Got up around 9:00 today, had breakfast and hit the trail before 11:00, for our last ride here at Hill Country, at least for this trip. The only trail long loop left for us was trail #8, which looked very easy, a simple loop by the primitive campground and the group camp, and partially along a utility line, but was pretty rocky so it wasn't quite as much fun as we thought it would be. Couldn't get much trotting or cantering in because of the rocks, and frankly, the horses were quite a bit more lethargic today than on previous days, not used to getting ridden every day. Generally they would get a day off in between long rides, or at least no more than two ride days in a row, so I think by the third day in a row, they had had enough. Nevertheless, they were troopers, and we only went about six miles, mostly walking, so it was still a good ride. Saw some spectacular cactus blossoms coming out, saw some pig sign and then one black pig crossed our trail in front of us, getting just a little reaction from the horses, though their noses were up in the air, heard gobbling of wild turkeys as well, as quite a few birds were out today, too. It was pleasant, with only the amount of rocks being the only detraction. Got back before 2:00, got the horses settled in , had lunch, then went into town for a conference call regarding our meeting next week. Overall, it's been a great week, much needed for us to get away, and for the horses to face new trails for a change. Thoroughly enjoyed it, and will likely come back again, just to finish off the few minor trails we didn't get a chance to do. Glad we came!

Slept later today, another sunny day, just a bit more wind from the south, warming things up a bit, though the overnight was quite cool. The gas furnace went off multiple times during the night, and it was only set at 63 degrees! After a late breakfast and a bit of computer work, we hit the trail about 12:30. Since we went 9 miles yesterday, with lots of tough climbing up and down on pretty rocky grades, we decided to take a nice easy ride today, mostly along the bottom land area. We covered a good portion of the northeastern side of the park, which was a lot of open fields and just a little climbing now and then, skirting along the side of some of the hills, which again offered some really nice views, digressed a few times as we elected to take some wider loops, getting in a lot of cantering, which the horses seemed quite up for, despite their long day yesterday. We started out with a plan of going about 5.5 miles, but ended up doing more than 8 once we took those wider loops. Great ride, though, but there were some pretty rocky sections again in the middle, pretty much par for the course here on the majority of trails, I'm afraid. Glad we have rubber boots for the horses, good traction! Got back by 3:30, took a quick run down to the Ranger station where they were kind enough to let me use the phone to return a call from our local client's staff as we prepare for a meeting next Monday, then settled down for a quiet evening.

What a gorgeous day!! It got quite cold overnight, into the mid 30's, so we weren't in any hurry to get out of bed, slept in until nearly 10 (after I turned the furnace on and warmed it up, that is!), then had breakfast, and were out, saddle up, and hitting the trail by about 12:30 or so. Today, at the suggestion of the nice Ranger we met on Sunday, we decided to do both the 4A and 4B loops, as they both were supposed to have spectacular views, and they did not disappoint! From the camp we crossed the road and crossed a nice field, which will be a perfect place to canter on the way back, but the horses were so rested after having a day off yesterday, they were walking fast and frisky for the first few miles of flatlands. We soon reached the group camp where they have stalls and an arena, and started climbing no long after that. While the bottom land was mostly dirt trails, the climbs were rocky, but our guys went up with no problem, their rubber bottomed Cavallo boots providing them with great traction. We saw a lot of marking from horseshoes, that looked like a lot of slipping. We like boots better, more protection and as I said, better traction. We climbed with no problems and were rewarded with gorgeous view after gorgeous view! We followed the trails faithfully, which were marked pretty well for the most part, except one section that I had traced on Google Earth using their trail map as an overlay indicated a turn to the south MUCH earlier than what the actual trail was. If you only had the map you'd be okay, but looking at my GPS and seeing us get so off-track was a bit nerve-racking, at least for a little while. But frankly, there was only one trail, and we never saw any turn-offs, so we get moving forward, and suddenly the trail turned southward, and I could breathe a sigh of relief. It turned out to be at almost a third of a mile farther north than marked on their map. I'm planning on mentioning to the Ranger, just to let her know. Anyway, we did the loops counter-clockwise, and there were several benches along the way. We stopped at one for a quick break and apples all around, then went a bit farther and came across another one with an even more spectacular view. There was one hill so far away, I swear we were looking at Mexico! Beautiful! Apollo seemed to be right in his element, no hesitation, completely engaged with the trail. Once again I had him in his hackamore, though at one point I put on some gloves because he was pulling so hard it was giving me rope burns. We finally reached the bottom of the valley again, and just before we reached the road, a great big black bird flew up right in front of Apollo, and in a split second his nose was where his tail had just been, and I didn't have a horse under me any more, and I ended up on the ground. Fortunately, it was dirt and not rocks, and I missed a dead tree limb by a couple of feet, so no damage done. Apollo just went over to Mama for protection, and stopped there. As always, I just dusted myself off and climbed back up again, and we were on our way. We crossed the road and picked up the trail that paralleled it, which took us to that open field again, and as soon as the horses saw it, they started racing across it! We were amazed they had that much energy after all those climbs, but I guess all that careful and cautious walking made them really want to stretch their legs, so off we went! It is so exhilarating to do that! It was one of the longest canters we've ever done, and the horses just seemed to want to do more. I am so looking forward to the rest of the trails here! We've gotten most of the hardest ones done, the rest will probably be a piece of cake compared to this one. What a great day! We got back to camp around 3:45, after doing almost exactly 9 miles in about 3 hours. Got the horses settled in, then got ourselves settled in for the rest of the evening. Exactly the kind of days we LIVE for, especially after having been in one place, without trails, for so long. Wonderful!

