Hey Sweetie,
Didn't sleep as well last night, not sure why, but was up and around getting on with my chores when Art showed up, having arrived from Canada last night. He went on to a meeting after a few minutes, and I finished up my chores and breakfast, giving Flash a bute with breakfast so he wouldn't have any pain on this final ride. I also put boots on him when I saddled him up later, and between the two things, he was much more comfortable today. As I was leaving camp, I ran into several people I knew and had to chat with, so it was a later departure than I had planned, but nevertheless, we did the full 18 miles in slightly less time than yesterday, so our pace was much better. He was slow for about the first mile or so, until he figured out that he wasn't hurting, then he picked up speed and was his normal self for the rest of the ride, and even finishing up with some nice speed runs on the way back to camp. Some of the trail was a repeat of the other trails we had already done, but some of it I hadn't done since last year, and hadn't been affected by the hurricane, so it was really pretty and nice. Was very glad Flash was back to his old self, and also that he will have several days off, though it's forecast to get quite a lot cooler, so it'll be back to blankets at night in a few days! Art was at the tent next to my trailer with Steve and some other folks chatting, so I joined them once I put Flash away. One of our neighbors had fallen off her horse when it moved while she was on the mounting block, and was dizzy and vomiting, so it was decided to call the paramedics, since she hit her head and it sounded like a concussion. Steve and Art stayed behind to look after her animals while I went ahead to the volunteer meeting to learn what my jobs for the next few days were to be, then ended up following around a van full of volunteers (they couldn't fit us all in) to show us where our respective job sites were. When I got back, Art had collected some dinner from the vet/meeting tent, though it was cold, so I offered to heat them up in the microwave and to eat together. Of course, my generator decided not to start, even though it had enough battery juice for a change. Opened up a new propane tank, that didn't help, so I knew it had to be low oil, so I opened that up, and though it didn't look too bad, it took nearly half a quart of oil. Then it finally started, so I closed up that new propane tank (since the other tank wasn't really empty), and heated up dinner for us. We chatted until about 8:30 when he left, now I have to finish my evening routine (no time for TV!), take my shower and get to bed! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hiya Babe,
Last night I had some Sleepytime tea for the first time in a long time, and I slept like a baby! Of course, that might have had something to do with the 22 miles Flash and I rode yesterday! After chores, I got him saddled up for our assignment of the day, the 15 mile red trail. No surprisingly, he was a lot slower today. I got the impression it wasn't muscular, but rather his feet were sore, and I'm pretty sure that was my fault for not putting on his boots. There's a lot more gravel roads being used for trails on the other side, and though I didn't find any visible stone bruising this morning, I'm pretty sure that is was his feet that were the issue. I didn't figure it out until we were well out of camp, so we carried on, just taking our time, which ended up being over five hours. I also went slower because I did quite a bit more trimming and trail clearing, which also slowed us down, but it was a beautiful day, partly cloudy, upper 60's, just perfect! We had no reason to be in a hurry. My pictures today focussed on all the spring flowering trees and brambles, the perfume in the woods at the moment is absolutely gorgeous! Blackberry vines, mountain laurel, and much more all contributed to the heady scent in the woods today. Heavenly! Got back to camp before 4:00, and I was just getting Flash untacked when Louis showed up. We got him backed in and in sync with the neighbors, then I took Flash over to the washrack and got him cleaned up and put away. We chatted for a bit, filled his water tanks, topped off mine while we were at it, and settled down for the night. He offered me dinner but I had already thawed out some chicken, and starting tomorrow, they'll be feeding us volunteers, and I didn't want it to go to waste. Couldn't quite get a good enough signal for TV tonight for some reason, so I just read a bit, and once I'm finished posting and drinking my Sleepytime tea, I'll be off to bed! Good night, darlin'! Love you!

