Hiya Sweetie!
Woke up to the sound of my non-horse camper's truck next door starting up and leaving around 5:00 this morning. Grrr... Some other folks were up pretty early, too, and someone started a generator well before the 7:00 quiet hours limit. Oh, well! I still laid in bed and read for awhile, but still got up earlier than usual. Did some busy work in the morning, then saddled up Flash to tackle the White trail today. This is the toughest trail out here. Two loops, we did both, which ended up being about 14 miles, lots of ups and downs, without the benefit of that many switchbacks, so a lot were STRAIGHT up and down, and much of it was still wet, so it was doubly tough by being so slippery. Flash came through it all with much aplomb, though, but I could tell he was still feeling it a bit from yesterday's ride. Not many opportunities to go fast, the terrain just wouldn't allow it, but I'm not sure he was ready to go much faster anyway. Still, it was a beautiful ride, once again weaving around the lake, where there was every kind of watercraft you can imagine, except under sail. Very busy, not surprising being such a warm day. Camp was busy, too, though most folks got out earlier than I did, so I was probably about the last back in camp. We were out more than four hours. Gave Flash a bath and put him away, then grabbed my chair and went and sat with Barb and Bill until dinner, which was a potluck they invited me to. Since I didn't have a dish to bring, I provided a little entertainment, doing my rendition of Snowy River, which was well received by this Midwestern and more professional crowd. Made some friends, and may even have finally found a way to get my horse's feet wet in the last of the five Great Lakes, Lake Erie! I've already done the other four, Erie's the only one left. Maybe next year! There are still some places in Ohio I'd like to visit, and I would do it this year if the temps weren't going to be so high from getting such a late start this year. After dinner, we chatted as a group for a bit, then I came back and fed the horses and walked Lola, then chatted with two separate groups for awhile, ending up with Barb and Bill until well after 9:30. Won't be long out of bed tonight! Still have my shower, and can't wait to get into bed. It was tough on my knee today, thank goodness for ibuprofen! Good night, babe! Love you!

Hey Babe!
Woke up to an actually chilly morning, had to pull my heavy quilt over me during the night! Warmed up quickly, though, and even though there was a little rain in the forecast, it never materialized. Saddled up Flash and headed out on the Purple trail today, though it was a bit confusing because blue trails signs kept popping up, even though the blue trail was nowhere near us, which concerned me, but my GPS showed me on the right trail, and it all worked out. Flash was once again his brilliant self, climbing and slipping and sliding but always sure-footed. What a good trail horse he's turned out to be! For a horse who used to go in a straight line even when the trail turned, these days, he follows the trail and finds his own footing on a completely loose rein. Good boy! The trails were a bit more challenging, which I expected because it was rated a higher difficulty, but it really wasn't that much different than the moderate trail we did the other day. We didn't make quite as good a time because there weren't as many good areas to canter, but we still did when we could. Just under 12 miles which we did in about 3:15. A beautiful day and a lovely ride! Couldn't have asked for more! Chatted with my neighbors for a bit again, but there were a few more dogs in the mix and one went after Lola, which upset her and made her a bit more aggressive, so I didn't stay long. Had a non-horse camper decide to park next to me, and they sprawled across one of the few level areas, which was big enough to park to horse trailers, but they had a tent and a pavilion and a boat trailer and a truck and they just spread themselves out without any consideration. They asked to take my fire pit, which I wasn't going to use anyway, so I let them. It just bothers me that this horse camp, which is packed in tight, has to give up spaces for campers who can go anywhere else. Grrr! Anyway, I'm trying not to let it bother me. Had a bowl of cereal for dinner (I've lost a few pounds this week and am trying to keep that trend going!) and settled down to a couple of Earth: Final Conflicts. It just had a popup telling me that Season 3 will be leaving Prime in 11 days, and if the same is true with the next two seasons, I'm going to be hard-pressed to watch it all before it's removed. Of course, if it's 95 degrees outside in PA next week, I may just bingewatch and stay in the AC for a couple of days anyway! Had a little ice cream, ready for shower and bed! Good night, darlin'! Love you!

