Half way there!

I know I've been slacking a little bit on the blog posts, but I'm so crazy busy that I never have a chance to sit and write!

The last couple weeks have been so fun. We had a group of older men here, who were later joined by their wives, and they were a blast! They always wanted to ride, so you can imagine I was super busy tacking up horses constantly. These guys were hardcore, like go on a 4 hour ride hardcore! I gotta say, I'm used to riding for 7 hours a day, but that includes hopping on and off of different horses all day, not sitting my ass in a saddle for the entire time.

For part of their visit, the guys went on a pack trip up on the North Fork Road. They rode all day, fished, and camped. More than once, they asked me to go with, but of course, I'm not much of a camper, let alone a go without a shower for more than a day kinda girl. While they were gone, I took care of our horses, and took a couple of the guys who stayed behind on rides. These were my first solo rides without JW, and it was a little tough! I'm so used to riding drag that I almost thought I got us lost multiple times. It's pretty hard to get lost here, and when in doubt, I just let my horse pick the trail!

I've been working with Corona and Blue a lot lately. They are the two younger ones that I'm responsible for. Corona was having some attitude issues about backing up and just moving his feet I'm general. So with JW's help, I finally got him backing better and doing some awesome roll backs. He still is having some attitude issues, but over all, I'm really pleased with him. Blue is still pretty lazy, but she's flexing better and getting a little more responsive to the bit. I'm learning a lot about working with younger horses after the breaking out process, and I think it's going to help my training at home. JW keeps encouraging me to just go at training when I get home rather than going back to doing something that makes me unhappy such as going back to Islands (I hear its a shit show right now so no chance of going back there!)

Yesterday the big group left and now we have almost 2 weeks of a little peace and quiet. For me, that means tuning up all the dude horses so they are well behaved for the next group of riders. We also have a lot of new staff coming in this week because of the fire nearby. They're being hired to clear all the dry brush around. Really, there's not much danger of the fire spreading this way because of the rain we've been getting, which I'm in love with, but the owner wants it done. There probably won't be much quiet around here, but at least I'll have some one on one time with the horses.

I did something yesterday that I never thought I would be able to do... Drove the huge gooseneck stock trailer to town! It was pretty easy and I've got to say that I'm so proud of myself for doing it. We took Hewey to the vet for his possible tooth problem, and it turns out he just needed a good float, and that his canines are coming in. Hopefully now, we can get him to stop tossing his head so much. He's one that I need to ride a lot this week so I can get him behaving better for the guests.

I have a little over a month left here, and I'm not sure that I'll be ready to come home. I've completely fallen in love with living here. All I would need is my family and horses here to really be happy.

I'd love to know who is reading this! So if you could leave some comments I would love to read them!

My trailer adventure! 

Pictures from a solo ride I did up on top of the mountain. This was after it rained the night before so the sky is so clear and blue. 

Pictures from outside the lodge.

Running the horses in 

Time is flying!

Have I already been here three weeks?! This is ridiculous. I can't keep track of my days at all.

The family group we had last week left finally, thank you Lord cause that was a tough one for me. I had 4 days of alone time with the horses, as well as a couple days off which I spent riding and going to town. We have a new group of men here right now. They're friends with the owner of Hawkeye and so far they're a lot of fun. They're all at least 50, and I think they enjoy having a 22 year old Wrangler! Last night we took them on a short ride, and this morning we went on a pretty intense 2 hour ride with pretty much all the horses. I get a little bored on the rides because I sit in the back the entire time, but it's still pretty cool to see Wyoming by horseback.

When I have time to myself in the mornings, I ride the younger horses. Right now I'm obsessed with a little blue roan mare. Blue was really stiff and lazy when I first started riding her, but I'm finally getting some results. She's starting to bend really well, and she's able to hold a frame at the walk and trot. We're still working with the canter, but she really is a neat little mare. Spending the mornings training is always something I look forward to. I don't feel like my talents are being wasted when I do that.

I think my favorite horse is constantly changing. Blue and I have a bond going, but I also enjoy riding Hewstin (or Hewey). He is such an awesome little cow horse. He responds to everything so quickly. Yesterday I took him on a ride where there were crazy switchbacks on a mountain. I think I'm a little terrified of heights at this point so I may stay off the mountain!

Two of the staff have left this week. Allie is gone so I pretty much talk to the horses all day long, and our carpenter was let go due to lack of work. So it's been pretty dull and boring around here lately. There's only about 3 of us who actually hang out at this point.

Oh! I almost forgot. I'm learning how to drive the huge stock trailer now. I've driven my 2 horse bumper pull at home, but this is huge, and a gooseneck! It's so much easier than the bumper pull, and my backing skills aren't too terrible!

