Not long after I got back from riding with Meg, some friends came over to ride from my house. Susie, Linda, and Barbara. Barbara rode Marie and I decided to go out with them. Our morning ride was an easy one so it would not be too much for either Luke or Marie to go again. And in fact, Luke seemed very happy to be going again with all his riding buddies. We went up Ledge Hill road and out to the Huff's Mill Rd. which goes over the dreaded mule eating metal bridge. Now that Luke had been over it once, I wondered how our second encounter would go. The only one willing to cross was Marie. Susie's horse Bayzen didn't want to go over it but Susie was eventually able to ride him across. Linda had to get off and lead Gus over. Luke was more willing to think about it today but still was quite reluctant. I did get off and lead him. After some consideration, he did step all 4 feet onto the bridge. He had his head right down and was looking intently at the water running under the bridge. Once he had all four feet on the bridge, he stopped............ and suddenly dropped to lay down! ACK! I pulled his reins and yelped at him to get up and he did thankfully. I don't know WHAT Luke was thinking. The mule mind fascinates me. We rode home by way of the South Adams Rd and back through the trail that come out behind my house. It was a great ride as usual.
Monday, August 27, 2012
2 Great Rides in One Day
This morning my niece Megan come over to ride. She has not ridden with me in MANY years. But, she now lives just next door to me and we decided it was time to rekindle her passion for riding. I put her on my wonderful mare Marie and we had a very nice ride. We headed out around 10:30 and just did the loop from my house out to the road below the Alpaca farm and home by the road. I think Meg had a good time and I'm quite sure she will come over to ride again soon.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Western Dressage Clinic
Here are a few pictures and video's from the clinic.
Friday, August 24, 2012
The Bridge
The farrier was here this afternoon. Luke was a perfect gentlemen today while getting his new shoes. My friends Joanie and Nancy came over to ride. We decided to ride from my house. It was quite warm and humid. The black flies were out and really bugging the equines while we were grooming and tacking up. We were hoping the deer fly would not be to bad. We headed out sometime between 3:30 and 4:00 pm. The deer fly were around but at a very tolerable level. I decided to take the trail that comes out on the South Adams Road, cross Dead River Rd and come back home by Ledge Hill Rd. On this trail is the mud hole that both my friend Susie and my farrier, Scott have badly sunk in. There is trail around this mud spot so I was keeping my eye out for it. When we came to a questionable spot, it just didn't look quite like "the sinker" and I was unsure how I missed the go around trail. I got off Luke and walked though the spot and it wasn't bad. Hummmm, then we soon came across a pretty spot with a stream running at the bottom of a ledge.......and I suddenly realized where I was. I had taken a wrong turn and was not on the trail I planned to take. But, not a problem. We decided to continue on as the trail is very nice and goes in the general direction I wanted to go anyway. The reason I don't ride this trail anymore is it come out in someone's yard and goes down their driveway. They have a horse and are very nice people but I don't think they really care for us riding through. We didn't see anyone around when we rode through.
We crossed over Dead River and back onto the trail and out to the Huffs Mill trail-road. At this point we decided to take a left and go down the Huff's Mill trail back to Dead River. Near the end of this road there is a metal grate bridge across a stream. My horse Marie has gone over it many time. Not recently but this bridge used to be the bridge over the Dead River on Dead River Rd. at my property line. I wondered what Luke would think of this. Most equines don't like it as you can see through it and see the water running under it. Both Luke and Joanie's horse Frannie refused to cross. So, we sent Nancy over the bridge on my good old Marie. She just plunked over like, "whatever". But, that did not convince either Luke or Frannie that this was a sane thing to do. So, after a few minutes of pointless urging with no results, we had Nancy ride Marie back across to see if we could get Luke and Frannie to follow her over. Well, this did work for Frannie. She was still not impressed but she did follow Marie. Luke decided that if they were both stupid enough to walk on the bridge of death, that was their problem, he was too smart for that..... So, now both Nancy and Joanie are on one side and I have 1300 lbs of unwilling mule on the other side. I did get off him and try to lead him over but he obviously is not convinced I can make sane rational decisions concerning his well being and he was determined that at least HE was going to survive this encounter with the bridge of death. It was soon obvious that I was not going to drag him across so I told Joanie and Nancy to start riding away. So, they went up the road just a little way and stopped. This did get Luke's attention but did not concern him enough to want to step onto the bridge of death. So, I told Joanie and Nancy to ride around the corner and out of sight. Well, that did the trick, Luke stared after them for a moment like he could not believe they actually abandoned him, then he started, for the first time, to seriously consider crossing the bridge. He inched up to it and gingerly placed both front feet right on the edge. The clank of his new shoes on the metal froze him in place for a moment. When he realized that he was still alive, he started inching his back feet slowly forward. He did this until he had his back feet firmly planted right between his front feet. All four feet lined up in a row right on the edge of the bridge. With his feet in this position, he was nearly sitting down and he also had his head down as he stared through the metal grating at the stream below. At this point, I'm cracking up but at the same time praying he is not about to make a huge leap. But no, in true careful mule fashion he slowly and carefully starts to inch his front feet forward until he is finally standing in a normal position. It was at this point he decided to just do it and get it over with and he tiptoed over the bridge. He was VERY happy to see that his buddies were waiting for him just around the corner.