Hiya Babe,
Finally decided to take a long ride today, figured, Flash has had two days being stall-bound, so he would be raring to go. Got him saddled up and was out by 10:30. Since there only other "trails" to ride here of any length seem to be the road along the river to the lake, that's the one we headed out on. The first mile plus was dirt and small gravel, until we went around a closed gate, and it was mostly just dirt after that. I had put his boots on for the gravel, though we probably didn't need them for the dirt. We went through a short but nice section of woods, then it opened up into a small power line easement, just a single line, all paralleling the river. There were several "rest stops" along the way, with picnic tables, hitch rail, and a mounting block, which I'm guessing the previous horse club put in. There were a few steep grades, but nothing we couldn't handle. I had to stop and tighten his boots a couple of times as a precaution. Shortly after passing Rest Area 3, about six miles out, there was a bunch of downed trees over the trail, and the only way around was about 30 yards straight up an embankment. Pass! I wasn't so enamored with the trails thus far, I wasn't about risk injury myself or Flash trying to get around that! Especially when we are going to a place next week that's a well-known and well-loved horse camp (though I've never been there yet myself) that has many miles of trails better suited for horses. So we turned around at that point. Considering there was rain in the forecast, I didn't really want to be out that long anyway. On the way back, one of his boots came off (the old one that's stretched out a bit), so I just put it in the saddle bag. Once we got back to camp, I took him around to the trail we did a few days ago, the one with the steep beginning, because I didn't get the GPS going early on that ride and wanted to fix that. Flash wasn't thrilled about climbing that hill again, but he's a good boy, so he did it! We took the rest of that loop, then got back into camp, rinsed him off and put him away shortly before the first heavy rain came in. Spent what was left of the afternoon icing my knee, doing a little bookkeeping and reading until it was time for my usual evening routine. A nice day, but I've had enough of this place. In my typical categorizations of horse camps, i.e. I either want to come back or I don't want to come back, this one falls in the latter category. Not enough trails, no map at all, and having so many lights on at night it feels like I'm camping in a Walmart parking lot, not my idea of the kind of place I like to go. I'll be happy to use their dump, and I'm doing my best not to think about the drive out of here on Monday, my only concern now is laundry and housekeeping tomorrow! Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hiya Sweetie,
I had a pretty good night sleep, though woke up early, read for awhile, then fell asleep again, so I was late getting up. No big deal, I have no pressing appointments! After my usual morning routine, I saddled up Apollo for a short ride, just to get him to stretch his legs since he's stuck in a stall all day. Fortunately it's a big stall so he has some room to move around. We took Lola along as well, just to get her some exercise, too. We only went out a little over a mile, then back, it was pretty hot and I didn't want to overdo it for either one of them. Apollo was particularly slow today, though he had no trouble climbing a hill when we came to it! Mostly flat today, and a lot on the road, though. Once I got back and put him away, I started on a repair that needed doing. I noticed the first time I opened my spice cupboard after getting here that the two screws holding the top frame had come out, so I took everything out, cleaned everything, and put the screws back in with some glue as well as a couple of brads along the bottom, since that wasn't very secure either, though I don't think they held once there was weight on it. I have to wait 24 hours for the glue to dry to finally put it all back together, but doing a deep cleaning, and throwing away some herbs and spices I've probably had for 15 years or more was long overdue, and now I have more room in it. That took most of the afternoon again. So a productive day, and a ride day! Quite a few more campers came in, none of them with horses, but lots of kids and family types. Looks like it's going to be a busy weekend! Heading to bed soon, so good night, baby! Love you!



Hi Babe!
