After our lunch on the grassy saddle on the crest of the Manzano Mountains, we mounted back up and headed north along the Crest Trail.
Kendra and Bailey with views towards the east behind them.
Randi and her mare.
Looking eastward out onto the plains, we could see the Wind Farm out towards Corona, New Mexico.
Riding higher along the Crest Trail.
Apache knows there are views up ahead. She enjoys them as much as I do.
Obstructed views, through the trees, looking northwest.
My friend, Michelle (Randi’s Mom) riding her gelding down the mountain.
We made it to the Crest Trail/Spruce Spring Trail Junction!
Michelle, Melissa and me with our awesome horses.
The rest of the route is downhill on Spruce Spring Trail.
The majority of Spruce Spring Trail is on the north side of a mountain, so it’s shady and cooler, and sometimes a little spooky. But my favorite parts are riding through the aspens.
Kendra jockeying into position to capture the best shot of the aspens and views.
Michelle riding her gelding through the aspens.
Beautiful carpet of gold!
The mountain is very steep, and the trail very narrow, but our horses are sure-footed, calm, brave, and well-behaved. Apache takes very good care of me always.
There are several steep, rocky steps to climb up and over. We wait our turn……
And then up we go! My mare is barefoot and is comfortable and surefooted on rocky trails. She takes her time and moves carefully over the rocks and boulders. Her feet are tough, durable, and as hard as the rocks we ride on.
Uh Oh! A trail obstacle our horses cannot safely get past. We have to stop and move the log off the trail. Randi and Kendra are the strong cowgirls that volunteer for the job, while Michelle, Melissa, Me, and all our horses wait patiently.
Heave! Ho! Heave! Ho!
We are women! Hear us roar!! Randi and Kendra are two tough cowgirls!
And then we continue on down the trail….Melissa on Pal behind me.
The trail can get a little dark and gloomy and mysterious.
But then the trees part and the views open up.
Narrow trail, about 8-10 inches wide. Mountain goes straight up on one side and straight down on the other. We’re above 9,000 ft in the Manzanos.
As we ride lower we start seeing some Fall color in the scrub oaks and maples.
Trail goes around the side of the mountain and drops down into a canyon.
Riding down into the canyon.
Kendra feeling joyful in the beauty of the mountains. Riding Bailey with only her legs and trusting him to find his way over the rocky trail.
Uh Oh! Another log obstacle on the trail!
Kendra and Randi jump down to move that puppy off of the trail. Those two are a great team!
Melissa, Michelle and I cheer them on, while I hold Randi’s mare.
And then we continue riding down Spruce Spring Trail.
As we ride lower the trail becomes even more beautifully colorful.
We were feeling so strong and proud of ourselves for being able to move obstacles off the trail, and not needing a man around to help us.
But then…………..Uh Oh!! We are presented with the ultimate of trail obstacle logs, one we cannot lift or move. It will need to be cut by a saw and we don’t have one. So we decide to ride down the hill, which isn’t so steep here thankfully, and ride around the top of the tree.
I should have removed my long trail reins instead of looping them around the horn on my saddle. Because unfortunately, the reins slipped off the horn and then my mare stepped on them while I led her down the rugged terrain past the tree. When Apache stepped on the reins, it caused the cheek piece on her headstall to tear apart. I always carry twine in my saddle bags, but leather strings should be a necessity. Thankfully, Kendra had a leather string and we fashioned a cheek piece to repair my headstall. Looks pretty nice and worked perfectly!
And then we continued on down the trail, riding past beautiful Alligator Junipers!
And then we flew through the beautiful colors!
One of my favorite things! A beautiful tree tunnel!
As we got closer to the campground, Apache and I decided to ride off the trail through a narrow opening between two trees, and Randi decided to follow us, but her horse got a little spooked by the narrow opening, and rushed past Apache and I, even bumping into Apache’s rump on the way through. Randi’s mare gave her a bit of a rodeo before Randi was able to get her under control, but Randi stayed on and handled the situation beautifully. And my Apache mare was rock solid and brave even when having all of that commotion happening behind and around her. Randi was laughing afterwards, both from the adrenaline release and the fact that she was still alive. (grin)
Apache knew she was very close to our campsite. She was really stepping out!
That night we all shared a cowgirl dinner with campfire s’mores and warm sangria, while our horses were bedded down in their corrals with fresh water and deep piles of hay.
Our friend Susan drove in from Santa Fe that evening in time for dinner, so she could do some riding with us the next morning. But somehow, during the night her mare was able to escape her corral and was roaming around the campground. Our horses woke us up to let us know about the situation, and we went out and caught the mare and put her back in her corral.
The next morning we were all a little tired, but our ponies were calling out for their breakfast. The view from the bunk out of my tent trailer window. “Good morning Apache mare!”
Unfortunately, Saturday’s long, rugged trail ride, and the night spent in that little corral caused my mare’s fetlocks to swell and get stocked up. So, I spent the morning, walking and grazing Apache around the campground, while Kendra and Susan went for some short rides on the trails in the National Forest.
Susan and Kendra.
Colleen had to head out early Sunday morning, after breakfast, because she had some things to do to get ready for the week.
Colleen and Kendra.
It did take her about an hour to get both of her horses in the trailer, especially the little filly, but Colleen expected that and made sure to have plenty of time and patience for training. But she sure was happy when they finally went in!
Michelle and Randi had went home the night before, after our cowgirl campfire dinner. And Melissa went home after breakfast. After making sure my mare was moving around comfortably and most of the swelling had gone down, I sat down beside the dwindling campfire and enjoyed some cups of hot tea while listening to the sounds of the forest all around.
The longer I sat, I was amazed at the wildlife that showed up so close to me. The birds and Aberts Squirrels were very entertaining!
After chasing a few of them my Dobbie Girl wasn’t interested anymore and decided to take advantage of the warm sunshine to take a nap.
It was a wonderful way to spend the morning and the last day of our wonderful Cowgirl Campout weekend.
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