Ride, Baby, Ride

This event documented here was a BIG DEAL.

Aleaha and Mommy took Shorty and Quigly to Bald Hill for our first trail ride together (Daddy and Miri had a little lunch and trip to a park during this time, so they had a small get-away too). But this was different than the riding we did with Daddy in EO, because this is a multi-use area, where we knew we would come close to all sorts of -- let's call them -- Human Hazards. It was all about defensive riding...meaning, watch out for the other guy!

But let me assure you that it all went amazing -- because our horses are totally cool and calm. 

After unloading, saddling, and mounting up, we warmed up a little with a loop around the giant parking lot of the fairgrounds. This was a great chance to see how the boys were responding, and get a feel for how they would be. All was fine!

So then we embarked on the multi-use trail. The target for the trailride is the top of the hill you see out in front of Quigly. Part of the way is wide and we would be unlikely to be close to a lot of bikes, strollers, dogs, etc. But the first part of the trail is like you see in this picture: A paved path with a narrow dirt trail off to the side for the horses. (We always try to respect the paved path for the walkers and bikes, for various and probably obvious reasons.)

Aleaha moved into the front position, so that she would be responsible for looking out to the front, and Mommy would watch for people approaching from the back. The bicyclists sometimes come upon us really fast here, so you have to be vigilant.

The boys were fantastic. We did see a lot of people, and there was no flinching or shying. We were cautious and stopped a few times to let people pass. The strangest was probably the lady on rollerblades with her boyfriend on a bike. They went past us multiple times, with no issues.

Once we got off the paved area, we were making our way up the hill. The path is much wider and shadier.

The view from the top was really nice.

Aleaha even got a shot of Mommy on Quigly.

It was so rejuvenating and fun. A great way to reward ourselves and enjoy the fruits of the work and investment we put into caring for the animals. They seemed to have a great time too!