles.  I was thankful Morg is in shape.   

Majesty was the only gelding, the only light colored horse, and the only Arabian in the group. Way to be different Bill!  

Of course, Morgan was the only Morgan, the only one without a bit and unshod. I was nervous about her being barefoot, but she didn't have a single chip or any signs of tenderness at the end of the ride.  Way to go Morgie!  And way to be different Amber.  *grins*

Break time!  We made a few stops to let the horses catch their breath and to do tack checks.  Every time we stopped, the dogs found watering holes and jumped in to cool down. 

Majesty and Bill at the half way point.  Look at poor Majesty's neck ... coated with sweat and dirt.

One very tired Morgan ... as soon as she was untacked, she started to fall asleep.  

About a quarter mile from the house Morgan started breathing hard, so I slowed her pace and let her rest in whatever shade we could find.  While checking her hooves and legs, I noticed she had cactus spikes in her right front leg.  I pulled them out and they immediately started to bleed.  I'm sure she thought I was torturing her when I wiped her leg down with an antiseptic cloth.  I watched her carefully to see if she would need a Benadryl, but she didn't seem to have a reaction to the cacti.

A quick rinse then they loaded into the trailer and we headed home.  13 miles in 3.5 hours ... we might take up endurance riding ... with lots more practice!

Another Snake Tale

Driving home, I noticed something slithering on the side of the road.  Bill turned on his flashlight and caught pictures of this "darling" diamondback rattlesnake.

Look at the bottom of the flashlight circle ... you'll see it's head

More centered, but fuzzy

And this is the snake deciding we weren't all that much fun to hang out with, so he slithered away

Turnout Fun

Tuesday, October 14th  5 minute ride  
Solo

Morgan giving me a hug before we rode

I only had a few minutes, so I tossed on a headstall and clambered on Morgan's back.  We stayed in the turnout pen.  The other horses were wandering around the turn out impatiently waiting for dinner, so we got some interesting reactions.  

First there was Wasabi:

She threw a hissy fit ... kicking up dirt, snorting, racing about

Then she decided to play "follow the leader" .... with her being the leader, of course

Then there was Majesty:

He looked pitiful ... this is his "I'm starving, please feed me" face

Two laps around the turn out and I hopped off and fed everyone.  Just a quick pick me up before heading to the town council meeting.

Sneaking in a quick jaunt

Monday, October 13th  15 minute ride   
Solo

Rode Morgie down the street, turned around and came back.  It's getting too dark to ride more than a few minutes when I get home, which is a bummer.  I didn't grab a camera or my phone, so there's no pictures.  Just a nice, leisurely stroll down the street with my best horse!

Morgan and Bill on June 22, 2013

Quiet One

Sunday, October 12th  60 minute ride  
Rode with Bill & Majesty

Morgan waiting patiently to be tacked up

We took a nice, leisurely ride through the flat area of the desert east of the house.  My batteries gave out after taking two pictures, so there's nothing fun to look at today (well, looking at Morgan is always fun for me).  

Quiet, calm, with just enough breeze to make the ride comfortable.  Perfect kind of ride ... just what was needed to start off the week.

Morgan with her new breast collar and cinch

and her best friend, the snack bucket 

Checking out the Green and Yellow

Sunday, October 5th  30 minute ride  91° 
Rode with Bill & Majesty

Me: Hey Morgan, Smile for the camera!

Morgan: Nope.

Heading out ... viewing the world through my favorite pair of brown ears

I told Majesty he looks good with a field of yellow and green behind him

Morgan looks just a good!

Ayup, cheesy pictures on horseback. What ride would be complete without one?

The Craptastic Dog Adventure.

Saturday, October 4th  30 minute ride  82° 
Solo

With all the rains, there are many new flowers blooming

I decided to take Morgan out for a solo jaunt.  I wanted to do more exploring in the sand dunes that had been washed out.  New neighbors had moved in to a house at the entrance to the sand dunes and they had several dogs that didn't seem to like horses.  Keeping that in mind, I took a different street to avoid their house.

See that skull and cross bones?  That's the house we were avoiding

Morgan I found a new path that seemed safe, so we meandered through the dunes for about 20 minutes.  One of the trails we were following dead ended on top of a dune where the road to our left had been completely washed out.  I asked Morgan to stop while I took a look at the ground to our right trying to determine if it was safe to head down when I heard barking.  I looked up to see a rather large (think bull mastiff size) dog charging up the dune with spit flying out of its mouth and heading straight for us.

Deciding which way to go

I quickly assessed the situation, can't go left, can't turn around (never present your backside to an enemy), too windy for the pepper spray I was carrying, left only one option .... charge straight at the dog yelling as loudly as possible.  Morgan didn't hesitate one second and we bounded down the hill heading at the dog - but that didn't stop his forward momentum.

Sand dune!  Let's climb it!

We swung left around a bush which gave me an opportunity to kick at the dog as we passed it, spun around, and started chasing it again.  The dog turned and ran towards it's house with us in hot pursuit (and me still yelling).  The owner came outside because her 5 other dogs were now barking madly.  I'm sure she was wondering why some weird woman on horseback was chasing her dog and screaming like a maniac. 

  

Trying for an artistic shot ... before the chaos began

The dog made it to her fence line, so I slowed Morgan down to a trot to give the owner a chance to get her dog.  The dog swung around and started coming after us again, so it got two well placed kicks to its head while it's owner stood there calling the dogs name.  Really? I yelled "Get your dog before I shoot it."  That seemed to get her moving.  We chased the dog around to the front of her fence and then backed up across the street.  She reached through the fence and grabbed the dog's collar.

Me: Hey, Morgie ... We're ok.  You can walk now.

Morgan: Whew.

We turned left and took the road home, but it was a good mile before Morgan and I were breathing normal again.  My poor horse.  That could have been so much worse ... she could have stepped in a rabbit hole and broke her leg or she could have panicked and dumped me ... instead, she did everything exactly perfect

Morgan looking for comfort ... notice her worried eye ... and the lick mark on my boot.  You're fabulous Morgan Moonpie!