We then crossed Dead River Rd. again and rode up the South Adams Rd. to the trail that leads back to my house. Today we met the man who owns the land where the start of this trail is. He does have a chain across the trail but is fine with us going through with the horses. He's just trying to keep ATV's out. He was soooooo nice. We really appreciate such generosity. I don't often ride in the evening and the trail was so pretty with the way the light was coming through the trees as the sun got lower in the sky. It was a really lovely ride. Luke led the way for the entire ride other then going over the bridge. He was such a good boy. But then, he always is. We hosed Luke and Marie off before turning them out. Luke's owner, Kyle, is picking Luke up tomorrow as he is taking Luke to a Western Dressage clinic at Sable Oaks in Brunswick on Sunday. So, this evening I packed Luke's meals for his sleepover. Luke has acquired quite a fan club among my friends so we are all going to go and audit the clinic. I can't wait to see Kyle riding Luke in the clinic. Luke has such good training and Kyle is a great rider. They will be awesome! Hopefully I'll get some pictures to post.
We crossed over Dead River and back onto the trail and out to the Huffs Mill trail-road. At this point we decided to take a left and go down the Huff's Mill trail back to Dead River. Near the end of this road there is a metal grate bridge across a stream. My horse Marie has gone over it many time. Not recently but this bridge used to be the bridge over the Dead River on Dead River Rd. at my property line. I wondered what Luke would think of this. Most equines don't like it as you can see through it and see the water running under it. Both Luke and Joanie's horse Frannie refused to cross. So, we sent Nancy over the bridge on my good old Marie. She just plunked over like, "whatever". But, that did not convince either Luke or Frannie that this was a sane thing to do. So, after a few minutes of pointless urging with no results, we had Nancy ride Marie back across to see if we could get Luke and Frannie to follow her over. Well, this did work for Frannie. She was still not impressed but she did follow Marie. Luke decided that if they were both stupid enough to walk on the bridge of death, that was their problem, he was too smart for that..... So, now both Nancy and Joanie are on one side and I have 1300 lbs of unwilling mule on the other side. I did get off him and try to lead him over but he obviously is not convinced I can make sane rational decisions concerning his well being and he was determined that at least HE was going to survive this encounter with the bridge of death. It was soon obvious that I was not going to drag him across so I told Joanie and Nancy to start riding away. So, they went up the road just a little way and stopped. This did get Luke's attention but did not concern him enough to want to step onto the bridge of death. So, I told Joanie and Nancy to ride around the corner and out of sight. Well, that did the trick, Luke stared after them for a moment like he could not believe they actually abandoned him, then he started, for the first time, to seriously consider crossing the bridge. He inched up to it and gingerly placed both front feet right on the edge. The clank of his new shoes on the metal froze him in place for a moment. When he realized that he was still alive, he started inching his back feet slowly forward. He did this until he had his back feet firmly planted right between his front feet. All four feet lined up in a row right on the edge of the bridge. With his feet in this position, he was nearly sitting down and he also had his head down as he stared through the metal grating at the stream below. At this point, I'm cracking up but at the same time praying he is not about to make a huge leap. But no, in true careful mule fashion he slowly and carefully starts to inch his front feet forward until he is finally standing in a normal position. It was at this point he decided to just do it and get it over with and he tiptoed over the bridge. He was VERY happy to see that his buddies were waiting for him just around the corner.
