We have fairly opposite work schedules and a herd of ten horses… which means we don’t get to “get away” together nearly as often as we wish we could. But when we do, it’s my favorite thing ever.
We recently went for a day ride and we had such a good time! The trailhead we chose was about three hours from our house and we planned on doing a ten mile ride that had a couple of different lakes we could hang out at.
The first few miles of trail were pretty strenuous switchbacks to gain some elevation rather quickly and there were some fairly small sections that had scary dropoffs. BUT for the second adventure in a row, I stayed on my horse the whole ride.
Not going to lie, I felt like a rock star.
There were a couple of creek crossings that our dogs and horses were really grateful for. I have come to learn that if Lucy ever flat-out ignores me on the trail, it’s because she has found water and she is laying in it.
When we came up on the first lake, we were ready for it! Our trail so far had been mostly climbing with some areas of flat ground and a terrain that varied between granite and soft dirt. Everyone was thirsty!
Plus it was really pretty so we took some pictures… it’s just what we do!
After a nice break, we hit the trail again to the second lake and our final destination. Little did we know, it was only about 10-15 minutes further up the trail.
Spur is a water-obsessed horse so I kept dragging him out of the lake… I didn’t want him to get too far out there and decide to lay down or go for a “nice swim”. We had multiple conversations about it but he kept wandering back into the lake.
If you ever seen a happier cowboy or happier dogs, please let me know. I’ll wait. 😉
When we parked at the trailhead, we parked next to a pack string and the whole ride we were both thinking “please don’t let us meet that pack string on a narrow section of trail”. Luckily, we met them on our way back down, going by the first lake… perfect timing!
Kelly is always so patient with me when I want to use the remote and get photos of the two of us together… and it’s always a bit of a fiasco so I am extremely grateful for his patience!
Then Spur and I ditched Kelly for a while because Fawkes was struggling with some herd-bound issues and Kelly wanted to school him through it. Spur did excellent leaving his buddy but it may have had something to do with the fact that we were heading back toward the trailer.
All in all, a family day well-spent in the mountains!
