After a very quiet and relaxing evening and a good night sleep, Hubby and I decided to take a ride today, as the forecast is iffy for later in the week. It was nice and warm, though cooler in the woods, just the way we like it! Decided on just a short ride, about 5 miles, enough to get a feel for the trails and the terrain. We put boots on the horses, since we weren't sure what to expect, and I was pretty sure we would have to do at least a little bit on the gravel road that brought us here, and the gravel is pretty sharp. We headed west out of the camp, then south following the red markers (how all equestrian trails are marked, apparently), looping around through an area that had been recently logged, until we reached a trail northward again that took us to Dark Hollow horse camp. From there we found a rogue trail that cut through the woods, then onto the road back toward Gaswell. We diverted down to the "spring" so the horses could get some water, as they had already drank more than half the tank supply in the horse trailer. Got back to camp mid-afternoon. A really nice ride, actually, mostly hardwood forest with occasional stretches of pine, the trails were mostly dirt with some rock, mostly large and round or very small pea gravel, except on the roads, which had pointy gravel. The horse camps are nearer the top of the hill, so it was mostly downhill on the trail we took, then climbing again on the way back, but nothing too steep or difficult. Fairly easy, actually, even though it was hilly. A really nice ride! As soon as we got back and got the horses settled, I ran out in the van to find a cell phone signal that was good enough for internet, and even though I found 3 bars of 3G in a spot between the horse camps, I still couldn't get an internet connection, so I kept driving toward Benezette, hoping I'd eventually find one. Never did! I did find free wifi, though, at a restaurant called the Old Bull Cafe, so I went in and had a beer while I did some computer work. Bought another couple of beers to bring back to Hubby before I left. Passed several cars that were stopped in the road, and it wasn't until the second one that I had visions of Alaska, and realized these folks were stopped because they were watching the famous elk. I slowed down enough to catch a glimpse of one down in the woods, a female from the looks of it. Not a good look, though, I was in too much of a hurry. Got back to camp around 5, then we settled down for the evening, though we were mildly disturbed by a strange creaking sound we kept hearing, and couldn't pinpoin the source. Will have to take a look tomorrow to see what we can find!
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