Woke up to an early alarm again, expecting hot weather and possibly rain later in the day, so after breakfast, we saddled up and headed out. Our plan was to tackle the big loop on Trail #4, but after making a long arduous climb up some quick rocky washes, we missed the intersection to take us there, and ended up on a challenging Trail #5. Very rocky, with lots of grades, which kept Apollo very engaged. I had forgone the bridle today, using my rope hackamore instead, since he's been very well behaved lately, and I think he really appreciated it, especially because it prevented any accidental pulls on his mouth going up these very steep and twisty terrains. Once I realized that we were on the wrong trail, I consulted my GPS and map and realized that #5 would take us directly back to the southern end of easy Trail #1, so the second half of the journey would be very easy, and the ride pretty short, but the fact that the first half was so challenging, and that we were planning on staying through Friday and riding every day, we decided to keep it short to keep the horses enthused about the week. It was a fantastic, albeit shorter than usual ride, and there were some great views. We were back by 12:30, so we decided to do our shopping today, and to have lunch in town, so we drove the short 10 miles into the cute little town of Bandera, known as the Cowboy Capital of the World, got gas for the generator, had lunch a delightful little restaurant call the Brick Cafe, and went shopping for groceries at the Market, and headed back to camp. We stopped at the Ranger station and extended our stay until Friday, having a conversation with a woman who, too, is from England (like Hubby), and was also a horsewoman, so we had a very fruitful conversation with her, discussing trail options. Back to camp by around 4:30, and settled down for the rest of the day.

Set the alarm to get up early, so we could be back from our ride before the heat of the day, as it was forecast to be near 90. Fortunately, it was cloudy, which helped a lot, and after a nice breakfast, we got the horses out, trimmed their feet a little bit, put on their boots and saddled up, and were out on the trail by 10:40. I had planned a short, easy ride, just over 4.5 miles. It began on trail #1, which was a two track dirt and sometimes gravel road, and was just what we needed to get ourselves stretched back into shape. Somewhere along the line I missed a turn (the print on the map was so small I couldn't make out my plan), and we stayed on #1 instead of turning onto #6, which added about another 1.5 miles by the time we were through, but it worked out okay. We got back onto #6 when we reached the middle of our figure 8 loop, and though it was a bit more difficult, it was nothing for our guys! What a great ride, though! The horses were brilliant, no rodeo-ing from Apollo, and several great opportunities for trotting and cantering. A lot of the trails were just dirt, which was a relief, though a few sections were quite rocky. The ranger had informed me that there were many caverns around here, and that when you could hear a hollow sound under the horses' feet, that meant we were over a cavern. We did, in fact, have that happen several times, which was pretty cool. Hubby faired well, and was only starting to feel a little twinge just before we got back to camp, even though the last stretch was probably the hardest, so no damage done. As soon as the horses were put away, we put another ice pack on it, and he went to bed and took a nap. I did some computer work, then decided to put up the 10X10 canopy we had over the horse corrals, to provide some shade. Despite instructions that said you need 3 people to get the canopy up, I managed to do it on my own, and the horses didn't seem bothered by it at all, just a short moment of concern from Clio, but she settled down at once. After Hubby's nap, he did a few more chores, and I did a repair on one of Clio's boots (the leather strap had worn, and only the velcro was holding it on), before we settled down for a relaxing evening, hoping that Hubby's back will be good tomorrow for another ride. We've already decided to stay past Monday, as my computer work revealed it would take at least 6 rides to accomplish most of the trails here, which are abundant. Might as well get 'em done while we're here, who knows when we'll be back!

