Sunset Ride

Last night Jerry and I, me on my horse and Jerry riding a mule, went on a sunset/moonlight ride along the American River. It was chilly but not too cold, the sun was setting and the full moon rising. I just love riding the trails with only the moon lighting our path. We heard owls, watched a mama doe and her twin fawns watch us, and listened to our mount's hooves clip clop along the path as we quietly walked along. We timed our ride so we'd make it to the American River at sunset, where I planned to take some photos, then our ride back to the trailhead and our trailer would be in the moonlight. Recently, we have enjoyed breathtaking, spectacular, brilliant sunsets......

....Last night wasn't one of them. This was as colorful as it got. The sunset may have been a bit of a dud, but the trail ride with Jerry was spectacular.

Try a moonlit trail.

Camping in the Woods

This camping area is a short distance from our house, less than a half hour drive. We trailer here for day rides but this weekend we met with several of our riding buddies to camp and enjoy the trails together.

I love this area. Temperatures soared near 100 degrees in the central Valley, were in the 80s at our house but it felt much cooler and more comfortable here in the tall trees. We set up our tents, settled the horses in, set up the camp kitchen and went for a couple of very pleasant trail rides.

The 'boys' saddling up for our ride. At this campground we 'high-line' the horses and mules to keep them from wandering away. Ropes are stretched from tree to tree, the animals are tied with a lead rope just long enough for them to reach the ground to munch their hay, they can move around a bit, and are quite content. It was Millie's first camp outing, her first time being high-lined and she was a perfect lady the entire time.

Jerry made dutch-oven biscuits, gravy, sausage and hot, strong camp-fire coffee for breakfast.

We washed dishes, saddled up, and were on the trail by 10 am.

Hey there Amy, hurry and get that lunch out of those saddle bags so we can eat! Amy rides Remington with a cool Australian saddle, more comfy than a western or huntseat saddle on the long trail rides.

Our trusty mounts are tied while we break for lunch. Pistol, in the foreground, was my ride for the weekend. The second mule is our little Millie, Jerry's trail partner this trip. In the background is Rock, my mare, who was ridden by Tristan all weekend. Tristan usually rides Cheyenne who stayed home with a sore hoof and the colt Wrangler stayed home to keet him company. I drove home from the campground to feed and check on them, the dogs and the cats.

On this ride I neglected to take any pictures of our actual trail riding. I was too busy steering the mule.....

A few years ago, I thought mules were fine as pack animals but swore I'd never ride one . Now I have to admit that I am quite fond of them and enjoy the ride. The difference between riding a horse and a mule can be compared to riding in a luxury automobile versus a 4-wheel drive diesel truck.

I enjoyed our first campout of the season but was glad to get home, take a cool refreshing shower, and relax.

Now we have lots of projects to complete around home to prepare for our big Cowboy Memorial Weekend Party here.......

more about that later, I am off to bed.

The above picture was taken the day Jerry and I got married. Way back in July 2007. In fact, when I took the picture I didn't know that by evening we'd be Mr & Mrs. We were engaged but I was kind of leaning towards a five year engagement. He suggested we go check out some of the Tahoe Chapels, for future reference of course. By nightfall we gathered with our camping buddies and tied the knot.

But that's not the subject of this post, I got slightly side-tracked looking at old pictures. I was looking for pictures of mules. I have become fond of mules over the past few years. They are as different from horses as dogs are from cats. Jerry rode that "Pistol" mule quite a bit in 2007. We were buddies,that mule and I. But I didn't ride him much, I prefer riding horses and using mules as pack animals. Jerry enjoys mules, he is Mister Mule Whisperer, he rides 'em, packs 'em, trains 'em, ropes off of 'em, and heaven only knows what else the ol' boy has up his sleeve. I am sure I'll find out, because........



This is one of a set of mules that came to live with us this past weekend. He already has a name so we don't have to go through all of that naming ordeal again. I re-introduce you to "Pistol".


This is the other half of the pair. Her name is "Milly", she is more of a pistol, or firecracker, than "Pistol" is. That little chain over her nose keeps her honest, without it, she tends to spin and take off at a run, dragging her victim behind.

And I was concerned that I was bringing home too many animals. Jerry is responsible for this increase in herd size. But I sure like them and am looking forward to even more adventures here at the zoo.

Sawbucks & Deckers

We like to travel into the back country, destinations reached only on foot or hoof. We like to eat, stay warm and dry, and sleep comfortably. Our supplies for several days are laid out. I am
glad I can take more stuff than I can carry on my own!

