2008 Owyhee Canyonlands Day 1 - Castle Creek

Wednesday September 24 2008

DAY 1 - Castle Creek

Day 1 was the traditional loop southeast out to Castle Creek Canyon and back for the 50 milers, and a shorter loop in the same direction for the 25 milers. I spent the day helping at the out vet check for the 25 milers. Neighbors Linda and Mike set up with horse trailer, hay, gear bags, hot dogs, and water near an old homestead, and were then joined by rider-but-not-riding-today Neil, Dr Robert Washington and me. We passed our waiting time by exploring the buildings that were still standing. One was occupied by a screech owl, who almost stole Dr Robert Washington's tiny dog off his leash, and who fluffed up to look as big as a great horned owl by the time a few of us peeked in and bothered him. It's probably the busiest he'd ever seen his quiet little spot in the desert.

Excitement on today's trail included a quite deep beaver pond on Castle Creek that riders had to wade through (or jump - hold on!). Steph had warned riders of it at the previous night's ride meeting, saying it was up to her hips when she went through it. "Were you on foot or on your horse!?" Then there was the rogue rattlesnake or two that more than one horse was surprised by and jumped over.

38 of 40 riders finished the 50, and all 14 riders finished the 25 miler. Jan Marsh from Canada won the 50 miler in a speedy 4 hours and 29 minutes.

Today's horses and riders represented a good spectrum of the endurance riding pie: the fleet four-footed included Arabians and mustangs and gaited horses and mules. The intrepid riders included the youngest rider - Barrak Blakely, 9 years old and riding with his parents (unfortunately his horse was pulled on the 50 for lameness), and oldest rider - 67 years young Jacinta Denton.

Milestone of the day's ride was Karen Bumgarner, who with today's completion reached her 20,000 mile mark. Today she rode her horse Thunder - yes, the one who dumped her on a training ride last November and ran off and went missing for 6 days and had many worried endurance riders out looking for him. He is looking like a seasoned endurance horse now.

For those of you who don't quite grasp the distance of riding horses for 20,000 miles, that would be like riding from Oreana to Los Angeles to Orlando to New York and back to Oreana. Twice. With a side trip thrown in from Oreana to Anchorage. And back. Plus a ride into Boise. And back.

She received a fitting special award... a little Pokey horse (of Gumby and Pokey fame), and I'll bet she has many more thousands left in her stirrups.

2008 Owyhee Canyonlands 5-Day Ride

Tuesday September 23 2008

Another fall arrives and with it, another renewal of the Owyhee Canyonlands 5-day ride in the high desert of southern Idaho, and another gathering of a great fun group of endurance and trail riding friends, and a diverse group of horses (and 2 mules).

It's starting to get a bit harder to justify driving anywhere to endurance rides nowadays, but they came anyway: from Canada, Oregon, Washington, Nevada, Utah, and California - many of them took two days to get here - and of course Idaho. Attendance was down a bit, but the enthusiasm was high. There was the regular jovial Northwest group that comes year after year, and there were some newcomers, some of them part of a big group of Gaiters - riders on gaited riding horses, Tennessee Walkers and Paso Finos.

Not only was the unusual gait of those horses evident (they pace instead of trot, a sort of rolling motion interesting for the vets to watch 'trotting out'), but the presence of the riding group was conspicuous by the rousing cheers every night at the awards dinners: "Go Gaiters!"

There were the usual appreciated Owyhee amenities: nightly dinners by Blue Canoe Catering (Debra and Al), flush toilets, and hot showers. A good group of vets - Gene Nance, Robert Washington, and Michael Peterson - were here again, and the regular riders knew that at least one or two of those dinner nights would probably have an educational lecture by Dr Peterson, and, if we were really lucky, one of his famed Cowboy Poems.

The weather was just about perfect - mid 40's in the mornings, and high 70's to low 80's during the day. And if you were lucky enough to ride on Days 1 and 2, your trails were perfect - we had a good dumping of rain on the Sunday before the ride (the first time it's rained since oh, about 1942), which packed down the horrendous dust we've had all summer. The trails were pretty dusty by Day 5, but really, that's part of riding anyway, so there wasn't much complaining, just extra Ahhs and Ohhhs after the evening's hot showers.

The trails were mostly over BLM land, altitude around 3200', through picturesque canyons and washes and on flats and scenic ridges; crossing streams and following old trails through fiercely blooming yellow rabbit brush (conducive to sneezing). Starting times for the rides were a leisurely 8 AM for the 50's and 9 AM for the 30's

If you happened to not be tired enough every night to pass out, you could hear the resident great horned owls and screech owls hooting... but after the first day of riding, even the horses were sleeping soundly through the night.

That's Alotta Bull

Monday September 22 2008

It happened again - another of Rohl's bulls hanging out up our Pickett Creek Canyon. (You think it has anything to do with us leaving the gate wide open up there?)

THIS time, I stayed off all equines, cowhorses or no, and Steph stayed off all equines and took the 4-wheeler to help Rohl and his cowhorse and cowdogs.

