Hiya Babe!
Well, today was the long-awaited day! I had a good night sleep, and woke up at 4:30 even before my alarm, got packed up and down in the lobby in plenty of time for our 5:30 gathering. It didn't take long to load up all the luggage and get on the road, stopping after about an hour at a casino for a buffet breakfast, which was included with the package. We finally reached Zion where the horses were and we got matched up to our mounts. I ended up with a buckskin mare name Winematuk, or somthing like that, nickname Whinny. She tried to eat every blade of grass that crossed her path, which reminded me of your old mare Clio. The ride was only about 5.5 miles long, and we had a pit stop in the middle, but it was entertaining with the stories that our wrangler Cash was telling, and the landscape was pretty spectacular. I was a bit far back at first and couldn't hear him, but managed to move forward a bit at one point, so that improved. It was a fairly nice ride, with footing that was both rocky and sandy, and from what I've heard, the worst footing of the week. The stark cliffs were quite beautiful, but it certainly wasn't the most beautiful ride I've ever been on, though it was interesting enough. There were so much traffic on the road, cars, buses, bike riders, etc., so it was slow going in the bus. The bus is a full-fledged tour bus, well-appointed and comfortable, a far cry from the old school bus I was on last year at this time on the Michigan Shore-to-Shore. They had packed us sack lunches, which we ate when we got back to the bus at the end of the ride, though I was still pretty full from breakfast, so I only ate half of it. They split us into two groups today, I was in the first group A (the Angels), and the second group B (the bad guys), started the ride about 20 minutes after us. I think that was to keep group size down, and possible to deal with the fact that it was a lollipop trail, I don't know for sure. After we finished the ride and had lunch, we started to drive to the ranch, with another stop at a souvenir store along the way. This morning, I had tried to reset my wristwatch to the local time, but it gave up the ghost on me, no doubt a dead batter, and after some searching, I found an eyeglass repair kit with a screwdriver small enough to take the back off, and I bought a battery that looked about right, though the number wasn't the same, and tried to repair it. I wasn't able to finish it by the time we left, but once we got to the ranch and got settled in, I was able to finally fix it. Unfortunately, I lost one of the tiny screws, but the other three seem to be holding okay, so at least I have a temporary fix for the week. The ranch is in a beautiful area, surrounded by mostly alfalfa fields, and the cabins are about the size of a small sauna, but I was surprised to learn yesterday that we singles didn't have to bunk in with anyone, we each got our own cabin! So I have one bunk to lay all my stuff out and another one to sleep on, so I'm a happy camper with that. The restrooms and showers are in two trailers on either end of the half circle where the cabins are, I'm in cabin ten so I'm about halfway between them. I fixed finished fixing my watch shortly before dinner, and already started loading up my pix from the day (there's a very good cell signal here, so it's going faster than usual!), then headed down to dinner, which was an incredibly tender steak, so much so I could cut it with a plastic knife! My first steak in months, so I really enjoyed it. Probably their own beef, as they mostly raise cattle along with the alfalfa. After dinner, everyone introduced themselves, then we finished around 9:00, very late for dinner, but they had a breakdown of their usual dinner trailer and had to bring another one in at the last minute. They worked it flawlessly, though, and other than starting dinner a half hour later than usual, it was seamless. Got back to my cabin, then grabbed my shower stuff and headed over, grateful that most of the folks took their shower right after the ride, so no waiting. Finishing off my blog and my Spanish lesson and heading to bed forthwith! A great first day! Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hey Sweetie,
Well, sorry to say that things in this hotel kept getting worse and worse today. For starters, I never got my shower last night. When I went in to get it, turns out there was no hot water! I ran it for about five minutes, nothing. I called down again, and they sent a guy up who ran it for another five minutes before pronouncing I had no hot water. Maintenance had all go home (of course, it was 10:00 at night by this time, 1:00 a.m. on my body clock time), and they gave me a choice of changing rooms, which I was in no mood to do, or take a shower in a room on a different floor! In the end, I just gave up on it, rinse a little with a washcloth and went to bed, which at least it was comfortable. They told me maintenance would be in at 7:00 and I was first on the list, until they called at 7:15 to say they didn't really come in until 9:00, so it would be after that. So I had to go to breakfast having not showered since Friday night, yuck. They finally managed to fix my hot water by about 10:00. I met some ladies at breakfast that I recognized, and we figured out it was on the two Great Florida Cattle Drives, in 2016 and 2022. They'd also done an OTL some years ago, but don't know if it was with any of the ones I was involved with. After breakfast, I did some organizing, then went out to the pool for a little bit. I had considered taking a shower out at the pool, but they didn't have one out there. When I got back to the room, there was another maintenance guy there snaking the sink, as it was draining very slowly, and the first guy had reported it. So I had to wait some more before I was on my own. Despite two calls to housekeeping asking for them to put new sheets on my bed, since I had to go to bed with all of yesterday's travel grime on me, I had to call a third time, and was essentially told that they couldn't predict when I was going to get my sheets changed. I had enough! All I wanted was to take a hot shower and slide into clean sheets for a nap if I could get one, and I wasn't about to wait around any more. I went out into the hallway where there was a housekeeping cart (which HAD been parked right next to my door but had now moved down the hall) and grabbed a stack of linens and started changing my own sheets. Then the head of housekeeping knocked on my door reading me the riot act about how they have other people they have to serve and that they would get around to me when they felt like it. I think I finally made a dent in her attitude when I explained the whole situation, and I ended up handing her the dirty sheets and sending her on her way. I FINALLY got my shower in the middle of the afternoon, and slid into fresh sheets at last. At least the beds here are comfortable. What a nightmare! And, oh, btw, the elevator was out this morning, so everyone was having to use the stairs, which are all the way at the opposite end of the hallway. So it wasn't just my lemon of a room. Most folks have been really nice trying to solve the problems, and I think they're going to comp me at least one night which helps, but really, how many inconveniences must one experience before it ruins the stay? Anyway, I managed to rest up for a few hours, then I ordered a delivery from a local Indian restaurant, had to pay both a delivery and a tip to the driver, only the have the driver not even bring it to the room, I had to get dressed and go to the lobby to pick it up. Kind of a ripoff. Finally it was time for the ride meeting, where we got to meet the rest of the riders, all women except for one guy! I knew it wouldn't be very balanced, but I didn't think it would be THIS lopsided! Not that it matters, it just seems a bit out of balance. I chatted with a few more women, and after the meeting I stopped and talked to the ladies from Florida again for a bit, before coming back tot he room, finishing of my dinner leftovers, and now I'm ready for bed. We're meeting at 5:30 in the lobby, so it's an early night for me! I'm pretty sure I'm purging all this bad stuff so that the week will end up being fabulous. Every once in the while the universe has to smack me in the head just to balance out all the wonderful stuff in my life, which I can only take in stride! Good night, darlin'! Love you!