Hi Darlin',
Slept pretty well, though woke up around 4:00 when it started raining heavily. That lasted until almost 9:00, which is when I finally got up and did my morning chores. After breakfast, I put on my rainsuit and saddled up Flash, and we headed out to do our assigned trail for today, the Lime trail. Thankfully it didn't rain, though there was still of a lot dampness around, and I had no trouble clearing out some of the branches and limbs that were in the way. When I got back to the arena area, they were putting up the vet tents, and the organizers were there. I let them know the condition of the trail, and Flash wouldn't sit still, so Stagg asked me if I wanted to help with something else, and I asked, "What do you have in mind?" Turns out they hadn't fully checked the blue trail over on the west side, the side that's NEVER open except on ride day, and he wanted to know if I would do it. OF COURSE!! Flash had been doing well all day, the weather had turned sunny, he seemed to have plenty of energy, and I would never turn down the chance to see the other side, which is where the vineyards and cattle and the rest of the working farm is. I met them at the bridge, which they opened for me, then staged themselves along the route to help me in some of the areas where the trail wasn't open yet. What an honor! I feel like I really earned my stripes today! In the end, we did over about 22 miles, which was more than I had bargained for on the first day, and I hope it doesn't take away from the two more days of riding we have left to do, but we'll see. Saw lots of wildlife today: deer, turkey, Canadian geese with lots of baby goslings. Not like the Serengeti, of course, but still, nice viewing today! Got back to find that one camper that had come in earlier had spread her paddock in such a way as to take up about three spaces, and her friends had come in and were about to park in the space I had hoped to have my friend Louis across from me, so there was a bit of awkwardness as we tried to straighten that out. They really cut back on our camping sites this year for volunteers, so it's definitely going to be crowded in this little space. I put out a couple of orange cones next to me, I'm hoping they'll still be there when Louis arrives. Anyway, it was a lovely day of riding, I just LOVE MY HORSE SO MUCH! Flash was brilliant, we cantered and gaited for miles, and had the best time! Hope he'll be as enthusiastic tomorrow! Finally settled down for the evening, looking forward to an early nice and another lovely ride tomorrow. Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hey Babe,
A terrible night sleep, which often happens after a day of too much rest! It was after 3:00 before I nodded off, but got up at 8:30 to get the day started. Started doing a little packing, then after chores and breakfast decided to take Flash for a short ride with Lola. I wanted to make sure I didn't have any more pain as a result of my fall in Africa (thankfully, I didn't!) and to reassure myself that I could, indeed, ride a canter without fear, which, thankfully, I did! We galloped around the entire perimeter of two of Linda's back fields, which, of course, wasn't 10 minutes, but at least I felt very comfortable for the duration. First, though, we went down some other trails, and ended up doing about 3.65 miles out and back, which was just about right, since Lola was along and I didn't want to wear her out. She doesn't often get to come along when I'm riding Flash, so it was a really nice adventure for you. Felt so good to be back in the saddle of a horse I know and trust! Once we got back and he was back out in the pasture, I did a bunch of little chores that have been staring me in the face. I riveted the wheel well that got pulled off with my flat tire the other day, re-hung some pictures that have pulled off the walls, did three loads of laundry, got the truck lined up and the four extra bales of hay moved into it, packed up my lawn chair and table, and generally just got ready for our departure tomorrow. Once that was all done, I sat in my recliner and ended up falling asleep! Finished my evening with the last of the leftovers and a few more episodes of Damages, heading to bed early, need to make up for all the hours lost last night! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Got up at the usual wake up time at 6:30, followed by breakfast around 7:00 and then finally preparations to go riding at 8:00. Luke had arranged for me to go out with my own guides for a short walking ride, which I approached with great enthusiasm as I did wake up feeling a little bit better this morning, and it was a very nice ride, just over an hour long. By the end of it though I was feeling quite sore again, so I was glad to get back to camp. I decided then that I really wasn't able to have an afternoon ride, much as I would have liked to, but I'm just still a bit too sore, and I'm afraid I'm exacerbating a cracked rib or something similar. Spent the rest of the morning reading until lunch time which we all did together again, and then spent the afternoon doing the same, reading and resting. They all went out on another ride at 4:00 but I stayed in my tent recuperating. Morisa came by around 6:00 and invited me to what he called Bush television, which was a campfire. They had some meat-on sticks broiling around the edge of the fire, which turned out to be fresh goat meat. Shortly thereafter the rest of the gang arrived back from their ride, and we were soon situated by the campfire having our daily sundowner. We munched on some of the goat meat, and then I kept my promise of providing some entertainment, and recited the Snowy River poem. Everyone else went to take a shower, getting back just in time for dinner at 7:30, where we got fed even more delicious food. Dessert of chocolate cake was then presented to us in a parade of the entire crew chanting and singing around the table, of which I got a great video. Afterwards, I had a three bucket shower so I could wash my hair, then off to bed! Early start tomorrow, as we head back toward civilization. Good night, my love!

