Spring Creek Basin Mustangs

Nature. Life cycle. Whatever. It’s never a happy day when a 2-month-old filly disappears.

I couldn’t seem to function after that. I went sleepwalking back to the Jeep, then drove around to where Steeldust and the bachelors were grazing just off the road near Grey/Traveler and his band. Storm is growing so fast. Pinon is getting darker. Ember is such an old soul in her baby’s body. Iya has all but lost her sorrel shading and is very dark grey. I sat with them into the dark (it comes so quickly now) and took some comfort in their presence, their sounds: relaxed snorts, hooves on rocks, mama’s soft nicker.

I went to the basin this weekend with the head’s up that the pinto band and southern bachelor band were mixing things up. That was all the craziness I expected. Punch in the gut to later find out about Molly’s foal.

Bruiser is battered and on the outs. Saturday, he led me to the other horses far in the south, but Sunday, he was in that same area but alone. David stole the black yearling filly, Shadow, and they were right off the county road both days. Cinch, the darker pinto bachelor, was separate but close to the others Saturday. Copper (the muley red-bay bachelor) seems the closest to Kiowa, Chipeta, Reya and Spook, but Mesa (solid bay) and Corazon also are very close. It’s hard to tell who has taken the crown, so to speak. All the bachelors are heavily scarred.

Scars aside, the horses look great. Jif has gained weight and looks back to normal, if not a tiny bit chubbier (a petite mare if ever there was). They’re definitely drinking out of that full-again water hole just off the road back in the east. I stress that travelers should be careful traveling that loop road; the rain-caused erosion of some of those arroyo crossings has rendered them pretty tight. Actually, some big vehicle with wide tires and some kind of blade was in between Monday and Saturday and smoothed over some of the cuts and arroyos, including that wash just before you get to the herd area boundary. The tracks went up the road that splits off in the east (to Horse Park? Klondike Basin?), so the washout just past it is still, well, washed out. Not sure about the who/why on that road work, and I’m not sure about the long-term effectiveness of it.

I did see all the horses this weekend except the filly … but it wasn’t really the happy weekend I hoped for.

Met some other folks out in the basin Saturday. I have to say that when I saw their vehicle coming, I actually started to shake with flashbacks of the Brighton guy (and I met them before I realized Molly’s filly was gone), but they turned out to be super nice: a woman and her two daughters from Durango. From their descriptions, they had seen Poco, Bones and Roach, Seven’s band, Bounce’s band, Steeldust’s band and the Bachelor 7 before they got around to me, where I had just gotten back to the Jeep from taking some pix of Grey/Traveler and his family. They did everything right in their approach – slow and easy, and the horses looked but never budged. Excellent. They’re no strangers to the horses, either; they’ve been out to visit at least the past four years. They’re also fans of Claude Steelman! They have his book and a print of his beautiful photo “Traveler’s Return.” If you’re reading, very nice to meet you ladies.

If you’ve read this far, some photos. Try to keep the loss of Molly’s filly in perspective. I’m trying …

Shadow and David

The first ponies I saw Saturday from the county road just south of the county line (in Dolores County). Last August, David had escaped from the herd area and was on some private property. The contractors took down the fence to the herd area and, using the helicopter and Shorty the Judas horse, they got him to run through the gate of the private property, across the road and into the herd area. He was never gathered. He hooked up with some then all of the “southern” bachelor band, which I call the “southside boys.” Now he has the beginnings of a family, and they’re well away from the others – at least for now.

Spook

This is Kiowa’s 2008 filly, Spook. In the very southern end of the herd area is a little “valley” with a big arroyo that runs away from the road as a drainage. It makes a nice route into the interior of the wilderness study area as well as a nice little barrier to photograph the horses.

Now what?

The horses were going to or leaving water when I got down to the valley after following Bruiser down, so I didn’t stay too long. Cinch was separate from the band, but Bruiser kind of hooked up with him. Ty was just sort of following along. Copper seemed to be the one that could get closest to Kiowa and Spook, Reya and Chipeta. Corazon also was close, but Mesa seemed to be the enforcer keeping the others away. In the pic above: Chipeta and Copper under the tree; Corazon and Mesa in front; Kiowa and Spook in back.

Spook and Copper

Copper’s really the last one I would expect to take on “band stallion” status, given his subordinate attitude with the other bachelors. He’s not the clear leader, but only Mesa and Corazon were close to this close.

Grey/Traveler’s band was just off the loop road by the east hills when I got to the main part of the herd area later Saturday afternoon. They were very calm this time when they saw the Jeep. Good news.

Relaxed ponies

Twister, Grey/Traveler, Houdini and Jif. See how much more “rounded” Jif looks? Better than the bony look she came back with after going missing back in June.

Bright, shiny, happy boy

Grey/Traveler looking just downright beautiful – naturally!

Sissy, hide me!

Curious Iya is shy-girl. She pulled this same manuever also with Twister, but he doesn’t hide her as well because she’s almost as big as he is. Yearling Two Boots makes her stretch a little. These sisters are both Houdini’s daughters. Houdini was with the stallion Junior when she had Two Boots last year, so I’m pretty sure he’s Iya’s sire … but that doesn’t mean he’s Two Boots’ sire. Two Boots was born black, and Iya was born sorrel. You can’t really see her here, but she has just a little bit of red shading over her withers and back now; the rest is already dark grey!

Storm and Alpha

The sun had already set by the time I got back to Steeldust’s band from Seven’s when I found out Molly’s filly is gone. I didn’t take many pix – lack of light and lack of motivation – but here’s one of Storm and Mama Alpha. He’ll be 4 weeks old Monday.

Do horses mourn? Do they grieve? Do they miss something – a baby – when it’s no longer there? No answers from me.

Basin sunrise

This morning, Steeldust’s band, the bachelors and Bounce, Alegre and Gaia were up on the east-west hill south of the loop road. Beautiful light. Another day in the basin. Life goes on.