We then crossed Dead River Rd. again and rode up the South Adams Rd. to the trail that leads back to my house. Today we met the man who owns the land where the start of this trail is. He does have a chain across the trail but is fine with us going through with the horses. He's just trying to keep ATV's out. He was soooooo nice. We really appreciate such generosity. I don't often ride in the evening and the trail was so pretty with the way the light was coming through the trees as the sun got lower in the sky. It was a really lovely ride. Luke led the way for the entire ride other then going over the bridge. He was such a good boy. But then, he always is. We hosed Luke and Marie off before turning them out. Luke's owner, Kyle, is picking Luke up tomorrow as he is taking Luke to a Western Dressage clinic at Sable Oaks in Brunswick on Sunday. So, this evening I packed Luke's meals for his sleepover. Luke has acquired quite a fan club among my friends so we are all going to go and audit the clinic. I can't wait to see Kyle riding Luke in the clinic. Luke has such good training and Kyle is a great rider. They will be awesome! Hopefully I'll get some pictures to post.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
Androscoggin River Lands Park
Yet another great ride today. I had to work this afternoon so we had to strike out early so I could get back in time to go to work. This turned out to be a good thing anyway as it was hot and humid today so early was better for everyone. Barbara came to ride Marie. I think Luke has been traumatized by the five straight days of riding in Acadia as he ran when he saw me coming with his halter.... :-( He didn't make much of a fuss though. Joanie came to my house and followed me over to the Park. We were on the trail by 9:15 am. We moved right along as quick as we could because the deer fly were bad. Mostly for the lead rider so we rotated who was in the lead so we could all get a break for short spells. Luke did great with the heat, bugs and speed though he did buck once.......Ok, "buck" might be a bit of an exaggeration..... I felt him twitching in the back end. I turned around to look and there was a HUGE horse fly right on the top of his butt! And it was at that moment that he hopped up and kicked out with his back end. His front feet never left the ground so I won't call it a true buck and I couldn't blame him. Riding with good friends make dealing with the bugs tolerable and it really was a great ride.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Acadia 2012
VACATION!! Yeahhhhhhhh! Today I was heading out for my much anticipated five day riding vacation in Acadia National Park . There were nine of us going on various days and we would be staying at Wildwood Stable . The stable is quite nice though a bit disorganized in it's operation with the present concessionaires that are running it.
My friend Nancy was going to use my horse for the week. There were four of us traveling together. Another friend, Ann, would be arriving on Tuesday to stay with us. She does not have a horse but she wanted to spend time with us. She was bringing her dog Etta and she was planning to go hiking during the day while we rode. I had gotten everything packed and ready during the previous week. I was all ready to go when Nancy arrived. There was a bit of a delay in leaving as Joanie and Pam were waiting for the seafood market to open to pick up lobsters. They finally gave up waiting and they left without the lobsters and we all met at Exit 43 Quick Mart. We had an uneventful drive to Acadia. It's about 2 1/2 to 3 hrs up. Joanie and Pam stopped along the way to pick up the lobsters. When we checked in at Wildwood Stable, there was a mix up on Nancy's reservations. She has specifically requested to be in the same barn as the rest of us and they had told her that was no problem. But, they had reserved her stall in another barn. They had done the same thing to her last year so she was not impressed. After a bit of fussing, they managed to arrange for us all to be in the same barn and gave us our stall numbers. When we got down to the barn, there was already a horse in one of the stalls they assigned us. After a bit more confusion we were finally settled on our stalls. We set up the stalls and settled all the equines in and unloaded our tack that we wanted at the barn. We then pulled into our campsites and relaxed for a while and had lunch. Nancy had cooked and sliced up a nice fresh turkey for sandwich meat. We had a good choice of wonderful deli breads and cheeses. We then set up the tent that Nancy had brought. I was camping in my trailer, the others would be staying in the tent. It was a 6 man tent. Being experienced campers we knew that 6 man really meant maybe 4 people comfortable. But, after setting up the tent and putting in 2 air mattresses and a cot, there was no room left for Ann. So, it was decided she would bunk with me when she arrived. We also set up to EZ up canopies to put over the picnic tables. Joanie put much thought into just the right place to store the wine. It was now time to ride! We saddled up and headed out. Maura and her daughter Meri arrived just before we left camp. They were staying at the Otter Creek Motel. Luke was wonderful as usual. Pam's Morgan gelding Stormin was a bit animated on this first ride. He looked quite impressive though I don't think Pam was quite as impressed as we were. Marie and Frannie were also there usual wonderful selves and we had a very nice ride. We got a little lost at one point and ended up on a dead end trail that was an access for a private stable. We came back by way of the Jordan Stream trail. Once back I sponged off Luke in his stall. Nancy took Marie out to hose her off and Marie had some heartburn about not being able to see her buddies. After the horses and mule were settled in we went over to camp to relax for just a short time then Nancy and Joanie prepared supper. Maura and Meri joined us for supper. Nancy made a nice salad and then there was lobster (though I had a cheeseburger as I'm not too fond of lobster) and corn on the cob. It was Maura's birthday and Nancy made a nice pound cake for her that we topped with fresh blueberries and raspberries and whipped cream. It was getting quite late by the time we were done with supper so we went over to the stable to top off water and give hay to the ponies and then we headed to bed.