Nick, the stallion. 

Jessie, one of Nick's babies. 

Busy busy

The days seem to be flying by right now! I can't believe I've been here almost two weeks now. I'm really enjoying teaching the girls how to ride. It's a really amazing feeling to know that doing this makes me so happy. I could do without all the obnoxious people who just want to ride for 10 minutes or on the trail, but the girls who are really into learning make me so happy. Unfortunately they're leaving soon and I'll have to go back to just doing trail rides mosty. When I get home at the end of next month, I feel like I'll really have a direction to go.

Every day seems to be a little different. I'm learning a lot about life and having responsibilities. We still have fun and drink, but every morning I still have to get up regardless of how much sleep I've gotten. I'm starting to feel like more of an adult now that I'm here.

I'm getting so attached to the horses. Each of them means something different to me, but makes me miss my kids so much more. It's still so hard for me to watch all these ridiculous riders make mistakes on the horses that I know could be prevented, but I spend so much energy on trying to fix people's riding, that sometimes I have to let the little flaws go.

The past couple days I've been working with Allie'a mom who has a serious fear of horses. I have had so many people tell me about their horror stories with horses, so at this point I feel like I want to help those people conquer their fears. It's really helping my patience to work with Allie's mom. She never wants to ride long, but she always is asking me questions and explaining how she's feeling. My communication is becoming great, and I'm thrilled to say she's finally started trotting.

I have another girl, Lauren, who is an amazing rider. She wants to do more advanced things since she can keep JW's gelding, Hollywood, in a canter all the time. Today we worked on collecting and extending (thanks to my amazing trainer Chris who taught me a ton about this!). Lauren could feel the change in Hollywood when she tightening her leg against his body, and put a little pressure on his  reins. She's always asking me questions, I'm convinced that I need to adopt her as a permanent student!

I can't wait to come home and ride in my comfy Pessoa English saddle... These western ones suck, and it's impossible to jump without getting the horn in your stomach...

All the pictures are from our ride today. The two chestnuts are Corona and Hewstin! The red roan is Red, JW isn't very original with names...

Overwhelmed...

These past few days have been insane! We have a huge family here right now, not just a family, but the owners family. Needless to say, I've been a little overwhelmed and stressed the past few days. Most of the time they are wanting to ride, which is totally great, but they don't give me any warning. I basically get bombarded by 10 people wanting to ride, twice a day. So in the mornings we usually do arena work with the girls who actually want to ride and not just go along on the trail. Then in the afternoons we go for a couple hour ride. Today we ended up going on two trail rides instead, which gave me a chance to really see the mountains. We rode through a forest which was pretty amazing. I don't know that I've ever seen a prettier place.

I'm a lot less thrilled about the arena work. The girls generally just want to learn how to lope. Yesterday it actually resulted in one of them falling off. Her horse Spike, started taking off a little and she freaked out resulting in Spike bucking, and her eating it. Normally I wouldn't feel so terrible but the entire family came out (including the owners) and were all watching to see what was happening. No pressure right?

My main frustration is just how the guests treat the horses like toys. They don't quite understand why they can't run them all day long. It's really pretty sad. At the end of the day, I try to just give the horses as much attention and care possible. It might mean nothing to them, but it makes me feel a little better to give them a little TLC at the end of the day.

This week, I got a little crazy... I was bored so naturally I had to get the little pony out and jump her.  Shorty is no Nemo, but she sure gave me a work out. I got on her bare back, and it took all my leg muscles not to get bucked off of her. It was a blast though. I can't even explain how much I miss Nemo and jumping.

I'm really looking forward to when these guests leave. They'll all be gone by this weekend so I'll get a day off finally, and a little alone time. I'm super bummed however, because Allie is leaving Sunday as well. I'm definitely going to be bored out of my mind when she's gone. It'll just be me... The horses.... And JW sometimes.

The rest of the week is the same thing... Taking lots of people on rides and biting my tongue the best I can. I'm enjoying my time here, but I'll definitely be glad to come home to my own people and animals.

Getting into a routine...

I don't think I've ever been so exhausted in my life. I seriously work all day long, just taking care of the horses and riding. It's teaching me so much responsibility. I feel like once I'm home, I'll want to take a more active role in taking care of my own horses and not just riding constantly. I think I take advantage of the fact that I have a mom who takes such good care of my kids at home!