Hiya Darlin',
Finally did have a great night sleep, yay! Finished my packing, had Luis, who is one of the stable hands here and who will be looking after Lola, feed her on his own today in case he had any questions, went down and gave the horses some mints, though I had to walk partway into the pasture before they would come to me. They're used to it being in the evening, but I need them to do it in the morning when I'm likely to be loading up, and eventually they came around. Finally left for the airport at around 12:30, and before I drove the 90 minutes to the airport, I had two notifications of delay, with the last one almost an hour later than the original departure. CLT was VERY crowded, and when I first drove in, the signs seemed to indicate that I needed a reservation for Long-term parking, so I stopped in the cell lot to do that, but their website only listed the two most expensive options next to the terminal. I finally saw a sign that said LT2 was open, so I slid into that and managed to find a spot not too far from a bus stop. The flight was uneventful, the drinks and dinner were good, I managed to get two movies in, one with Mark Wahlberg about endurance racing (not horses) and a dog, based on a true story. The second was a documentary about the wild horses and burros and how poorly the BLM is managing them, very sad, but beautiful film of the wild horses. Arrived just before 7:00, finally claimed my one giant duffel bag and headed out to get a Lyft. Yup, no airport shuttle. I think this is the first trip I've ever taken to Vegas and stayed in a hotel that didn't have a shuttle. They also don't have any USB outlets in the room, and when I walked into the room, was stunned that it was 96 degrees. I'm not kidding, that's what the thermostat read. Of course, I immediately turned the AC on, though I was told by the front desk that it's motion activated, so it supposedly came on when I walked in, but still. How long is it going to take to drop the temperature 30 degrees? I was hoping to get to bed early, but I'm going to have to wait until it gets cooler. I left the door open, since it's cool in the hallway, so hopefully it won't take too long, but seriously. Ninety-six? That's a bit of a reach. I could see 80 degrees to save costs, but this is ridiculous. Anyway, doesn't matter, I'm here now, and I'm looking forward to a shower and a good night sleep. Good night, babe! Love you!