There are two basic types of pack saddles in use today; the Decker and the sawbuck. There are basic differences between the two types and different knots and methods of securing your load. I don't have a preference between the two, since I am quite the novice, but Jerry prefers the Decker. There are lots of straps and leather and ropes to keep the saddle and the packs secure on the pack animal. I am not faking it in the picture, I really can put the pack saddle on a mule.

These two are loaded up and ready to hit the trails!

All your supplies can be loaded into 'panyards', which are containers that you hang from the pack saddle. Or wrap everything in a tidy little package and tie the 'manties' to the saddle. The packages can be referred to as mantees and the canvas sheets can be called mantis. Yep, for you spelling buffs, I did spell it three different ways: mantees-manties-mantis, all are correct.

The Decker saddle is stronger, has metal D-rings to tie to, can be adjusted to fit mules or horses. The cinch goes around the animal's girth and holds the saddle on; the breast collar fits around the chest to prevent the saddle from slipping back when climbing steep mountains; and the breeching is snug around the mule butt to keep the saddle from sliding up on his neck when going steep down hill. A good fit is critical.

Lots of good strong rope and very special (secret) knots are used to secure the mantees to each side of the pack animal. The loads should be of equal weight and make sure they are loaded evenly. This is BJ, my friend Sharon's horse getting ready for her first trail ride carrying packs.

Ropes go over, around, under, through, over some more, and tucked: all in a well orchestrated and planned design. I am still an apprentice knot securer. This photo illustrates why I need a short pack animal.

Sharon's first time leading a pack horse, BJ's first time being a pack horse, and Cocoa's first time being followed so closely by an animal carrying such a thing.

Why do we pack? So we can ride out to places few people get to visit and set up really cool camps.

Escape from the city, traffic, worries, work. A time to relax, refresh, reflect. Stand in an icy clear stream, listen to the mountain music, get lost in the rhythm of the wilderness.

And if the trout out smart you, don't fret, you won't go hungry because steaks, potatoes, corn-on-the-cob and even a romantic bottle of wine are in the cooler that the mule carried up the mountains.

Happy Trails to all!

Mules

The Mule is a cross between a donkey stallion (called a jack) and a horse mare. Hinnies are just the opposite - a stallion horse crossed to a donkey jennet.
Mules are considered hybrids, a cross between two species. They are sterile, the females cannot bear young (a few extremely rare cases have been documented) and the males cannot sire offspring. They exhibit 'hybrid vigor', are tough and are long-lived.
I never had much interest in mules until I started riding in the mountains and developed an interest in packing as a means of traveling in the mountains. I took a few Pack Classes as a member of the Back Country Horsemen Assoc. and was intrigued by the mules.
On my first Pack trip to Colorado with Jerry, I packed in with a little black old-timer of a mule. He was quite the character, intelligent, and fun. Then Jerry and I took a trip to 'Mule Days' a weekend of fun filled mule competitions.
Mules come in all sizes and many colors. Yes they can do anything a horse can do.... except reproduce. Personally I think they are best suited to packing, I just love packing with mules.



I watched mules run barrels. Not too bad if you don't compare them to a horse. They just don't have the grace and speed of a quarter horse. And if one decided it wasn't a day he wanted to run, well, he just didn't run.

Mules are awesome jumpers! They can jump over 4 foot high fences from a stand still, easily! But when it comes to a hunt course, they just don't have the flowing beauty of a nice thoroughbred. (I mean that with all due respect Dear Jane!)

And I know this is a prejudice on my part, but it just doesn't look right for a tall, lanky, ruggedly handsome cowboy to be sorting cattle on a mule! And no mule I've watched seems to be too thrilled with working cattle.

Now this is more like it. Mules are BAD ASS PACKERS. They are super sure footed on mountain trails. They have a strong sense of self preservation and seem to 'think' things over. Not as much of the flight response that horses exhibit when they perceive a danger.

These mules sure seemed to be having fun. It was a Pack Scramble Race. They were a hoot! I can't believe I just wrote 'hoot', but it seems to be an appropriate mule description.

And then finally I got to take a week trip to Durango. Riding and packing mules. This little fella is very cool and in his mid 30s! That is when I decided that I should have a mule one day.

Jerry and the two cutie mules he packed up to the cabin in Durango. They carried all of our supplies; bedrolls, food, drink, clothes, and assorted supplies for the cabin. Nice of them.

This handsome fella is 'Pistol' a three year old. He is new to trails and Jerry has been riding him a lot this summer. We don't own him but I would like to. I have gotten very attached to this sweetheart. He comes running to me from pasture when I call him, he has a real soft unique heehahaw, and he loves to jump in our trail and go on adventures! Soon he will learn to pack.

I never imagined that I could become so attached to a mule! I just need to convince his real owner to give him up!

Tomorrow A Pack Lesson.