Woke up about a half an hour before the 6:30 water delivery, was up and about right after, packed up my bags because we were moving today, before going to breakfast. Carried everything that I needed during the day out to breakfast, leaving my big bag fully packed, behind. Enjoyed the lovely breakfast and was ready to go by 8:00. Headed out amongst the usual herds of wildebeest and zebras, saw one elephant but unfortunately we were up wind so as soon as it caught our scent it meandered off. We reached one point where there were a bunch of giraffe, and we stayed and watched them for a while, all the time they watched us. It was hard to tell who was the audience, and who was the entertainment! Lots of fun. Stuck mostly to the plains again, fully enjoying the ride. We were out about two and a half hours, then stopped at a waypoint for lunch. Not back at camp but at a place under some lovely trees, where we were soon practically surrounded by thousands of wildebeest and zebra, who seemed rather surprised to discover that we had taken over this part of the plain, and were a bit confused about how to get around us, but they managed to find a route and we got a real parade. We had lunch and then relaxed around on large pillows on a canvas, feeling like sultans of Old Arabia. We chatted a bit, show each other pictures of our horses and other important things in our lives, exchanged contact information, but didn't get any nap time in. We saddled back up again and headed out circuitously toward camp, this time going through more of a forested area, in the hopes of finding a lion, because apparently this is their habitat. Unfortunately, one of the horses shied badly at something, which was rather amusing since they were not the least bit troubled by the thousands of zebras and wildebeests going through at lunch time, but it caused a chain reaction amongst the horses, and my horse Roy made a dramatic step sideways and I lost my balance and ended up on the ground. I hit back on the ground first, then my hip on my fanny pack, and my helmet on the ground. It took me a few minutes to regain my breath and get back up into the saddle, but I can tell that the fall on the hip and is going to be probably the worst of it. Nothing broken but I guarantee you I'm going to have a bruise the size of Australia on my hip. We carried on in the best fashion possible, getting back to camp around 5:00, where I medicated myself with several gin and tonics and an ice pack. It was a lovely evening, a fabulous dinner watching the sun set. It looks like there was some rain off on the horizon, so hopefully the grass will be green and the animals will stick around, and then finally it was time to head to bed. Katya offered up some pain relief cream, which I accepted gratefully, and I headed to my tent, took a couple of Naproxen, had a lovely shower, and headed straight to bed. I'm hoping against hope that by the morning I will be recovering nicely and not be too stiff to ride tomorrow morning. I really don't want to miss any of this, but I'm not going to kill myself in the process. Apparently tomorrow we are jeeping it into a town for the afternoon, and having a fly camp, which will be much more primitive, for the night, and then we will Jeep it back to the camp we're in now, which they call the sunset camp. I'm going to just take it one day at a time and see how I feel tomorrow. I'm a bit ticked off about this, because I was just saying how grateful I was that I was in good physical health during this ride, not getting sick or not feeling badly like I have for my last two vacations, I hope I just didn't jinx it. I did have sort of a premonition overnight last night that I would take a fall but I was hoping I was wrong. Anyway, time for bed, and we'll see how it goes in the morning. Good night my love!