Hey Darlin',
Had another fitful night last night, spent some time working on my shoulder (always do when I have electricity!), and I felt something slip again. I think it's gradually getting to where it needs to be, slow but sure! Spent part of the morning getting as packed as I could, then took a trip into Boiling Springs to go to the Tractor Supply to stock up on horse feed (they actually had a bag of Topline!) and propane (filled three tanks at $3.19/gal., best price I've seen in a long time), then on to Walmart to pick up the rest of what I needed. Made it back to the farm by 2:30, packed everything else I could, then made a list of what's left, the stuff I can only do after I'm done getting ready in the morning. I'm filling this one huge duffel bag, which I got for the Great Florida Cattle Drive, and I bought some vacuum bags so I've been able to shrink it all down pretty well, but it's still pretty heavy! I'm trying to pack light, but it's hard for a 10-day trip. Think I've done pretty well, though. Anyway, settled down for the usual evening, though I had a double book order to fulfill, toes to polish, hair to do, etc., so it wasn't as relaxed as usual., but I still managed to get dinner and a short movie in. And for the first time in a long time, I'm having a cup of sleepytime tea, in the hopes that I will have a good night sleep, rather than the fitful ones I seem to be having lately. Long day tomorrow, so good night, sweetheart! Love you!

Hey Babe,
Wasn't in much of a hurry to get up today, since I only had to travel about an hour and a half, and I wasn't expected until 2:00, so I had a leisurely morning packing up. I opted to back up out of my site so I wouldn't risk going in the ditch again, and it worked out perfectly. Had an uneventful journey, thank goodness, except that I missed the driveway and had to go around "the block" to get back in. Once here, we got me backed into a nice little space under a couple of huge shade trees, so it was much cooler. Got everything set up before long, with the horses in a nearby paddock, though we moved them later to a really big pasture, so I don't think they'll need any supplements of feed while they're here. I'm going to throw out a bale of hay just in case they feel like they're getting too much fresh grass, but it's not spring-lush, so I think they'll be okay. Lola had a great time exploring this huge place, they have 200 acres here, with every imaginable horse equipment, not to mention two tennis courts. They even have wifi at the barn, close enough for me to use! Started on some laundry, but I'm only on 20 amp, so I've had to cut down on my power usage, can only work one or two things at a time! Not enough for AC, but I have enough fans going that I think it will be fine, especially being in the shade. Now all I have to do is finish the laundry, do the packing and the final shopping for whatever I still need, and head on out! Can't wait! I'm getting really excited about the trip! My only question now is, what'll I do next year? Going to have to think up something really good! Meanwhile, I'm just going to stay on top of things here. Off to bed shortly! Love you, darlin'! Good night!

Hey Sweetie,
Had a good night sleep, then proceeded to have an extremely lazy day. It was cloudy in the morning, culminating into a few showers that passed through, then it cleared up nicely and was a little cooler, but I was in an exceedingly lazy mood today and did nothing except read and watch movies. A very quiet day! Very enjoyable, though. Now for another good night sleep, then tomorrow I'll get a little busier, maybe! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hiya Sweetie,
I had intentions of taking Apollo for a short ride today, but got started on the computer with a bunch of little odd jobs that needed doing, and by the time that was done, it was too late and frankly, too hot. It was so hot, I actually put on my bathing suit and climbed into Lola's little pool just to cool off, and it did the trick! Late May in South Carolina is too dang hot! I should be further north, and will be next year, but this is how it worked out with my Red Rock trip. BTW, it's perfect temps right now where that's going to be, mid 40's at night, upper 60's and low 70's during the day. Can't wait! So a quiet day in camp, a few more campers came in, had a chat with Ranger Rebecca about a downed tree and some other items, but I'm still shocked that this place isn't full, what with it being a holiday weekend! Anyway, settled down for the evening, running the AC for a bit to blow out the hot air, got every fan going to keep the air moving, so hopefully I'll sleep tonight. So glad I bought that little rechargeable fan for the bedroom, I've learned I can even connect that to the little power pack I bought for the cattle drive and run that baby even longer! Hasn't quit on my yet! Anyway, cool shower and bedtime soon! Good night, baby! Love you!

Hiya Darlin',
Had a good night sleep, didn't wake up early for a change, very happy about that! Got my chores done, then started looking at some of the repairs that need to be done on the trailer, only to realize I didn't really have the right adapters for my new impact wrench to get the job done. Since I was needing to go into town to do some shopping anyway, I headed over to Chester, went to the Tractor Supply and got the adapters I needed, as well as some shavings for the horse pens, then took a side trip to a haymaker north of there to pick up six bales, which would be enough to get me through to my next stop. Back to get fuel at Circle K, glad to see diesel prices getting back down a bit, just $3.49/gal. Last stop at Walmart to get a few things there, then back to camp around 4:00. Tried to do the repairs, but I'm afraid it's beyond my skillset at this point, so I'm going to have to let it go until I can hire a professional. Also had a conversation with Jo about helping with another endurance ride, scheduled for the same weekend as when the Goethe ride was supposed to be, said I would be glad to help with that. Chatted for a while with another camper who was walking by with his Goldendoodle, who, coincidentally was named Lola! I let my Lola out, and after an initial warning that this was my Lola's bailiwick, they got along just fine. After they left, I put down the shavings, and Apollo promptly rolled in it, so I'm a happy camper for his appreciation! Finally got my evening chores done, covered the hay with my tarp, and settled down for the evening, usual Northern Exposure and a movie. I was pretty hot today, so I had the AC running when I put the generator on, that blew out most of the hot air, and kept some fans running, which also helped. Getting too hot for me down south, looking forward to getting farther north when I return from my Red Rock Ride trip! Good night, sweetie! Love you!