Day 2
I overslept and did not wake up until 9:00 am. The others had already fed the ponies and cleaned stalls and had coffee made. For breakfast we had Greek yogurt that Joanie had made with homemade granola and the fresh blueberries and raspberries as well as toasted bagels. The coffee was really good! We then saddled up and headed out for a ride. We did the Round the Mountain route by way of Bubble Pond. It was a lovely day and so nice to be riding without being bothered by deer fly! We had some great views as it was so clear. We did about 14 miles and were out for about 3 1/2 hours. All the ponies were good today though at one point when we were cantering up a hill Luke lost his rhythm and angled across the road. I was just wondering what was going on when Luke did a little crow hop. Turns out he was making a statement to Pam's horse, Stormin. He didn't actually kick out but still, naughty Luke! And Luke did have one spook today. When we came by the end of Jordan Pond where the trail is always congested with a lot of bikers, and hikers, someone rang a bell on their bike and this jumped Luke. He didn't really do much, it was just with all the congestion I had a moment of worry as I didn't want the headline of tomorrow's paper to be "Large black mule runs over pedestrians in park". When we got back from our ride I gave Luke and extra meal as he has lost a bit of weight since I've finally had the time to start riding him on a regular basis, which coincided with his hunger strike against the grain I was giving him. I have found a grain he really likes and would like to see him gain just a little more weight. Marie was so insulted by Luke getting an extra meal that I had to give her some hay stretcher pellets just to settle her down. Susie and her friend Diana had arrived while we were out riding and they were out on the trail. Maura and Meri did their own ride. We had some lunch then Nancy, Pam and I went to Otter Creek for some ice and so I could pick up some batteries for my water pump. Ann had also arrived with her lovely dog Etta. The most well mannered yellow Lab you ever want to meet. It was a pleasure having her in camp. Ann set up her full size air mattress in my trailer. We decided to put a tarp tarp over both EZ up canopies. Nancy had a large one that fit over both of them. Ann had brought a wonderful appetizer of cantaloupe and prosciutto with a ...... well I don't know... a pesto paste..... as well as "Lava" dip made by Joanie and some other dip that had beans in it so I took no interest in what it was called. (beans...YUCK) After we fed the ponies, Joanie and Nancy once again made us a wonderful supper. They made and nice salad followed by tortellini and many wonderful home made deserts. We had planned to do our moonlight ride tonight but it clouded over so that was put off for tomorrow. Susie had brought her guitar so she and I played and sang by the campfire. A few other campers came over to sit by the fire and listen. A little after 10:00 pm we checked on the ponies one last time topping off hay and water before heading to bed.