Well, I was wrong about it being dark here. Despite being out in the middle of nowhere, they have it lit up like a Walmart parking lot, all the way from the entrance to the back of the barn! Thank goodness I have blackout drapes, or it would have been like daylight all night. Really spoiled the beautiful, full, strawberry moon last night, it couldn't begin to compete with all the lights. Oh, well. But it was quiet, and I had a good night sleep. After chores and breakfast, I saddled up Flash to do a little exploring. Apparently there is no official trail map here, and the only one I've been able to find is for the entire river area, and only shows a couple of linear trails, which I think are actually roads, so it's a mystery. Lonzo pointed out the start of the trail near the entrance, and that was about 500 feet straight up a hill, so that got Flash's heart pumping quick! That rail had some horse trail signs on it, and we managed to follow them around a short loop, then we swung west and found the road which took me a long a little river for a ways. I think I knew about where we were, but it was really hard to tell for sure. We only went about five miles today, a short ride, but I figured after his workout on Monday and the long swinging drive in the trailer yesterday had earned him a break. Got back around 1:00, then I got busy with a bunch of little repairs. My left stirrup had lost the backing of it's Chicago screw, and I managed to find a longer screw that fit, which it needed, then I repaired the strap on the gel pad, then I spent the most amount of time sewing up my lamb's wool saddle cover. It needed a lot more repair than I thought. I really should get another one, but they're a lot more expensive these days, though I seem to remember we paid a lot (relatively) back when we bought them 20+ years ago, so I have to say I got my money's worth. Plus I still have the black one on Apollo's saddle, which I'm sure is in much better shape, so I may just switch those out for awhile, and take that one to Yellowstone. Meanwhile, those repairs took all afternoon, so it was 5:00 by the time I finished. I managed to get the TV to pick up the wifi well enough to watch a movie with dinner, so it was back my to my usual routine after that. The farther north I go, the longer the evenings get, it's well after 9:00 and still not dark yet! Anyway, it was a nice day, beautiful weather, and a little ride is always a good thing. Good night, my darlin'! Love you!

Hey Sweetie,
I've said it before and I'll say it again. A ride with my friend Linda isn't just a ride, it's an adventure! I got up bright and early, even before my alarm, had breakfast, caught and saddled Flash in time to load him up in Linda's trailer just after 8:30, and off we went, plus Holly, fifty one miles to a trailhead (sort of, but actually the side of a road) near Jellico Plains. We got out our clippers and started climbing and clipping, clearing the trail for a club event they're having here in a few weeks. Flash only had one problem, same as before, where he doesn't like going over a log that's too high and too close to a drop-off (I can't blame him, he's much smaller than the two walkers with us) so we had to do a little extra clearing to get him around the top of the tree, but it wasn't very much and didn't take long. The rest of the way was gorgeous with only the usual overgrowth. We essentially climbed up a mountain, then rode along the ridge for awhile, which I later discovered was actually the border between TN and NC when I overlaid it on Google Earth, then back down the mountain. A great 9+ mile loop! There were a few slippery spots, but for a flatlander, I thought Flash did a magnificent job. Of course, he kept trying to get in front, and we finally had an opportunity and he took off, though he didn't go as far or as fast as I thought he might, probably because he's somewhat out of condition with all the sitting around he's been doing during my recovery. But he certainly enjoyed being in the lead for awhile! Holly's horse took a fall on some rocks and nearly went over the edge of an embankment, but she managed to step off and he managed to fall with his front feet under him, so he was able to right himself, thank goodness. Apparently, another time they rode out here, one of their group slipped in almost the same spot and plunged downhill a ways, and it was quite the production to get him back up to the trail. Her horse had a bit of a scrape on it's leg, so we stopped and bandaged it up. Fortunately, I had grabbed my first aid kit this morning, so I had some gauze pads and she had some vet wrap, so we took care of it in short order. No limping, and the bleeding stopped by the time we got back to the trailer. We loaded up and headed toward home, stopping at a Mexican restaurant for some lunch and a daiquiri, which was wonderful. Just as we were going through the nearest town to Linda's, she turned up a steep road and suddenly, her truck stalled. Apparently she let the fuel get too low and on the hill, all the fuel ran to the back of the tank and just quit. We were nearly blocking the road, so while I directed traffic, Holly hitched a ride to a nearby gas station, bought a two gallon tank and was brought back, and we managed to be back on the road in less than half an hour. Of course, halfway through that adventure, it started raining, including lightning, just the kind of thing you want to have happen when you're directing traffic and pouring fuel into a tank! At least it was diesel! I was afraid two gallons wouldn't be enough, and that it would have to be primed, but fortunately, it all worked out and we managed to get it started and to the gas station, all the time the rain getting harder and harder. We finally made it back to the farm just as the rain was starting to let up a bit. We got out the horses, checked on Holly's horse's leg and found it was in pretty good shape, so they treated it and let it go out in the pasture. I waited until the rain stopped before borrowing the four-wheeler to carry my saddle and stuff to the trailer and put it away. I was going to hook up the truck tonight, but I'm on such a hill that my front end would have been too high for the night, so I decided to wait until morning. It's not like I have a lot of stuff to pack up, and no horse containment to put away, so it should be easy to get out, as long as the ground doesn't get so soft that I get stuck in the morning. Another band of rain came through, so that's a distinct possibility! I closed up the barnyard and kept the horses down here so I wouldn't have to try to chase them in the big pasture in the morning, that should speed things up as well. Anyway, it was a wonderful, adventurous day in an absolutely gorgeous forest, the Cherokee National Forest, with exactly the kind of riding I love, though I wouldn't mind doing it without having to clear it for a change! That's okay, I'll take it! I filled up my ice machine and am icing my leg down well tonight, I'm pretty sure it had a good workout going up and down those steep mountains today, though I took enough ibuprofen this morning not to notice, yet. 🙂 Looking forward to a hopefully uneventful drive to Kentucky tomorrow! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hey there, Sweetie!
