Horsin' Around

Last year when we stayed in Buffalo, our neighbor, Carole Mariol, and I visited the pasture adjacent to the RV park at least once a day to visit with the friendly bay gelding that was kept there.  Unfortunately, he went to a new home, so this year Carole and I have missed our daily “horse fix.”  A couple of weeks ago, though, I was excited to see these two beauties munching grass on the other side of the fence.  

Unfortunately, they are beautiful, but would not come to the fence for a carrot or a pat, so we have only enjoyed them from a distance.  

I found another way to get a horse fix, however. We went to Sheridan on September 4 with Ross and Carole to watch the final polo match of the year.   It was a little damp, but we enjoyed watching our first polo match and learning a little about the sport.  A polo team has four riders, and because they change horses several times during each match, every rider has an average of eight mounts. The ponies are small and agile, and come in all colors.  Their legs are wrapped to prevent injury from the mallets, and their tails are also wrapped to keep them out of the way.  

There were some remarkable horsemen and horsewomen on the field. and the action was non-stop.  Unfortunately, we had light rain most of the time and the pictures were taken with a cell phone, so the  images aren’t especially good.  However they will give you a flavor for the sport

And, then, between chukkars (the 7.5 minute periods of play that divide the game) and at halftime, we were treated to "Cowboy Polo.”  Instead of polo mallets and a regulation ball, Cowboy Polo is played with padded brooms and a soccer ball. 

As far as I could tell, in contrast to the actual polo match, this one had only two rules.  (1) Before play started, each participant had to chug a full beer, and (2) There were no other rules. 

 After beer chugging, good-natured mayhem ensued.

I’m not sure you can call it a sport, but it was a hoot to watch! 

We ended our trip with scrumptious burgers and brew at Smith Alley in Sheridan and called it a day.

Sheepherder's Rendevous & Dick Grabow Memorial Sheep Dog Trial

August 26 brought us back to Glenrock, Wyoming, for the 2023 Sheepherder's Rendevous.  

Last year Cody and I had an excellent fun at the Dick Grabow Memorial Sheep Dog Trial, which is a part of the Rendevous, and brought home a beautiful championship buckle and some much-appreciated cash., 

We again had a great time at the Rendezvous and the trial.  It's a fun venue (probably the only dog trial held on a baseball field), and we enjoyed reconnecting with some friends we made here last year.  There were lots of spectators watching the action.  

But, unfortunately, we didn’t bring home the prize.  Try as we might, neither Cody and I nor Dutch and I succeeded in putting sheep in the trailer.  Wendy Auzqui and Quirt had a great run and took home the well-deserved prize.  Those Rambouillet ewes were tough, but we hope to try again next year.  Here are a few pics from our runs.  First Dutch, 

...then Cody

We had time after the trial to walk around the grounds at the Rendezvous and see some of the old sheep wagons that have been restored and are on display.  

In the mountains of Wyoming, sheep are usually pastured in the high country during the summer months, and are brought down in winter.  In the late 1800s and early 1900s, shepherds usually made their summer home in these wagons while they tended their sheep.  Here is a photo of the inside of one of the wagons.

There were also artisans at work, like this woman who was spinning wool.

And I also got to meet this lovely (and very pregnant) yak.  She was a big hit with everyone.

It was a great day.

Tensleep Falls and Beyond

There are almost endless opportunities for adventure here in the Bighorns.  On Wednesday, August 23, we followed up our trip up Hunter Road with a visit up the mountain to Circle Park Trail. 

Circle Park is off Road #20, and is a couple of miles off Hwy. 16.  There are a number of dispersed camping sites on the way to the trailhead, a couple of which would fit our rig if we cared to drive the bumpy dirt road in.  Leaving the parking area, we crossed a beautiful meadow with amazing views.

We didn't hike far; the Circle Park trail is fairly steep, but very rocky.  Even the horses we met on the trail found it slow going.  It was really rough going, especially for Kota.  Maybe we will go farther when she stays home to nap.  

On the way home, we took a short detour to Tie Hack Reservoir.  The water is clear and cold, but not too cold for the young man and his float.  At the far lift in the photo, you can see the dam.  There is a trail past the dam and down along the creek that we took several years ago.  It's pretty steep, though, and not something we wanted to tackle after Circle Park.

Then, on Friday we loaded the dogs and again drove over the mountain to the town of Tensleep.  We had planned to have a beer and Indian taco at Tensleep Brewery, but Linda’s taco wagon hadn’t yet arrived.  We opted for lunch in town instead, then headed back east.  Our destination was Tensleep Falls.  The road up to the falls is a nice gravel road, and the falls are only about a mile from the parking area.  Tensleep Creek meanders through a lovely meadow, and gives no clue that just below are impressive falls to the valley below.  

The trail from the parking area (at 9112 feet) down to the falls is another, story, however.  It is steep and rocky, but the walk down and the climb out is well worth the effort.  The views are breathtaking.  

The border collie boys wore their Ruffwear packs, 

and scampered across the rocks like mountain goats.  

John didn't exactly scamper like a mountain goat, but he, Rue and Kota explored the falls as well.  Rue is excused from carrying any weight because of her heart murmur (which, thankfully, hasn't seemed to slow her down at all).  Kota wears a Ruffwear harness with a padded handle that lets us help her over the rough spots. 

After the climb out, the dogs shared a drink in the back of the Equinox.  I have seen all five of them drinking from this bowl at the same time, but it is a little hard to get a photo.

I will say that I was a little apprehensive about taking this hike.  The last time we trekked down and climbed out was the afternoon before I came down with a 24-hour bug that almost put me in the hospital.  We never knew if it was altitude-related or something else, but it was nasty for a short time.  This time was different, thank goodness, and I have only good memories of the day.