Day 3
It rained hard during the night. I woke at 5:00 am, then again at 6:00. It was still raining hard and I didn't hear any stirring around camp so I dozed back off. Apparently I am deaf as during this time poor Joanie and Nancy were right outside my trailer struggling to save the EZ up canopies. One had developed a LARGE pocket of water and had broken but not collapsed. Both of then ended up completely soaked in their effort to drain the water. They did manage to keep everything standing and patched up the one broken EZ up with a stick and some duct tape. It was quite chilly this morning and they were both cold now. They also had gotten some water in their tent so some of their gear was wet too. They made a run over to Otter Creek for a quick shower to help warm up. When they got back we decided to go to Northeast Harbor for breakfast as it was still raining lightly. Nancy and Joanie also wanted to bring all their wet thing to the laundry to dry them. We had breakfast at Colonel's . It was delicious except for the coffee which was very weak. After breakfast we wandered around the shops in town waiting for the rain to let up. When we got back to camp, Susie and Diana were already out riding. They were leaving today so wanted to get out for a long ride. We decided to wait a bit longer as the sky was brightening. I was suddenly very tired so went into my trailer and took a nap. When the weather finally cleared just a little after noon time the others woke me up to go riding. We planned to ride the Hadlocks but got a bit lost again and ended up doing Seal Harbor and Jordan Pond. The day had cleared beautifully and once again we had some great views and it was a lovely ride. All ponies were just wonderful. When we got back to camp, we hosed all the ponies off and hand grazed them for a while. Luke was very happy to get in a good roll. Susie and Diana were just getting ready to leave when we got back so we got to say goodbye to them. We settled the ponies back in their stall then went over to camp to relax for a while. I took a shower in my trailer. I use a muck bucket to stand in to catch the rinse water. When I'd bring the bucket into the trailer all the girls would jokingly comment on me setting up my hot tub. Joanie and Nancy made beef kabobs and rice for supper. They were delicious! And we still had a lot of home made deserts left over to eat. Pam and I fed the ponies while Joanie and Nancy cooked. Once again our moon light ride was postponed by a heavy cloud cover. After supper, Pam, Joanie and Ann started a game of scrabble. I had gone over to treat Luke's feet and I'd cleaned stalls while over there. When I got back to camp, Nancy and I started playing a game of double solitaire. It didn't take long before the others decided that Nancy and I were having more fun with the card game and they abandoned the scrabble game to play double solitaire with us. I dug around in my trailer and managed to come up with 5 decks of cards. Some of them were pretty sorry old decks but that was ok. It was decided that the looser of each hand had to take a shot of the Cinnamon Fireball Whiskey I'd brought. This tastes just like fireball candy. Nancy was quite determined NOT to lose as she does not like fireballs. I think Pam was losing on purpose.........
Day 4
Today was a lot of fun. I was up by 7:00 am. I fed and cleaned the ponies. Nancy was the one that overslept this morning. We had breakfast and then headed out on our ride about 10:00 am. Nancy rode Luke so I could have one ride on my horse. She put her treeless saddle on him but right away did not think it would work well on him so she ended up using my saddle that she sold to me years ago because she did not like it...... We ride the Landslide out to Aunt Betty Pond and then around to the Hadlocks. It was once again a lovely day with great views. Part way through the ride Nancy and Joanie switched rides so Joanie could get a chance to try out Luke. We were laughing on how we were going to tease Kyle about how many women rode Kyle's ass this week. Actually, the ass jokes were pretty much constant all week. You just can't resist them when there is a mule in the crowd. Luke was starting to feel just a little tired today. He was losing steam on some of the hills. When we got back from our ride we hosed off the ponies and hand grazed them. Today Luke managed to roll all the way over 3 times. I've never seen him actually go all the way over before. The horse in the stall next to Luke had backed into a rock and cut his leg badly. The owner was waiting for the vet. He was such a nice man and we felt so bad for him and his horse. I hope the horse heals up ok. After riding and taking care of the ponies, I still felt full of energy so decided to go for a hike. The others went to the Jordan Pond House for Popovers. It was around 4:45 pm and getting a bit foggy so I chose a fairly short trail that started right from the top of the stable access road. The hike was pretty rugged but a lot of fun. I actually did have quite a few spots were I got good views of the stable despite the fog. I saw one deer that let me get very close before moving off. When I got back from my hike, I cleaned stalls, topped off water and medicated Luke's feet. While I was in the barn a couple tourists came into the barn (they really aren't supposed to come in but...) and when they got to Luke's stall, they just stopped and stared for a moment. They were speaking French but I did hear mention of "long ears". The man asked me what Luke was. I had to explain the whole mule thing to him and he was quite fascinated. They both patted Luke for a bit them wandered off. Then they came back and the man said that his daughter (late teens) would really love to have a picture with the mule if that was possible. So, I let her pose with Luke for a photo. Luke is so gentle and friendly and seem to enjoy all the attention. I then went back to camp and took a shower in my trailer. The others were back by this time. I found a slug in my "hot tub"! ACK! We were going to go out to eat tonight but we had a lot of left overs and decided to stay in camp and clean them up. It was a good choice as they leftovers were delicious. We had to give up our hopes of a moonlight ride as once again it was cloudy and foggy so we had another rousing game of double solitaire. Tonight it was decided the loser had to kiss Kyle's ass in the morning. Pam went to be early but she checked on the ponies for us so we could keep playing card. We had a few wildlife issues that evening with Joanie having a beetle getting stuck in her hair and Ann finding a slug on her leg. When our lights rain out of gas, we headed for bed. Ann was very happy tonight as her dog Etta actually growled and barked at something. She said she's never heard her do either before.
