Tenaz (and the other bands) were well up on the north side of Spring Creek canyon – near the highest point that looks west out over lower Disappointment Valley from above the rimrocks that form Spring Creek Basin’s dramatic western boundary – when I hiked up to them the other evening.
Below Tenaz is the eastern end of the canyon and Spring Creek (there’s actually water down there from where water running underground hits bedrock and is forced up in a decent-distance running seep). Behind Tenaz is the north-facing south rim of the canyon (the main western entrance to Spring Creek Basin is on south a short distance). To my right – ahead of him – the top of the canyon slopes upward to where it abruptly ends at the sheer vertical rim of rock that forms the basin’s natural western boundary. In some places, it’s natural, and in others, there are fences to keep the mustangs within the basin’s borders.
We came up (they were already there when I entered the basin and saw them) from an “easier” slope that comes up directly from the Spring Creek arroyo to the leftish/behind Tenaz.
Handsome boy Tenaz with his ever-clean white socks! Love this scene with all that rimrock framing him.
I was trying to get even more dramatic pix of him, but he was grazing and not at all interested in my dreams and desires. Ha! He’s quite a guy. 🙂
Shows a few of his battle scars!
All stallions have them. 🙂
It always amazes me how they get around all the ups and downs of the basin. Mustang strong for sure!
I was puffing to get up there, for sure. They have a wide-open hill away from the cliff/rimrock edge, and grazing their way up it, it’s not bad at all. I will say that the breeze was very nice at that height! 🙂
Love this rough looking dude! He does go well with the rough landscape!
A land devoid of mustangs isn’t at all the same. 🙂