Yowza, Yowza, Yowza!

Wednesday night we had rain and thunderstorms. When I arose Thursday morning, it was grey and drizzling out; I couldn't even see the Flatirons because of the fog and mist. I hoped the day wouldn't stay that way. (It did, in Boulder.) But I'm writing this with a sunburned face and neck, and I got that burn yesterday afternoon, up at Allenspark, riding in the Roosevelt National Forest. Kathy picked me up at 9:40, and we drove to Longmont, stopping at Barbed Wire Books on Main Street. I got four books, while Kathy chose one. Then we drove over to Wally World, picked up some deli stuff for lunch and some cold water for the ride. We arrived in Allenspark at 12:20; and as we were climbing up the canyon (in the car, of course), we began to see a brighter and, finally, a blue sky.... We pulled up at Sombrero Ranch Stables and ate our lunch in the car. Then the fun began. I had decided to play the complete tourist, and left my boots at home. Kathy changed from her Crocs to her "Daisy Mae combat boots" and I just rode in my sneakers. We both wore riding helmets, although our wrangler, Kawena, and the two men, Ken and Austin (father and son from Ohio) rode in their straw or leather cowboy hats. Kathy wore her baseball cap under her helmet - I just wore the helmet, and therefore got the back of my neck and upper shoulders sunburned, as well as my nose, chin, and forehead. - I don't care. I had the time of my life.
Kathy tried to use my camera to take video of me mounting and riding off on Simon; but somehow nothing was filmed. (Of course, she kept muttering to herself, "Not that button, this button..." and there are no photos or video of me very easily climbing the stairs and stepping onto Simon's back.) I took photos of her mounting, and several as we were riding along, and/or giving the horses a breather after a steep slope. All of the landscape photos were taken while I was on the move - either at a walk or a jog, from Simon's back. We crossed several streams, and there were four or five seeps that spread water across the trails we rode. I'd guess that 45% of the time we rode on a pretty level surface; the rest of the time we were either climbing or descending. The small of my back was up to it, but half the time I took me feet out of the stirrups and just moved with Simon - leaning forward or back, and giving him his head on steep slopes. There was one section of trail that was right at the edge of a steep precipice, and I thought that if I fell off and started rolling, no one would ever see me or hear from me again.
In a way, the ride was odd because we didn't see much wildlife, and very few birds.... We saw one mule deer doe about 100 yards away; we saw a Western Tanager, a Stellar Jay, a red-tailed hawk being mobbed by four crows, and we heard a whole lot of hummingbirds and a couple of chickadees, but we never saw them. We didn't see any squirrels, marmots, chipmunks .... It was absolutely gorgeous, but kind of eerie without wildlife.
After we had ridden for four hours, we arrived back at the barn. I could easily get my right foot out of the stirrup, but it took me three tries to get my leg up and over the back of the saddle to dismount. We all laughed. Then Kathy couldn't get her boots out of her stirrups - and we laughed again. Finally, we were all dismounted, and we gave our horses an apple each - then Kathy and I had to drive back down to Boulder, to pick up Mike and Jim so we could meet Sarah at Applebee's for supper. I finally returned home a few minutes after 9 p.m. and was greeted by indignant kitties. I fed them and loved them, checked the news, read a book until 11, and went to bed.
This morning, when I walked Rosie and Remy, I was presented with a beautiful home-grown flower arrangement, a very funny card, and a fantastic gift certificate by Nancy, Joel, and Max. Then I received many compliments on the flowers (I stopped counting at 14) on my way home. It's been an exciting day-and-a-half. .... And who do I pick for the Belmont? If the track is fast and dry, I choose Animal Kingdom, Master Of Hounds and Prime Cut. If the track is wet and muddy, I choose Shackleford, Mucho Macho Man, and Santiva. Have a happy, happy weekend!