OMG! To try to describe this day would be all but impossible! After arriving back at my tent last night, to a bed warmed with a hot water bottle, I couldn't decide whether to wear earplugs or not, but after several minutes of loud wildebeest grunting, I had no choice. I woke up once around 2:00 in the morning, worrying about how I was going to overcome my discomfort about riding, determining that I would wear the half chaps I borrowed and the seat cushion that I brought, then when I discovered what time it was, I decided I needed to get some more sleep, so I managed to nod off again, and slept through until I heard the staff pouring water into the wash basin outside. I actually think he poured it three or four times just to make sure that I was awake, so I finally just said good morning and he acknowledged and went away. Got up, washed my face, did my morning ablutions, and was soon off to breakfast, where once again we were spoiled by incredible food. Finished getting ready to go riding and we all walked down to where the horses were at 8:00, as planned. I had expressed some uncertainty about my mount Nadal, which Luke took to heart, so by the time we got to the horses, he had decided to remount me on a horse named Roy. How's that for kismet? I had mentioned that if things did not work out with Nadal today, that I would prefer a horse that was lower to the ground and that had a mane that I could grab onto, and that was exactly the bill that Roy fit. A lovely chestnut, a bit smaller than the rest, but with my new saddle cover, it provided a much better sense of security, and I felt much more comfortable about the whole thing. We headed across the plains to the north, winding our way through herds of zebra and wildebeest, and then locked on to an incredible sighting of a predominantly nocturnal creature called the honey badger. It looked like a giant skunk, black with a white stripe all the way down it's center. We watched it for quite some time as it foraged through the grass until it finally arrived downwind of us, at which point it galloped off. Our guide Luke expressed his delight at being able to see that particular creature, since they are apparently very rare at midmorning when we were viewing it. We continued on, heading toward a flock of vultures, who are making short work of a fairly recent carcass of a Thompson gazelle, all the while winding through herds of everything imaginable, including ostriches. We did a number of canters, which took a little getting used to again, but Roy was quite willing and his canter was reasonable. He was a little bit more stubborn about taking direction, but for the most part he followed along with the rest. Since he was smaller and his strides were shorter, we often got behind the rest of the pack, except for the drag rider, but I didn't care because I felt a lot more secure on him than I did on Nadal. Still hanging on to the saddle during the canters, but still feeling a bit more secure about it. We did a nice loop around the plains area, seeing multiple herds of a variety of animals, and ending up along the tree line looking for additional animals. We got back to camp, had a lovely lunch, the other girls had a shower but I'm holding off until later tonight, then managed to get a nap in the afternoon for more than an hour, surprisingly. Headed back out for our second ride of the day, this time into a valley that was full of trees and bushes and thorns and a bit more interesting than the plains, and we're quickly rewarded by a string of giraffes right by the tree line. We gazed at them for a while, then we cantered alongside them, before finally heading down into the valley. We were extremely lucky to quickly find an elephant who was playing in some water deep in the brush, and eventually after he finished playing, he laid down along the edge of this puddle and took a nap. We watched him for a good 20 minutes or so, maybe longer, as he flapped his ears and slept. Evidently it's very rare to see them in that relaxed a position, so it was quite an event. There was another elephant nearby who we also watched for a while. Quite a sight! We carried on a little bit longer and ran across some more zebras and wildebeests, and then came across some more giraffes, including four babies and an adolescent. We watch them for a while as well. What an amazing, amazing day! The first ride was nearly 14 miles, and the second ride was just over 4 miles, which I was kind of happy about because I was starting to feel a little bit tired despite the nap. But it was absolutely filled with incredulity at all of the creatures that live freely out here. We headed back to camp, got the horses put away, and had a well-earned gin and tonic or two as we watched more herds pass by and the sun go down. It was amazing! It was so easy to feel like one of the early explorers, out in the bush with a tribe of help meeting our every need. The two girls both took a shower after happy hour, but I waited until after dinner. Dinner once again was extraordinary! We had a beef curry that was second to none. Stories were shared, lessons were learned, and the entire evening was absolutely delightful as the stars began to appear. I finally asked for my shower water, which was quickly delivered, I've had my nice warm shower and shampoo, and will soon be off to sleep. We move camp tomorrow so I have to pack up everything in the morning, but I'm looking forward to the next place, though frankly this one has been so remarkable, I could probably stay here all week! Almost feel like there's not much more I can see that could be better than what I've already seen but I guess, we'll see! Absolutely remarkable! Far exceeding my wildest expectations. Spoiled for any further adventures in the wild, I'm sure. Time for sleep! Good night, my love!