Another good night sleep, had breakfast before feeding the horses so I could hang onto Apollo. Today is finally his day for a ride! It feels like such a long time since that's happened! I put Flash in the big pasture where they were last time, then saddled up Apollo, put on Lola's orange vest and away we went! It wasn't a very long ride, but that was what was necessary for both Apollo and Lola. They did great! It took a little while for us all to work out the stiffness, but once we were warmed up, it was fabulous! It was a bit wet after the rain last night, but it felt good as it was heating up. We did less than three miles, took us a bit over an hour, which was perfect. No one got too worn out, and we all got some exercise. I felt better for getting it done! Then I spent most of the afternoon trying to solidify my travel plans, eliminating some places and opening up to others. At least I now know where I'll be going next week and the week after, the rest it still up in the air until I find out which rides want my help. Just floating along, searching for 70 degrees as usual! Not finding it yet, though, it was pretty hot today until a band of thunderstorms went through. Much better now, so I'm hoping for an even better night sleep, though that hasn't been too much of a problem lately. I like that Lola can wander around here and the horses, until today, have also been hanging around the trailer and the barn when they weren't grazing. I even got Flash to come across the pasture for a mint this evening, though Apollo didn't bother. Anyway, a good day, though I'll be ready for some new trails by next week! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hi Babe!
Though I didn't get a very good night sleep last night, I had a wonderful day! I am SO back into my happy place! After chores and breakfast, I saddled Flash and we were off on what was supposed to be just a pleasure ride, with the one job of retrieving the rope that was borrowed to give the photographer something to grab onto as she climbed down to a tree next to the river to get pictures of everyone crossing the river. Not long into the ride, though, I started seeing step-in fence posts with arrows on them, so I made a mental note to pick those up on the way back. Shortly before I reached the river, however, I started seeing ribbon markers, so I started to collect those, thinking they would just be a few that were missed. We reached the rope and I managed to get that put away, then Flash and I crossed the Etowah River, which was moving pretty fast and was a bit deep! If I hadn't know of all the other horses that had crossed it, I might have thought twice about doing it. My feet even got a little wet, even though I pulled them up pretty high. Very exciting, though, and Flash was very proud of himself when we reached the other side! Good boy! We then turned west and almost immediately began running into more ribbons, so I kept picking those up. Managed to get quite a few! We took the blue trail all the way to the second road, but I didn't want to take that south to camp, it was too stony, so we doubled back until we reached the yellow trail, which took us on a direct route back to the river crossing, where we got to do it again! A few more turns and we were back at the sign posts, so I managed to pull those out, though that was not easy! Got back to camp after an absolutely fabulous ride, perfect weather, couldn't have asked for a better day. Definitely back in my happy place! Flash was perfect, and I'm happy to report that even though he was doing his silly antics with Apollo on Sunday morning, the bitey-face and rump rubbing and making Apollo squeal, since I started riding him on Sunday, that has all stopped. Just boredom, I knew it! So happy! Fed the horses, got the truck mostly hooked up and most stuff put away so it will be an easy departure tomorrow morning. Not sure where we're headed after Linda's, I have some planning to do. Footloose and fancy free! Love you, darlin'! Good night!