When they'd brought the bull down to house, I heard Rohl say, "He's a jumper," so I hung by my dead-lame horse in his pen to keep him quiet. I didn't want the bull jumping in the pen with my horse although I'm not sure exactly what I would have done if he did. "Go away bull! Shoo!" At least this bull was smaller than the last one, but he was still a BULL.

Instead the bull jumped/fell over a fence into our yard and Rohl followed him out the driveway. The bull then went through a tape fence into the grass pasture where Rohl finally got a rope on him. His horse and dogs held him till two more cowboys pulled up in a second trailer. "Where you guys been, on a hay ride?"

They jumped out, quickly unloaded their cowhorses and left the trailer open for the bull. Rohl's saddle was about to slip over his horse's neck from holding the bull, and he had to let go just as Cowboy #2 got his rope on him.

While a small crowd of endurance riders gathered to watch, Rohl got the end of his rope back, Cowboy #3 helped run both the ropes through the front of the trailer; and Rohl and Cowboy #2 pulled from the front while Cowboy #3 encouraged the bull from behind by pulling on his tail and trying to shove him forward. He finally hopped in.

Cowboys #2 and #3 loaded their horses in the compartments behind the bull; Rohl loaded up his steaming horse in his trailer and they headed off down the road.

We really ought to shut that gate up the canyon, so we don't get any more bulls here at the Spa, especially with the endurance ride starting in 2 days... but I don't think the gate works anyway.

Troika

Wednesday September 17 2008

Wow - I had the best ride ever today on Quickie, with Carol and August. Quickie usually doesn't have too much enthusiasm going out - especially if we're on our own, so I'm still rewarding (bribing) her, with carrots in my pack. (August has also figured out where the carrots are - he reaches over while we're walking or trotting alongside and tries to unzip the pouch they are in.)

Today we headed out a new wash I'd never been in (henceforth known as August Wash), and Quickie willingly enough kept up with August as we wound several miles down this wash, slightly downhill all the way, to the highway.

There we took a carrot break, and went along the highway till we hit a road for the return trip. When Quickie - half Arabian, half Orlov trotter - somewhat reluctantly heads out on the trail, she Arabian-trots. When she's headed home and she's into it, the Orlov comes out.

The Orlov breed was developed in Russia in the late 1700's when Count Alexei Orlov crossed Danish warmblood mares on Arabian stallions. They're popular in Russia and Scandinavia now for harness racing, and many are used around the world in driving sports. They're described as "sure-footed, endurable, robust, strong, tough," with "impressive trotting action" - all of which fits Quickie to a T, mostly on the way home.

Quickie's sire was Nature's Ballet, aka "Blue," who was owned the latter half of his life by Lari Shea (see her full story on Nature's Ballet). Blue was a son of Natourschik ("Nature Lover"), a 17-hand Orlov stallion donated as a thank you gift to an American by the Russian Premier, Nikita Khrushchev, in 1959.

Two other Orlov stallions were donated to complete a "Troika", or hitch of three stallions pulling a carriage, where the center horse trots, and the two outside horses canter with their heads and necks bent exaggeratedly to the outside - see this amazing picture. Natourschik was the center horse in his Troika, which toured around the US for a while.

Lari got Nature's Ballet - Blue - when he was 14. Over his endurance career, Blue completed Tevis 5 times in 5 attempts, and completed 2000 miles of the 3000 mile Great American Horse Race in 1976 (New York to California in 100 days).

Steph bought Nature's Quicksilver - Quickie, and Nature's Kruschev - Krusty, (both by Blue) from Lari Shea, as a 5 and 4-year-old. Krusty was a huge black gelding - 16 hands and (recently) 1250 lbs; he had a trot as fast as Quickie, and he competed in the 1999 Pan Americans in Canada (finished 9th), the 2000 World Endurance Championship in France 2000, and the World Cup in Dubai in 2001.

Quickie, now 18, has a bit of an attitude, (the carrots go a long way in convincing her she wants to still work), and she'd never ever have participated in a threesome pulling a carriage, had anybody been foolish enough to try. But she can fly at the trot when she wants to.

And we flew on the way home today. And we were maybe only going 3/4 speed, a big ground devouring trot, (maybe 15-16 mph?) but she kept it up, mile after mile. Carol and August were at a hand-gallop to keep up with us. When Quickie needed a breather, she'd slow down to a walk for a short stretch, then on her own she kicked back into high gear. Even at half-speed, I was just amazed. I let her choose her own speed - she didn't have to work hard, and she could have walked if she wanted, or she could have gone at an easier, moderate trot, but she didn't want.

She was probably marveling at her own great trot, and I know she was having fun, too.

I Pledge Allegiance

Thursday September 11 2008

I Pledge Allegiance

...to the Carrot...

There's absolutely nothing wrong with using carrots for bribes, or rewards, or just plain treaties, you just ask any horse around here.

Finny and Jose get them to learn to bow.

Diego gets them because he's just cute, and Stormy gets them because he's soooooooo good lookin.

