Days 20 - 35..more trail rides

Monty and I have been doing what we can to get by now that I am working crazy hours. We work late at night on continued ground work and the basics. He is a steady learner and is a pleasure to work with.

We did get a chance to go on a few trail rides over the weekend.

First, we headed up to the Pilchuck Tree Farm, right outside Arlington, WA. My friend Beth and I took a nice long ride through the fir trees, traversing a few deeper water crossings. We have pictures of Monty up to his belly in the water, but Beth can't figure out how to get them off of her phone!!

We did get to practise loping along some sandy trails. He thought that was a kick!!

At one point, we tried a bit of a separation test. At first, Monty didn't even notice, but when Beth's mare nickered, all bets were off. Monty was worried and tried to find her, but he didn't try anything bad. Still, I hopped off to be sure that I remained safe, as I was still riding in my halter at that point. He was wearing his bridle, so for the rest of the day, we practiced steering with the bit.

The next day, we headed up to Mt. Blanchard, just outside of Bellingham, WA. We joined up with the Traildusters Chapter of the Backcountry Horsemen. Steve Ruppert, a local mustang trainer, led the ride. He was pleased to see how far we had come to date.

It was raining pretty good in the morning, but cleared for the remainder of the ride. Beth, myself and about 25 other horse and riders set out on a longer (about 5 hours) trail ride. This trail winds up a fairly steep incline over the course of about 4 miles. I used only the bridle to steer him and he acted like he had been doing it his whole life.

An excellent conditioning ground for stamina, it also winds through tight trees. Close enough to knock your knees good!! Needless to say, Monty got a lesson on stay off that dang tree!!

At the top, the trail opens to a scenic display of the Chuckanut Bay, Skagit Valley and the San Juan Islands. Monty took a spin around the lot, ponying Beth's horse and met all kinds of admiring fan's, who took great interest in the good looking, stout mustang.

After a short respit, we headed back down the mountain.

So now for the fun part! As I was heading home, the truck decided to die again, while in the middle of an intersection, leading onto the freeway! UGH!

A quick call to Beth and the car club and we were rescued. While I had the truck hauled to the shop, Monty stayed a few extra days at Beth's place. He got to meet a whole new set of people, was handled and brushed daily and had to load up in a new trailer to come home. All without me!! He did great and I am happy to report that he won't miss me a bit when he is adopted by his new person in June. SNIFF....

Thanks Beth for the babysitting and trailering services!!!