Day 5
Today was another lovely day. We had to leave today so after feeding the ponies, we had breakfast them packed up camp. We then pulled our trailers over to the barn and packed up everything there also. Nancy and I tied Luke and Marie to the trailer with a hay bag and stripped the stalls. We then went for our last ride. We did the Day Mountain ride. I know Luke was tired but he was such a good boy and made no fuss. Just fell a bit behind on the hills. He's such a good mule. At the top of Day mountain we took a cantering victory lap around the circle. I think the tourists up there thought we were a bit crazy....they might be right..... We hosed off the ponies when we got back and let them roll and graze for a little bit before loading up and heading home. What a great week we had.
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My friend Nancy was going to use my horse for the week. There were four of us traveling together. Another friend, Ann, would be arriving on Tuesday to stay with us. She does not have a horse but she wanted to spend time with us. She was bringing her dog Etta and she was planning to go hiking during the day while we rode. I had gotten everything packed and ready during the previous week. I was all ready to go when Nancy arrived. There was a bit of a delay in leaving as Joanie and Pam were waiting for the seafood market to open to pick up lobsters. They finally gave up waiting and they left without the lobsters and we all met at Exit 43 Quick Mart. We had an uneventful drive to Acadia. It's about 2 1/2 to 3 hrs up. Joanie and Pam stopped along the way to pick up the lobsters. When we checked in at Wildwood Stable, there was a mix up on Nancy's reservations. She has specifically requested to be in the same barn as the rest of us and they had told her that was no problem. But, they had reserved her stall in another barn. They had done the same thing to her last year so she was not impressed. After a bit of fussing, they managed to arrange for us all to be in the same barn and gave us our stall numbers. When we got down to the barn, there was already a horse in one of the stalls they assigned us. After a bit more confusion we were finally settled on our stalls. We set up the stalls and settled all the equines in and unloaded our tack that we wanted at the barn. We then pulled into our campsites and relaxed for a while and had lunch. Nancy had cooked and sliced up a nice fresh turkey for sandwich meat. We had a good choice of wonderful deli breads and cheeses. We then set up the tent that Nancy had brought. I was camping in my trailer, the others would be staying in the tent. It was a 6 man tent. Being experienced campers we knew that 6 man really meant maybe 4 people comfortable. But, after setting up the tent and putting in 2 air mattresses and a cot, there was no room left for Ann. So, it was decided she would bunk with me when she arrived. We also set up to EZ up canopies to put over the picnic tables. Joanie put much thought into just the right place to store the wine. It was now time to ride! We saddled up and headed out. Maura and her daughter Meri arrived just before we left camp. They were staying at the Otter Creek Motel. Luke was wonderful as usual. Pam's Morgan gelding Stormin was a bit animated on this first ride. He looked quite impressive though I don't think Pam was quite as impressed as we were. Marie and Frannie were also there usual wonderful selves and we had a very nice ride. We got a little lost at one point and ended up on a dead end trail that was an access for a private stable. We came back by way of the Jordan Stream trail. Once back I sponged off Luke in his stall. Nancy took Marie out to hose her off and Marie had some heartburn about not being able to see her buddies. After the horses and mule were settled in we went over to camp to relax for just a short time then Nancy and Joanie prepared supper. Maura and Meri joined us for supper. Nancy made a nice salad and then there was lobster (though I had a cheeseburger as I'm not too fond of lobster) and corn on the cob. It was Maura's birthday and Nancy made a nice pound cake for her that we topped with fresh blueberries and raspberries and whipped cream. It was getting quite late by the time we were done with supper so we went over to the stable to top off water and give hay to the ponies and then we headed to bed.