Slept reasonably well, though I kept waking up too hot, because their top cover was a plush duvet, then throwing that off to cool off, then waking up again having to pull it back on to get warm again. Otherwise slept well, even sleeping through a downpour overnight that I never heard. Got up and took another shower, dressed, and went out for breakfast. Katja, who I've learned is a real estate lawyer from Germany, but who lives in Switzerland, was in much better spirits this morning, having been suffering from an ailment the last few days. Tracy soon joined us for a lovely breakfast, and afterward we all rushed to finish packing, meeting at the car at 9:00, which swept us off to a small local airstrip called Dolly, where were we promptly loaded on to a small prop plane, about a 10-seater, and took off for our first camp location. Fifty minutes later, on our approach to the Urdu landing strip, we watched as zebras scurried off the runway just before we landed. A quick transfer to a jeep, and we were soon on our way. In just the first few minutes, we saw more zebras, gazelles, impalas, and so many more animals I couldn't keep track! I'm in seventh heaven! As we traveled along, out Masai driver kept a lookout for more critters, and soon spotted a cheetah on the hunt. We followed her for probably 15 or 20 minutes while she was tracking a heard of gazelle's and ostriches, not to mention many zebra in the same crowd, but finally gave up when two hyenas uncharacteristically showed up during the day. Apparently when they do that, the cheetahs hunt is over, because she knows that the hyenas will steal any kill from her, so not to bother. She gave up and tried it off in another direction. We got back on track, saw a lot more herds of just about everything, including the migrating wildebeest, who's numbers increased as we got closer to camp. We finally arrived in camp, where we were assigned our tents, and I got to say, I am extraordinarily impressed. The tents are large and roomy with a mattress on a frame, (which I later learned was a box that holds the tent during moves!), a side table, a towel rack, and a chair outside on a veranda. About 20 yards behind each tent, there is another smaller tent that holds a shower, and a separate toilet. It's an unbelievable luxury to be camping like this! Once we got settled in we came back to the mess tent for lunch, which was an absolutely outstanding wrap, then after lunch we had about an hour to get settled in and change our clothes to riding gear, then went off to meet our horses, and take our first ride. I was assigned a rather large gray horse called Nadal, and we were soon mounted up and on our way for our first test drive. It turned out to be quite a learning experience. The saddles are rather shapeless polo saddles, with very little support and rather slippery. It's typical English iron stirrups, which are pretty slippery compared to what I normally use, and are going to take quite some getting used to. We headed out at a walk, and Nadal had quite a forward walk, wanting to either pass everybody, or stick his nose right in someone else's butt. They are trained to neck rein, but they're foot cues are opposite to what I typically use, so again, that's going to take some getting used to. We started to do some trotting, but we had to readjust my stirrups several times because I am not used to coming out of the saddle that far, and I felt pretty insecure. We eventually went into a canter, which compared to what I'm used to was an extremely rough canter, but according to our head Wrangler Luke, he has one of the smoothest canters out here, so I guess I'm just going to have to get used to that, as well. I really had a hard time trying to keep my balance when I felt like I had nothing to hang on to as my horse has no mane, My feet kept slipping out of the iron stirrups, and my butt was sliding all over a shapeless saddle. Kind of scary, but at least I never came off, though were a couple of times when I thought I was going to. As we were finishing off a large loop around the area, and we had another long canter, my horse kept trying to pass Luke, who I was told I wasn't supposed to do, and when I tried to slow him down, he started to throw his head, which made me lose my balance, and I had to call to the others to stop, which I was loathe to do, but I feel like I had no choice. It had been a very long canter and we had been chasing a huge heard of wildebeest and the zebras, so I don't feel like anybody felt short changed, but I just felt like I was on the edge at that point. We were almost back to camp anyway, so we walked the rest of the way, put our horses away, and then headed out to where they had set up a bar and some chairs, and a campfire even though it was still daylight, and we had what they call in these parts, a "sundowner", better known in our neck of the woods as happy hour. I was glad to hear that both Tracy and Katja felt pretty much the same way that I did about the saddles and the rough gait of the horses, but I guess I was the most insecure, which really ticks me off at myself, but again, I'm just going to have to get used to it. The last canter was probably the best in terms of getting used to it but when the horse started throwing his head, it was just a bit too much too early. I think we need to adjust one of the stirrups again tomorrow and see what happens. Katja went to take a shower before dinner, but Tracy and I had another drink and when Katja came back we have another lovely dinner, but I just had tiny portions because the ones at lunch were huge, and I'm just not used to having this many meals in a day. The sun went down and the moon almost full came up during dinner. It was truly amazing to be sitting at a dining table with a full service of linens and silverware in the middle of the Serengeti plain. Truly magical. Finally about 8:30, we headed out to our tents, where the service guys had put warm water into our shower tanks, and I was able to enjoy a truly lovely warm shower inside the bathroom tent. Back to the bedroom tent, and all I have left to do is finish this post and read a little bit, and nod off listening to the sound of grunting Wildebeests. I may be putting my ear plugs in shortly! Good night, my love!

