Our first “trail” ride!

Last night Shari came out to ride so I helped get the kids saddled up and off into the pasture. Ty has been busy with his gator now that I got him a new battery so I was free to do what I wanted. Well I wanted one more day on Cat so I saddled her up (ride #19). She was being good and the kids were getting a bit bored in the pasture (can you blame them) so I asked my dad if he would watch Ty so we could ride the “trail”.

The “trail” really isn’t a trail but it has always been a good starting point for young horses. It is the drive the farmers use to get back into their fields. Part of it is dirt, part of it is grass, there is a small creek crossing and there are a few trees. The downside is you have to ride down the road to gain access to the trail. I gathered the kids up, made the rules as clear as possible and we were off. Cat was in the lead with Sis following close behind and Black bringing up the rear.

When we got to the entry Cat was a bit nervous so I had Sis go first. Cat isn’t used to hearing the trees move in the wind since we have none in our pasture. She was fast paced but seemed to be taking things in well. I just continued to circle her to slow her down and pretty soon she was lagging behind bringing up the rear.

Shari was very nervous about crossing the creek. “I’ve never crossed a creek before” she told me. I reassured her and had Chase cross first stopping just shy of the other side to help prevent Cat from trying to jump the creek. I asked Cat to go in and she did but I could feel the tension underneath me so I backed her out. We did this around 3 or 4 times until she was all of the way in the creek and then we finally went all the way across issue free. Shari followed us across with a huge smile on her face.

Once we were past the creek we were in open fields. When we reached the top where we could see all around us I told the kids they were free to do whatever they wanted as long as they stayed in view. Chase and I decided to lope off. Shari tried to join but Black was content staying at a long trot.

The kids were very excited about all of the wildlife we saw while riding. We saw two ducks, two Canadian geese, a raccoon, and five deer. Cat was very curious about the geese as they were sitting in the field walking slowly away from us as we got closer.

As we headed back to the house Cat got a little bit slower and a little bit further behind. The giggles from the children were echoing through the open fields. It is very heartwarming to see them having so much fun together.

Cat walking in the open field

Here first water crossing

The kids headed back to the house