Hey Sweetie,
Woke up pretty early, but since I wasn't in a real hurry today, I took my time getting up. Had breakfast first, then worked on the final packing and moving out. Ran over my mounting block again, did a little damage to the edges of the trailer. It amazes me how a plastic set of steps can actually cause damage to an aluminum and steel frame! Anyway, I got everybody loaded up and headed to the dump around 10:30, then had a dickens of a time getting around the corner and through the gate. There just wasn't enough room to straighten out before reach the gate. I had to take three tries at it before I finally was able to swing wide enough to just make it. Not sure why they have to make gates so narrow! Anyway, we were on the road, but for some reason, Google didn't take me on the roads that I told it to go on (a U.S. Hwy) and ended up taking me down a bunch of narrow, twisty, windy road until I finally ran into that highway and took it despite it telling me not to go there. Anyway, the rest of the trip was relatively uneventful, though I did have a flashback to the last time we were here. I remember staying at the top of the hill by a gravel road that was called "Campground Rd." at the last turnoff while you went down with the van and the little horse trailer to make sure it actually led to the right campground. You ended up just about out of walkie talkie range and told me to come on, and I did with much trepidation. Turned out it was okay, but I remember a lot of non-horse people in horse camping sites, so I don't think we found a site with corrals and had to highline the horses. Not sure, I'll have to look that up. I reached the campground and stopped to reconnoiter, found my site and then proceed to maneuver into it. For me to be facing the right direction, I had to back into another site and turn around, and ended up scraping into a ditch before I got the right angle. Must be my day to bend the trailer! I lost the door panel to the sewer outlet, which was already hanging on by a thread because the lock didn't work anymore and the tape I put on it didn't hold, so I'll need to replace that whole framework. Not an urgent job, but on the list. I finally got situated, though I'm a little low on the front from the grade, I'm going to have to get some thicker blocks so I can raise it higher. One very happy note was that there is a threaded water spigot right next to me, so I was able to hook up a hose with a splitter and reach both the corrals and the trailer. Happy days! I took the opportunity to get out Lola's swimming pool, since the forecast was calling for some pretty hot temperatures later this week, and since we're so far out in the boonies here, she's in heaven because she can wander and take a swim! Well, get wet, anyway. I also rinsed off the water buckets and the wheelbarrow, they were covered in mud from the last place. Took me about 90 minutes to get mostly set up, including the solar panel, and now that we're settled in, I'm looking forward to my time here. I hope the trails are better than Canebrake! And it's very quiet, I don't hear any cicadas! I even have two bars on my phone, so streaming Prime is easy! Looking forward to a nice ten days here. Settled in for a nice stir fry and a movie, so good night, darlin'! Love you!

Hi Darlin',
Took a long time to get to sleep last night, then Lola woke me up at 6:00, having gotten herself tangled up on the lantern post outside. She's been having a lot of fun with the cicadas that have been out in full force while we were here. They're just big enough for her to be able to see and play with, though they're pretty slow so she gets bored quickly. But evidently they're crunchy enough to keep here interested! Glad they're nontoxic! Took a long time to get back to sleep, and didn't get much because it was nearly time to get up anyway. Spent the day doing voluminous loads of laundry while I have electricity, had to fill up the truck water tank once, almost got stuck on the slippery grass on the site I'm on, barely made it out! Tore up the grass a bit, though. Hoping I don't have any trouble tomorrow, at least I'm on some gravel there, so I hope not! Spent time trying to figure out my post-Red Rock Ride travel schedule, which is proving to be challenging, but I think I've come up with a decent plan, subject to change, of course! I did that in between my usual packing, which I like to spread out during the day so as not to get overtaxed. I moved the five bales of hay I had left into the side stall, disappointed that some of it got wet. I had hoped I had it arranged to avoid that, but we had so much rain, and I'm on such a slope, it seemed unavoidable. What I need is a palette, but don't have room to carry one. Don't expect I'll be staying anyplace long enough to need to store hay anyway, at least not until I get back to Florida in the fall, then maybe I will pick up a palette. Settled down for the evening, watched a movie that I didn't particularly like, and am off to shower and bed shortly! Good night, babe! Love you!