2400 miles, give or take

I didn’t have time to write up the rest of our trip, between driving all the miles solo, fitting some work in, obsessing over Tarma’s poop and trying to enjoy the sights as much as possible. I had three days between pulling back in at home and when I had to turn around and catch a flight to Amsterdam. I barely time enough to do laundry, get Tarma’s feet done, and drop her off at my trainers. We managed to pack in so much in that extra week or so, though I won’t lie there were tough parts with all the driving.

Thankfully aside from one traffic incident on the freeway in Salt Lake City (a glass truck lost it’s entire load of windows all over the road, that guy’s Monday sucked!) the hauling was mostly smooth. Oddly Nevada had the best roads-just hundreds of quiet, well maintained, almost empty roads (except for like, 50 of those giant coach busses going the opposite direction at one point, we passed them for almost an hour…we were in the middle of absolutely nowhere! Driver training maybe?) We made it to all of our destinations without getting lost or taking any detours, which might be a first for me. Getting lost with a horse trailer is no joke!

From the endurance ride camp we headed south and east, towards Las Vegas. I spent weeks trying to decide the best route across Nevada and into Utah. The northern most route took us too far out of the way considering diesel prices, the middle two routes are incredibly remote and isolated (including the extraterrestrial highway), not good places to be if something happened to the rig. I chose the southern route and overnighted at the Las Vegas Horse Hotel just south of The Strip. It was wild to me to be camping within sight of the Luxor’s light with a horse and a dog. The folks at the hotel were super accommodating and safe with a temperature check for Tarma before I could settle her in, and they had a lovely round pen for her to stretch her legs in and the stall was oversized. Everything was set up for ease of access, including water and my trailer power hookups. They even had a nice wash rack so I was able to hose Tarma and Benny down after the long haul, which she enjoyed for once. I was able to shower (one of the top 5 showers considering the 50 miler I did!)

We were back on the road fairly early, our destination this time Paria River Ranch in southern Utah. I tried to set my hauling distances at less than six hours a day per Google. I always add an hour or two extra for hauling calculations. The extra time allows for diesel stops and letting Tarma rest her legs every two to three hours or so, either by a longer stop or finding a place to let her off for a few minutes. This means a six hour day easily becomes an eight hour day for both of us, and I also wanted to stay sharp at the wheel. I think this careful planning and pacing is one reason why Tarma came through the entire trip so well. I also gave her small doses of Ulcerguard on travel days, not cheap but worth it I think.

The most interesting part of the haul from Nevada to Utah via a section of Arizona was driving through the flat desert towards a wall of mountains…wondering where the road was about to disappear to…then crawling up the tiny cut through the mountains the Virgin River made. I tucked myself behind a semi and took it easy on the truck for this climb.

We pulled into the ranch an hour later than I had figured as I forgot about the time zone change, but Tarma settled in right next to horses she knew from previous trips just fine. Everyone else went out for a sunset ride but we stayed behind, I wanted Tarma to get a bit more rest. Did she appreciate this? No, she demanded a walk so I took her out in hand to play around in a wash for a bit.

The next morning the group loaded up in various trailers (Tarma hopped right in someone else’s gooseneck) and we braved a long, dusty, washboarded road down to the entrance to Buckskin Gulch. I rode Tarma in the hackamore for this part of the trip, we weren’t doing any speed work and she had just done a 50 miler, I hoped she’d be more receptive to it. She was pretty good, though I’m sure we gave any real trainer or cowboy an aneurism watching us. The approach to Buckskin was a bit exposed and lacks any water, so I impressed the other folks by occasionally stopping to water Benny from the saddle. The views were immediately just…freaking amazing, and stayed that way the entire time. Things got a little adventurous in the slot canyon, one set of riders in this group wasn’t quite as gung ho for adventure as the rest of us so we ended up turning back at one point due to the risk of quicksand in the water. The horses did cross one tricky section, we’d gotten off to navigate the ankle eating rocks and I just sent Tarma after Moqui. I love watching her pick her way across rough ground, she’s so smart with her feet.