Day 2
I overslept and did not wake up until 9:00 am. The others had already fed the ponies and cleaned stalls and had coffee made. For breakfast we had Greek yogurt that Joanie had made with homemade granola and the fresh blueberries and raspberries as well as toasted bagels. The coffee was really good! We then saddled up and headed out for a ride. We did the Round the Mountain route by way of Bubble Pond. It was a lovely day and so nice to be riding without being bothered by deer fly! We had some great views as it was so clear. We did about 14 miles and were out for about 3 1/2 hours. All the ponies were good today though at one point when we were cantering up a hill Luke lost his rhythm and angled across the road. I was just wondering what was going on when Luke did a little crow hop. Turns out he was making a statement to Pam's horse, Stormin. He didn't actually kick out but still, naughty Luke! And Luke did have one spook today. When we came by the end of Jordan Pond where the trail is always congested with a lot of bikers, and hikers, someone rang a bell on their bike and this jumped Luke. He didn't really do much, it was just with all the congestion I had a moment of worry as I didn't want the headline of tomorrow's paper to be "Large black mule runs over pedestrians in park". When we got back from our ride I gave Luke and extra meal as he has lost a bit of weight since I've finally had the time to start riding him on a regular basis, which coincided with his hunger strike against the grain I was giving him. I have found a grain he really likes and would like to see him gain just a little more weight. Marie was so insulted by Luke getting an extra meal that I had to give her some hay stretcher pellets just to settle her down. Susie and her friend Diana had arrived while we were out riding and they were out on the trail. Maura and Meri did their own ride. We had some lunch then Nancy, Pam and I went to Otter Creek for some ice and so I could pick up some batteries for my water pump. Ann had also arrived with her lovely dog Etta. The most well mannered yellow Lab you ever want to meet. It was a pleasure having her in camp. Ann set up her full size air mattress in my trailer. We decided to put a tarp tarp over both EZ up canopies. Nancy had a large one that fit over both of them. Ann had brought a wonderful appetizer of cantaloupe and prosciutto with a ...... well I don't know... a pesto paste..... as well as "Lava" dip made by Joanie and some other dip that had beans in it so I took no interest in what it was called. (beans...YUCK) After we fed the ponies, Joanie and Nancy once again made us a wonderful supper. They made and nice salad followed by tortellini and many wonderful home made deserts. We had planned to do our moonlight ride tonight but it clouded over so that was put off for tomorrow. Susie had brought her guitar so she and I played and sang by the campfire. A few other campers came over to sit by the fire and listen. A little after 10:00 pm we checked on the ponies one last time topping off hay and water before heading to bed.
Day 3
It rained hard during the night. I woke at 5:00 am, then again at 6:00. It was still raining hard and I didn't hear any stirring around camp so I dozed back off. Apparently I am deaf as during this time poor Joanie and Nancy were right outside my trailer struggling to save the EZ up canopies. One had developed a LARGE pocket of water and had broken but not collapsed. Both of then ended up completely soaked in their effort to drain the water. They did manage to keep everything standing and patched up the one broken EZ up with a stick and some duct tape. It was quite chilly this morning and they were both cold now. They also had gotten some water in their tent so some of their gear was wet too. They made a run over to Otter Creek for a quick shower to help warm up. When they got back we decided to go to Northeast Harbor for breakfast as it was still raining lightly. Nancy and Joanie also wanted to bring all their wet thing to the laundry to dry them. We had breakfast at Colonel's . It was delicious except for the coffee which was very weak. After breakfast we wandered around the shops in town waiting for the rain to let up. When we got back to camp, Susie and Diana were already out riding. They were leaving today so wanted to get out for a long ride. We decided to wait a bit longer as the sky was brightening. I was suddenly very tired so went into my trailer and took a nap. When the weather finally cleared just a little after noon time the others woke me up to go riding. We planned to ride the Hadlocks but got a bit lost again and ended up doing Seal Harbor and Jordan Pond. The day had cleared beautifully and once again we had some great views and it was a lovely ride. All ponies were just wonderful. When we got back to camp, we hosed all the ponies off and hand grazed them for a while. Luke was very happy to get in a good roll. Susie and Diana were just getting ready to leave when we got back so we got to say goodbye to them. We settled the ponies back in their stall then went over to camp to relax for a while. I took a shower in my trailer. I use a muck bucket to stand in to catch the rinse water. When I'd bring the bucket into the trailer all the girls would jokingly comment on me setting up my hot tub. Joanie and Nancy made beef kabobs and rice for supper. They were delicious! And we still had a lot of home made deserts left over to eat. Pam and I fed the ponies while Joanie and Nancy cooked. Once again our moon light ride was postponed by a heavy cloud cover. After supper, Pam, Joanie and Ann started a game of scrabble. I had gone over to treat Luke's feet and I'd cleaned stalls while over there. When I got back to camp, Nancy and I started playing a game of double solitaire. It didn't take long before the others decided that Nancy and I were having more fun with the card game and they abandoned the scrabble game to play double solitaire with us. I dug around in my trailer and managed to come up with 5 decks of cards. Some of them were pretty sorry old decks but that was ok. It was decided that the looser of each hand had to take a shot of the Cinnamon Fireball Whiskey I'd brought. This tastes just like fireball candy. Nancy was quite determined NOT to lose as she does not like fireballs. I think Pam was losing on purpose.........
