Trail Crew of Two!

Saturday, April 25, 2009

Christine, Bill and CC were not around to go out on the trail today so I headed out alone. I never mind going out by myself. When I'm with people I like being with people. And when I'm alone I enjoy being alone. Besides, I'm not alone at all if I'm with Lilly! I always carry a cell phone with me, should anything really go awry. However, I usually forget to take it out of the pommel bag and put it on my person, which is a very bad thing to forget to do. Here's Lilly almost all ready to go. Looks like the fender on her Big Horn saddle isn't quite right, and her cinch still needs cinching. Today she was wearing her brand new pink fly bonnet that I got at The Equine Affair in November. That means I have been waiting FIVE months to put it on her cute head. Until we get to the trail, for a very short time we are on a tiny road. The road is closed, and Bill has even made a little sign that warns "Horses in the Road" right under the big sign. This big orange sign is a perfect training opportunity for Lilly should I decide to ride near it. I dare anyone who thinks they have a bombproof horse to go by that sign while riding and give it a good whack with a stick, hand or helmet. The noise that the sign makes is like a hammer hitting a bell and is enough to launch any brumby like a rocket. I was lucky enough to learn that one the hard way. I should be tapping it each time we go by to get her used to it, but I confess I don't. I think I don't because whacking that sign is very scary.
The trail we were on today included part of the river trail that we were on yesterday, but I veered off at the beginning and took a route I have not been on since last summer. Our winter was disasterous this year and its ravages were still evident on the trail. There were many trees down and I kept getting off Lilly and leaving her ground tied while I cleared some trees and branches off the trail. My brumby stands very quietly and waits for me to finish while I am working. Sometimes she nibbles ferns, sometimes she just watches. The clatter and crackling of the branches moving around don't phase her. Once I even accidentally bumped her with a large branch. She didn't seem to care.

All alone on the trail, my biggest fear is getting lost. My internal compass is terrible. I don't actually think I have one. I'll go off trail for two minutes and lose my place. Then I look around and try to figure out where I am. That's when all the trees start to look exactly the same. My brumby looks to the right and to the left like she is looking for the right place to go too. (Of course I know she's not lost at all). Then I see one of my trailmarkers from last summer fluttering in the breeze and I heave a sigh of relief. Aaaah yes, here we are. The other thing that might be a wee bit alarming on the trail would be a bear sighting. Bill's trail camera, posted nearby, revealed a big black bear in the vicinity, and I thought of that bear quite a few times today. But I was so busy chattering to Lilly that I am sure the bear heard me and stayed away on his own.
I had forgotten a few of the trouble spots on this trail until we encountered them! This last picture is one of them. The bridge is so sketchy we must avoid it. It would definately not be good to have one of Lilly's feet punch through the bridge. So we walked through the creek. It's small enough though that for one flash of a second I could see Lilly was thinking about jumping it like the eventing horse she is not. I cried out to her, Lilly, NO!! and she ambled slowly through the water.

Another stellar day in the hills of western Mass!




2 comments:

Pony Girl said...

What a nice ride you had on Lily! I commend you for feeling confident to ride alone. I would not go out on the trail alone. I am very afraid of bears, even though I know the odds of actually seeing one are slim. If the trails were private and on my property, I think I'd feel safer.

Paint Girl said...

What another wonderful day of riding for you!
I would not be as brave as going out alone. I guess all those monsters my Arab is scared of makes me always go with someone else!
Lilly sure seems so reliable and not spooky!

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