Got up with the alarm in order to start our busy day early. First stop was out by Elgin, TX where we picked up a full load of coastal hay for $7/bale, the best price we've found in months! Not too bad, either, bales aren't too heavy, which is easier for us, though it still was strung with wire, though our last bunch had string. Decided to park at the north trailhead off Pope Bend road this time, since access from the southern end has a bit of a rocky start. Arrived with two other trailers already on site, got saddled up with a quick hoof trim using a new rasp I just received (which made it much easier) and was out on the trail by 2:00. A fabulous ride! We love this place. Lots of nice loops, a good variation of grade and terrain, love the riverside, and all around Pecan Bottom, including a new trail up to a scenic view we hadn't taken before. About 4.5 miles, with some nice cantering and trotting, out a bit less than 2 hours. Lots of trees with new leaves popping out, making it a really nice spring day. A little windy on the ridge, but almost no breeze once we came down from there, just enough to keep the sun from getting too hot. Packed up and headed out around 4:00 (the other trailers were already gone), then battled traffic back a long ways, stopping for fuel before landing at Trudy's where we had a couple of beers and nachos before heading home right at dusk. Everyone put away, and a nice relaxing evening.

Set the alarm so that we could get a jump on the day, and woke up to foggy conditions. Apparently it had rained a tad during the night, but not enough to puddle, just misty and damp. Had a quick breakfast before we got the horses loaded up and headed south the Guadalupe River State Park, about 1:15 hour drive away. Stopped once for gas down in Blanco (the best prices, thanks to Gas Buddy!), and arrived at the park around 11:30. At first, they said the trails were closed due to the rain, but no one had actually checked on the trails, it was just assumed. After some persuasion, whining and common sense (like the fact they've been suffering from a years-long drought, so chances are that tiny little bit of rain just soaked in), they finally relented, making us promise that if the trails were so muddy that we would damage them going through it, we would turn around. Of course we promised, confident the trails would be just fine, and in fact, they were. Not one hoof slipped one time in the mud through the entire ride, all 5 1/2 miles of it. Not a single mud puddle or even boggy spot. In fact, with our Cavallo boots on, they barely even left a hoof print! Anyway, we left the horse trailer area and traversed across an area that had been heavily forested, either to avoid future fires, or possibly to eliminate an invasive species, so at first it was a pretty ugly ride. Once we went through that area, though, there were lots of nice places. We took every little loop they had in an effort to extend the ride, and most were really nice. Nothing extraordinary, just nice. Once we crossed the road and headed in the direction of the campground, there were a couple of fabulous open fields where we were able to get quite a number of nice canters in, both coming and going. By the campground, which is about halfway around, there was a hitching post and a watering trough where we stopped for a brief break. As we headed back south, the trail went along the ridge above the river, which was quite a drop below us. While the trail didn't get too close to the edge, there were several footpaths where you can get down and walk yourself out to a rock with a nice overview of the river and the view spreading northward. A very pretty diversion. Mounting again, we headed back on the western side of the loop, cantering again along the other side of the field (which only a head shake or two from Apollo, which I managed to check before it became a full rodeo), and thoroughly enjoying ourselves. Back across the road to the clear cut area (well, not quite clear cut, they saved some of the larger trees, but certainly most were down), until we reached the parking lot. On the last home stretch, we noticed fresh horse shoe prints, so obviously they decided to open the trails after all. Sure enough, there was another horse trailer in the parking lot. We loaded the horses back up and trailered home, stopping at the gate to let them know the trails were in perfect condition, they needn't worry about them, and headed out. A lovely day, one of the most enjoyable in a while, especially with Hubby back to 100 percent.