Day 4
Today was a lot of fun. I was up by 7:00 am. I fed and cleaned the ponies. Nancy was the one that overslept this morning. We had breakfast and then headed out on our ride about 10:00 am. Nancy rode Luke so I could have one ride on my horse. She put her treeless saddle on him but right away did not think it would work well on him so she ended up using my saddle that she sold to me years ago because she did not like it...... We ride the Landslide out to Aunt Betty Pond and then around to the Hadlocks. It was once again a lovely day with great views. Part way through the ride Nancy and Joanie switched rides so Joanie could get a chance to try out Luke. We were laughing on how we were going to tease Kyle about how many women rode Kyle's ass this week. Actually, the ass jokes were pretty much constant all week. You just can't resist them when there is a mule in the crowd. Luke was starting to feel just a little tired today. He was losing steam on some of the hills. When we got back from our ride we hosed off the ponies and hand grazed them. Today Luke managed to roll all the way over 3 times. I've never seen him actually go all the way over before. The horse in the stall next to Luke had backed into a rock and cut his leg badly. The owner was waiting for the vet. He was such a nice man and we felt so bad for him and his horse. I hope the horse heals up ok. After riding and taking care of the ponies, I still felt full of energy so decided to go for a hike. The others went to the Jordan Pond House for Popovers. It was around 4:45 pm and getting a bit foggy so I chose a fairly short trail that started right from the top of the stable access road. The hike was pretty rugged but a lot of fun. I actually did have quite a few spots were I got good views of the stable despite the fog. I saw one deer that let me get very close before moving off. When I got back from my hike, I cleaned stalls, topped off water and medicated Luke's feet. While I was in the barn a couple tourists came into the barn (they really aren't supposed to come in but...) and when they got to Luke's stall, they just stopped and stared for a moment. They were speaking French but I did hear mention of "long ears". The man asked me what Luke was. I had to explain the whole mule thing to him and he was quite fascinated. They both patted Luke for a bit them wandered off. Then they came back and the man said that his daughter (late teens) would really love to have a picture with the mule if that was possible. So, I let her pose with Luke for a photo. Luke is so gentle and friendly and seem to enjoy all the attention. I then went back to camp and took a shower in my trailer. The others were back by this time. I found a slug in my "hot tub"! ACK! We were going to go out to eat tonight but we had a lot of left overs and decided to stay in camp and clean them up. It was a good choice as they leftovers were delicious. We had to give up our hopes of a moonlight ride as once again it was cloudy and foggy so we had another rousing game of double solitaire. Tonight it was decided the loser had to kiss Kyle's ass in the morning. Pam went to be early but she checked on the ponies for us so we could keep playing card. We had a few wildlife issues that evening with Joanie having a beetle getting stuck in her hair and Ann finding a slug on her leg. When our lights rain out of gas, we headed for bed. Ann was very happy tonight as her dog Etta actually growled and barked at something. She said she's never heard her do either before.
Day 5
Today was another lovely day. We had to leave today so after feeding the ponies, we had breakfast them packed up camp. We then pulled our trailers over to the barn and packed up everything there also. Nancy and I tied Luke and Marie to the trailer with a hay bag and stripped the stalls. We then went for our last ride. We did the Day Mountain ride. I know Luke was tired but he was such a good boy and made no fuss. Just fell a bit behind on the hills. He's such a good mule. At the top of Day mountain we took a cantering victory lap around the circle. I think the tourists up there thought we were a bit crazy....they might be right..... We hosed off the ponies when we got back and let them roll and graze for a little bit before loading up and heading home. What a great week we had.
.JPG)
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