Pawnee Buttes

Yesterday we went out to ride at the Pawnee Buttes, about an hour & a half east of us in the middle of nowhere. Our friends Carolyn & Ed went with us, and Ed was able to ride Cody, so it was nice to be able to take all three of our horses.

It was 70ish, warm, sunny, and not very windy at all. The area is known for being very windy, and very hot (summer) or very cold (winter), so this was PERFECT. It was very dry out there in the desert. Interesting place, with these buttes that pop up out of the flat plain.

Brego did great. I was a little nervous at times, as we had to go down into and up the other side of many little canyons, or "arroyos". I wish I had taken some photos of them, but we were a little busy hanging onto our horses. (I found some photos online which you can see HERE or THERE.) Going up and down these things, Tim was careful to lead us to a safe place, then slowly take Strider a few steps and stop, so the rest of our horses wouldn't be tempted to bolt through, either down or up these arroyos. At one point we rode right through these passages with walls on both sides of us, like we were in a maze. I was just worried we would get to a spot where there was no way out. A couple of times Tim went up a dead end, and we had to back the horses up a bit. Good thing I've practiced backing up between tight spaces! Brego did great. I honestly got a little tired of coming up to another arroyo after another, and began to feel, "Oh, no, not another one!", wishing it would be over. I think Carolyn agreed, but the guys were having a great time. We survived, and had a great day.

At one time Tim and I were off the horses, leading them to stretch our legs, when there was a particularly steep spot. I was trying to traverse this little ridge with very flaky rock that crumbled easily, leading Brego along. He didn't seem to like it any more than I did. I was slipping, he began to slip, and I had to let go. Brego slid down the bank on his feet backwards, but he was not freaked out and at the bottom he just stood there until Tim got down to get him before he got tangled in his reins.

I know the challenge is good for me, and I learned a lot, particularly that Brego is a reliable, confident horse. He did wonderfully with the challenges, even tight squeezy spots and steep inclines on crumbly rock.

On the way home we planned to stop in a little town, Ault, to eat at the "Bison Breath Saloon". When we got there it was closed, which was fine: it looked kind of dumpy. We came back to Wellington and ate at Beauregard's, which was delicious.