What a couple of weeks we've had! In addition to having a very successful work session for a couple of hours with our new client (someone you've heard of), Hubby and I both picked up a bug somewhere. While it only affected me about 5%, it hit him hard, and he was literally in bed for the week, plus in and out of bed for a couple more days. On Mar. 18th, his 80th birthday, we took our first venture out of the house, going to visit a friend in a nursing home, going to a fabulous dinner at the Bombay Bistro in south Austin, and doing a little shopping, all of which he survived with only minimal tiredness. So today, which was a beautiful, sunny day near 80 degrees, we finally headed out with the horses, who were delighted to get out of their pasture. We headed out to Pace Bend, knowing we could make the ride short or long depending on Hubby's stamina. Well, he held up quite well, and we were out for about two hours. Unfortunately their feet had grown a bit since our last ride, so I had to spend a while trimming their hooves, so I was tired by the time we left, but relaxed a bit once we were on the trail. We circled around to the north, then meandered our way southward, actually taking a couple of short trails we hadn't been on before, missed one turn that made us have to re-do a short loop, until finally he said he'd had enough, and we headed directly back to the day use area. It was a wonderful ride, slow but steady. We had originally planned to finish off down by the beach with a nice canter, but he was too tired by then, so we decided to skip it and save it for next time. We packed up the horses and headed over to the nursing home to visit our friend again, and he enjoyed communing with the horses for a few minutes before dinner. He continues to make tremendous progress from a stroke he had last month, he seems almost back to normal except for a few gaps in his memory. Left him to have his dinner, while we headed home. Unpacked the horses and fed them, then took my niece out to dinner at a local Asian restaurant (we thought they had sushi, but they didn't, they were more of a take-out place, but the food was still good) before getting back home. Last night we had a brief power outage, and it scrambled the hard drive on our Dish DVR, so we lost almost 340 hours of recordings, and we couldn't get it to come back on again today. I was not a happy camper about that! But we ordered a new one, should be here Monday. Settled down to DVD of Star Trek (the movie with the new actors playing the old characters, which I love!) before heading off to bed, satisfied at a wonderful day!

With all the crazy weather (four ice storms in three weeks), and the acquisition of a new client who happened to be located in Austin, the only riding the horses have been doing lately has been a couple of short trips around the neighbor's pasture with friends of my brothers (non-riders) who came over for get-togethers. It might have been a little exercise for the horses, but it wasn't exactly challenging. At last we had a day where the weather was fine (party cloudy, temps near 80), so we headed out to Pedernales just to finish off the south loop that we had attempted last month and couldn't do because of timing problems. We got a late start because I wanted to trim the horses' feet before we put them in the trailer. There had been some fog and dew overnight, so their feet were nice and soft, so trimming was pretty easy, but time consuming nonetheless. We didn't get to the park until after 1:00, then we had to readjust Hubby's stirrups, as they had been changed to accommodate guest riders, and eventually left the parking area about 1:40. We headed due west to the perimeter fence, so that we could get the most boring part of the ride done first. A very long, mostly straight fence line, though the footing was mostly dirt and sand with just a few areas of rough rocks. The southern part of the fence started out with typical barbed wire, but then changed to a very tall, probably 10' fence with one strand of electrification at the top, which made us pretty curious as to what kind of critters the fence was meant to keep in or out. Eventually we reached the bottom of the park, turning east, crossing the road and following the utility poles before starting the turn northward. We stopped at the "horse camp", which was essentially a small field with a big cistern off to one side, and 5 or 6 metal corrals, all but one in use, though no one was about. We watered the horses at the trough, but it had a lot of algae floating on it, and I had to do some searching to find how to get water into it. Turns out there's a spigot underground that when turned on, allows water to fountain into the trough. There was a regular hose-type spigot, but that didn't work for some reason. In any event, we had been riding two hours just to get there, so we rested the horses, had some lunch and munchies before heading out again. Going north on the east side of the south loop was definitely more interesting, with lots of twists and turns and ups and down, but the footing was mostly rough rock along the way. Most of the trail was in the woods, so it made for a slightly cooler ride, and the sun we started with was being clouded over, so the temps stayed perfect. It was a very nice ride, but seemed longer because of the rough terrain and because we're a bit out of practice, having not ridden for over three weeks! Got back just before 6:00, we washed the horses at the wash rack before loading them up, leaving the park as the sun was setting, around 6:30. One quick stop at the H.E.B. for groceries and gas before getting back to the ranch, where we quickly fed and bedded down the horses. A few days ago, we had bought some more posts and extended their pasture to more than an acre, so now they have lots of room to run. No telling how long we're going to be here, now that we have a local client, though we're still hoping to avoid the summer heat by heading north in a few weeks, and to complete our final contiguous state (Nevada) some time in the next few months!