So the past couple of days have just consisted of getting the horses ready for the guests who are coming in. It's been really nice having 2 days to myself to just ride and get to know the horses better. I've taken a real liking to Hawk, the big red roan gelding. He actually does amazing flying lead changes! Nothing compares to how my Nemo does them, but Hawk is a nice little reminder of a well trained horse for me. I still think I prefer Sunny, but it's hard when all of them try so hard for me. I even managed to sneak out to the river Thursday for a ride on Ringo. It was a good ending to a long day. However... Wednesday I got bucked off. Bruno, a huge half draft gelding, got excited while we were on the trail alone and LAUNCHED me. I mean, I don't think I've ever been on a horse who bucked so huge. I'm lucky he didn't run all the way home, but it still was slightly embarrassing to tell everyone that I ate shit my first week. Needless to say, I don't think I'll be trusting Bruno anytime soon.

Today I had my first experience with guests. It was... Tough. I'm extremely used to my students who have a desire to learn horsemanship, but these young girls just wanted to get on and ride. Not just ride, but ride well. I vaguely remember my first lesson on horseback, but I'm almost positive I was thrilled just to be walking, these girls just want to lope around, but possess no skills to control their horse, let alone stay on, while they're doing much more than a trot. I had to constantly remind myself that they're not here to become skilled riders who will eventually own their own horses. They're only here so they can fufill some sort of odd fantasy about riding in the mountains. My heart goes out to the poor horses here. Maybe I'm being over emotional about it, but it's truly sad to me that they'll never have a reliable partner. They have to deal with beginning riders who yank on their mouths constantly and kick them with the wrong legs. I'm so incredibly thankful that I have 5 beautiful horses who will never have to know what it's like to have a rider who treats them like dirt. If I learn anything this summer, it's that a horse desperately needs a partner in life who they can rely on to lead them through anything.

Besides riding, I've been getting to know everyone else who works here. It's been really nice meeting new people who, like me, have a desire to be somewhere completely new.  They have all been so welcoming to me. I miss my own friends so much, but meeting new people has been so exciting. My boss is amazing, he constantly is asking me questions about my world of English riding. It's definitely nice to have people welcome my different view of the equine world. After all, we're all just trying to learn as much as we can about our four legged companions.

Bruno after the incident. 

Before I got bucked off

Ringo.  

Day three

I'm finally starting to get the hang of things.... I even know all the horses names.

Today was great. Once I fed and cleaned, Ali and I got out 2 of the horses to ride. I rode a big Grulla gelding named Ringo. He definitely was a bit of an ass. I know the horses are so used to guests who have no idea how to ride, but I obviously still expect a whole lot out of any horse I ride. Ringo has a really hard time bending at all and he does not like to canter (or lope I suppose is the correct "western" term...). He even thought it would be funny to buck with me today, but once I got a better feel for him and him for me, I was able to support him with my leg and keep him in a lope.

After riding Ringo, I hopped on a little palomino mare. Goldie has a whole lot of issues. She has separation issues from the herd, she doesn't like to bend, and she's really spooky on the ground... Needless to say, I'm going to make a point of riding her any day the guests don't because I truly think she needs me the most. Today I only walked and trotted her, working on bending and just getting her mind off of the other horses. Apparently when she's being ridden by guests she is a real brat about running back to the other horses. It gives me something to work on though.

After lunch, Ali and I went on a trail ride across the river. I rode Sunny (my favorite paint gelding) just so I could relax a little and enjoy myself. I think I've enjoyed him so much because he's not a Quarter Horse like the rest of them. He is a little more slender which is my type of horse, and I would even dare to say athletic! It seems like whenever we go on a trail ride, it starts to rain. This weather in Cody is insane. It's like one minute it will be hot as balls and the next... The wind is blasting and it's raining. It's a nice break from California's 100 degree weather, but I do miss river and lake days already!

JW, the ranch manger, sat me down and explained all of my duties today. Basically, along with him, I'm in charge of managing the horses. I need to clean, feed, groom, and ride every day as well as maintain a clean tack area and arena. When there is guests, we will be taking them on rides and doing a little arena work. Oh! On a side note, apparently their previous Wranglers have been terrible. Like lie about being able to saddle a horse, let alone ride, type of liars. Why would you come to the middle of no where with no knowledge of how to keep complete strangers safe on a potentially dangerous animal?!

Getting back to my duties... I feel really good about having some responsibilities in my life now. Being relied upon is something new for me, but I'm looking forward to having to maintain a herd of horses.

Thursday we have guests arriving and I'm a little nervous. I feel like I may be a little overwhelmed at first since I'm not a huge people person, but I'm having faith that I'll make it through with some more knowledge. After all, there's always so much to learn when it comes to horses. The knowledge never ends.

I have a visitor every night now... A little grey cat. She now has a name... Dory! 

Ringo... Check out that dorsal stripe! 

Out on a ride with Sunny. 

Crossing the river.