The horses got a rest the next day, so I headed into Kanab with Nikki. Benny and I strolled through a small market and a bookstore and grabbed a tasty burger and shake lunch while she met with a friend, the leader of the TLDAR group on FB. We headed back to the ranch, checked on the horses, then Nikki and I headed back out with Benny to explore a gravel road that went through a canyon and spit us out at Kodachrome State Park up near Bryce Canyon. We had a fun time, though the twists and turns and drops of that road almost betrayed us a time or two. We pulled over to check one trailhead and let Benny play in the creek. I had gone into the bushes for a bio break when I heard some rustling in the trees. I wiggled my pants back up in time to see a Texas Longhorn break loose from the cowboys gathering the herd…straight at me. Luckily he saw me and curved wide around, the cowboys in pursuit through the trees. At least I don’t have to add “taken out by a longhorn” to my resume!

My absolute highlight of the entire trip came the next day, when we again loaded up and heading out, this time a short trip over to the entrance of Paria River Canyon. This ride was much easier on Benny, we were along (or in) the river the entire time, and he had an absolute blast being permawet, running in and out of the water with joy. Tarma was strong and eager all day, always happy to explore “what’s just over there?”, nary a single argument or spook from her the entire time, my brave little mountain (and now desert and canyon!) mare. It was such a thrill to ride my own horse through these canyons and the wide washes, just exploring in a way we can’t always manage at home in the crowded woods.

Paria River Canyon was, if possible, even more stunning and breathtaking than Buckskin Gulch, especially the windows. Each bend of the canyon and crossing of the river brought even wilder and expansive views, the red rock surrounding us and widening into amphitheaters randomly. The river kept everything cool, and there was plenty of browse for the horses to snack on.

We were also able to explore a few other areas at this trailhead, including my favorite slot canyon and a rock feature called the Nautilus, which I ran up with Benny. Riding Tarma all the way to the end of Copper Canyon, a short little slot canyon adjacent to Paria, was the highlight of the whole trip. I hopped off and walked her forward, to where the canyon ended, and caught my favorite photo of the whole trip. She backed out of the tight space, neat as you please, and we eventually caught up to the group.  

I split up the haul home into three days, the first stint from the ranch to a vaulting stable just south of Salt Lake City. These folks were super nice but the overnight stalls were inside a clear span barn with giant metal doors, and there was a wild windstorm when we were arriving. There were no other horses in the barn and Tarma was worried here, so I mostly sat with her until the wind died. I don’t think she rested as well here, though she cleaned up her food and drank well despite that.

The next day was our longest haul of the trip, from Provo to Nampa, Idaho. That stop at Dunn Right Ranch was my favorite. The stalls were giant and covered, there were other horses she could see, and I was able to unhook and run into town for dinner. Tarma was much more comfortable here, though I didn’t leave her alone until the first post-trailer poop, which did take about an hour after arrival. I had a few tingles watching her when we first arrived, she would grab a bite and pace a little, either a bit restless after two days on the trailer or trying to stretch a bit…but I dug out some Gut paste from my first aid kit and gave her a half dose, just in case. She settled and started eating shortly after, so I think it helped.

We were all of us eager to get home at this point, though this was our longest trip day overall. I stopped every two hours, either to get diesel or just give Tarma a few minutes rest. I let her off at two separate rest areas for twenty minutes or so, so she could graze and really get her head down and not be bracing for a bit. It made for a longer day, especially as we were welcomed home by Portland weekday afternoon traffic (ugh) but I think it made it easier on her. We made it home early enough for her to go straight into the pasture and be welcomed back by her herd. I watched her roll and roll and pee and drink and buck at Cody, so I felt relaxed enough for the short drive to the house and another lovely shower…plus steak and potatoes for dinner courtesy of Tom!