Hey Darlin'!
Was awakened at 3:00 in the morning by Chelle's wayward horse Levi (proof that my horses aren't to blame for knocking down their fence earlier!), I heard him run past my window, then come back and munch for awhile. At 4:00 I was still awake, and second-guessing myself as to whether I had remember to turn my fence charger on, so I got up, put on a robe, and checked it. Yes, it was on! But so were the lights in the barn, so I wandered over there to see if I could help. Chelle was just rounding up Levi and getting him back in the pasture. Later they fixed and electrified their fence, so hopefully that will be the last of THAT problem! Finally managed to fall asleep again for a short while, but got up to do some new items I had added to my list overnight. By 7:45 I was leading Chelle through the feeding instructions, by 9:00 Art came by, and I decided I had time to walk with him and Lola, then when we got back, I got involved with gathering my trash for a dump run Eric was planning for later in the day, then I walked Art through the feeding instructions just in case Chelle gets called away, so Art could take over. Suddenly I looked at my watch and realized I was running late for my chiropractic appointment, so I scooted off to that. Another great session, making more headway than ever! Then I went to Ace and got some more Turtle Wax, so I could finish that off when I get back. I tried to find travel size insect repellant but couldn't, so I'll have to get some once I arrive. I got back, did a couple more chores, then saddled up Flash for our last ride for awhile. We only went just under 10 miles, but took some interesting trails I hadn't been on before, and he was brilliant, as always! I rinsed him down, brushed my shaggy Apollo and rinsed him down as well, gave them a good dose of fly spray, and made sure their fly masks were on tight. I decided to try to see if I could fit one of the saddle cover pads in my baggage, and I miraculously managed to get my newest one at the bottom of my carry-on. Don't know if I'll be able to use it, but I figured it would be a good chair cushion if nothing else, and it weighs next to nothing. Finally settled down to some leftover Indian food and a little TV, refreshed my hair, took a hot tub, and crossed some more things off my list. Then, the best news of all, I received my Tanzania Visa! It seems all is right with my world right now, and so grateful for it! Fingers crossed everything goes well with my travel over the next two days. Can't wait! Heading to be early, I need to get a good night sleep! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hiya Darlin'!
A great night sleep without interruption, another great morning of chores and breakfast, then saddled up Flash and headed over to the trailhead to meet Susie and Poppy at 10:30. Arrived right on time, and we headed out to do the orange trail. Another fabulous ride! I can't believe how well matched my paso is to her quarter horse, though truth be told, her quarter horse is on the thoroughbred side, and it worked beautifully! Another day of side by side walking, trotting/gaiting, and cantering! A gorgeous day weather-wise, and a beautiful day for a ride! We did nearly 11 miles together in just over two hours, had a fabulous time! Once we got to the trailhead, we decided to trailer back to Chelle's so Susie could take a tour of my rig, then she headed off, and I settled down for the afternoon. I got down my two suitcases so I could decide which one to take, put some extra clothes in my "attic" and finally settled down for the evening. A wonderful day, the kind that makes me so glad to be alive and living the crazy life I lead! Grateful every day! Won't be long out of bed tonight, so good night, babe! Love you!