Winding Down

 

One more day of riding before beckoned back to reality.  Housework, laundry…. one final Christmas party. 

 

Eenie meanie miny moe.

Which of my horses get to go? 

 

I was kind of leaning toward taking Butter.  I really want to get the weight off her this coming year and she was pretty good when I had her out a few days ago.  More importantly, if I am even thinking of leasing her, she needs some saddle time.  But Fancy’s buddysourness with Windy concerned me so I thought it might be good to get her out with other horses and away from our herd. 

 

 

I loaded up shortly before noon and headed toward Branched Oak Lake to meet a couple of my Cowgirl Weekend buddies.  Having witnessed first hand the breakdowns I incurred driving HiHo Silver, they were quite impressed with the new Ram. 

 

 

The wind had really picked up and even though temperatures were in the fifties, it was very chilly.  The wind over the water cut to the bone so we quickly rode down into the trees to get some break from it. 

 

 

A few times we found permafrost under the leaves and the horses scrambled to keep their footing.  Fancy lead most of the ride and about the only mistake she made all day was spooking at a pile of snow, which was quite comical.  We rode about nine miles; once again, stealing time from winter.  As one of my Facebook friends said, whoever is kissing Mother Nature’s ass for this weather, keep it up!

 

 

The equestrian camp at Branched Oak Lake is coming along nicely.  I think I mentioned earlier that the pads and electrical hookups were installed, as well as bathrooms and water hydrants.  This time we were pleased to find other amenities, as well.  Since I was riding Fancy, I did not have a camera handy today so Fancy and I got to be the models. 

 

 

There are fourteen stalls for the horses.  The first 12 were donated by the Nebraska Horse Trails Committee.  And the person who made the stalls donated an additional two stalls. 

 

 

Each pod of corrals has a nice solid hitching post nearby as well as bunkers for manure disposal.

 

 

There are two mounting blocks near the corrals and a mounting ramp for riders with disabilities. 

 

 

We could see that the area had been seeded and hopefully trees will be planted from their nearby nursery.  There will still be primitive camping available in a nearby area where riders can use portable fencing or tie to the trailer as they have in the past.  There will be fire rings and picnic tables in that area, too.  The good thing is, that area has been graded and those nasty holes that we used to have to dodge when pulling in will be gone.

 

 

Once again, all of this was made possible because the Nebraska Horse Trails Committee was able to provide the appropriate match needed for an RTC grant.  Your time and participation at our fun days and trail challenge continue to help our treasury grow so funds are available when needed for projects such as this one at Branched Oak.  Thank you!