Dudley gets them because he gets a reward for being penned up so he doesn't eat so much.

Mac and August get them out on rides because they are great treaties.

Quickie gets them out on solo rides because she diiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiislikes going out on solo rides, so I use them to reward, some might say bribe, her along. I'll say "Whoa" to her after a hard stretch, she'll stop, and turn her head back and wait for a carrot. Sometimes she'll stop on her own and turn her head back for a carrot. Today, for example, was a 3-carrot ride.

It gets her down the trail and keeps her from depositing me along the way.

Owyhee Trails

Monday September 7 2008

Pikes Peak, one of the best-known 14,000' peaks in Colorado (but only the 30th highest), was around a looooooooong time before it got named after Zebulon Pike, who first tried to climb it in 1806. Of course, that's not counting any Indians, who likely climbed it long before then, and ignoring the fact that the Ute Indians already had a fine name for it, Tavakiev (Sun Mountain).

What's it take to get at least a trail around here in Owyhee named after ME? Well, all it took was going and raking it for an endurance ride. My trail is at the end of Pickett Creek Canyon. You'll be coming down it on two of the days of the Owyhee Canyonlands (and notice the absence of rocks when you do!)

I've taken to naming a lot of the trails around here. Makes it easier than, "Let's take that trail over that way..." "Which one?" "You know, the one down there where the trails fork..." "Which trail fork?" "Well the one after that little hill..." "Which hill?" "Well, the one before the draw..." "Which draw?"

There are: the Training Wash (basic uphill sand wash for getting out of shape horses started back), Brown's Creek loop (in the Brown's Creek drainage), the Tevis Trail (20 yards of a steep narrow trail that leads out of here), the Rim Trail (our most scenic trail, on which we only take people we really like and who will really appreciate it), Hart Creek (the other really scenic trail we only take people we like on, or people who can sit in the saddle a long time, or people who don't get nervous on knife edge ridges - though really, it's not that bad), Blond Cow Wash (a blonde cow was in it once), Dog Trail (which goes above Linda's house), No-Dog Trail (to avoid the dogs from Linda's house on Dog Trail), Tamara's Hill (the first hill Tamara conquered here on horseback), the Badlands Loop (hills that look like the Badlands in South Dakota), the Bilbo Baggins loop (I rode Billy, a cute little hobbit-like horse on this trail), the Frodo Baggins wash (a secret branch off the Bilbo Baggins loop that we hope no motorcycles ever discover!), the Candelabra Gate (which is one way to get to the Bilbo Baggins loop), and so on.

So now, when I say "Let's do the 3 Cheese Layer ride," everybody knows it means to go out the Tevis trail, take the Training Wash up, cross over and take Spring Ranch Road Wash down, take a left at the Water Tank Crossing, and at Four Corners turn left up Blonde Cow Wash till you get up on Steph's Ridge and head home via the Training Wash crossing and Tevis.

They might not show up on any Topozone or Google maps, but at least everybody around here knows the trails I'm talking about. But we'll give you maps at the Owyhee Canyonlands endurance ride, so you don't have to memorize all my trail names before you ride.

Takin' One For the Owyhee Team

Sunday September 6 2008

It's September already, which means fall (MY FAVORITE TIME OF YEAR!) is coming, as is the 5-day Owyhee Canyonlands Pioneer endurance ride September 24-28. Time to start getting ready.

John's constructing something, which looks to me like it could possibly be a Teeter Bar and Saloon; Steph made the maps for the 260 miles. And she's out raking. I believe that it is entirely possible that one year, the entire 260 miles of the Owyhee Canyonlands ride will be rock-free, setting a new high standard for ride managers and organizers the world 'round.

Today I took the 2 fastest dogs, a saw, and brush cutters, and raced the 4-wheeler down to the end of our canyon and started clearing a passage through Pickett Creek Canyon. It will just be a short piece on one of the days - very rocky, but it's SO scenic, that Steph just had to include this little portion.

I may be really sorry I volunteered to do this job. While the dogs were staying the heck out of my way, I was sawing branches and tree trunks and dragging them out of the creek, and clipping branches and vines - clingy insistent gnarly vines - vines with 3 leaves, when a long-buried phrase started ringing in my head, "Leaves of 3, let them be." Uh oh. Could these be poison ivy? Poison oak? Surely not! Although... I have seen poison oak up this canyon before...

Well - too late now, somebody's gotta do it, and I've already got it all over my arms - and wrapped around my legs, and - eek! Now on my face. Dang! Nothing to do but keep ripping the vines out, so horses and riders won't get them all over themselves when they come through.

I brushed up to the turn up out of the canyon, flushing a long-eared owl on the way : ).

The dogs and I headed back to the house, where I hosed myself off good with cold water, hoping it wasn't really poison oak or ivy I'd gotten into.

Don't worry, OCP riders, I've got your back. The canyon passage will be clear of questionable vines for you when you get here so you can concentrate on the scenery!

So how long does it take before poison ivy or oak starts to itch?