Luna | Spring Creek Basin Mustangs

Bachelor no more

13 12 2008

What that really means is the new girls have found a beau! David Glynn, who was out both Saturday and Sunday last weekend, emailed this week to say he saw the girls Sunday with “companions.” Wow! They got pushed down out of the hills by the cattle, and that’s how they came to mingle. I could tell you the name of this less famous “Bachelor” (he’ll never make it on the more famous show), but I’m going to mimic my own suspense and keep you waiting (or you could cheat and scroll all the way to the bottom).

A big snow storm (it’s supposed to last until about Thursday) is headed our way, but I wanted to get out to the ponies one last time before I head south for the winter holidays. Two weeks ago when I went out, the road was muddy enough that I parked at the corrals and hiked in – but while the ground was “soft,” it wasn’t really muddy. This time, the road was perfectly dry to drive in on, but the rest of the ground was slick, slippery, gooey … absolute mud. And snow was still in patches all over the place. The wild thing was that if you looked south, the landscape looked all white and wintry, but if you looked north, it looked the same golden brown as usual – the pattern of snowmelt.

Steeldust and his band were out southeast of the pond close to the entrance, so I parked just down the road to the old trap site and hiked out. I realized pretty soon that the quality of the basin road would deteriorate between the high ground just in from the entrance and the shady side of Filly Peak, so I decided to leave the Jeep and do another walkabout. Naturally, the bachelor-formerly-known-as … ha, thought you had me, eh? Anyway, the boy had the girls waaaaay out on the northeastish side of Round Top, and I had to wait that long to see them, so you’ll just have to wait.

In the meantime, I had a really great visit with the babies (particularly) in Steeldust’s band. Remember on my walkabout two weeks ago, muddy Ember was chasing everybody around? Turnabout’s only fair in play, and this time, it was Storm who was little Mr. Ornery.

Storm, Kestrel, Ember and Sundance

One of the funniest things about this picture is the fact that Kestrel and Sundance barely moved from these positions the whole time I was there, despite all the young energy swirling around them.

So worried

Ember was so concerned about me walking toward them that she actually laid down a few seconds after I took the the first pic.

World view

A wider view to show the background … Note the stealthy approach of a wee baby brother …

Play with me, please?

Zoomed back in – do you see that Storm has a leg over Ember’s neck?

Mmmm, ears taste good!

By this time, Ember may have been regretting her assault on Storm a couple of weeks ago … He chewed and chewed and chewed – her ears (both), her forelock, her face, her neck …

Enough!

Until she couldn’t stand it anymore! So much for taking a nap.

Hiding

But of course Storm wasn’t out of potential playmates. Just to the right, Luna was napping on her feet while Steeldust grazed (Mouse was even farther right) and Pinon tried to go unnoticed.

Wanna play?

Not having much luck with big sis, Storm tried his luck with big brother Pinon.

Tastes like colt

Notice Sundance there on the right.

Who, us?

Notice now that Pinon managed to get away from Storm and hid behind bigger brother Sundance, who became a protector without moving a step.

Leave me alone

But moments later, Storm was at him again.

Protect me!

Mama, Storm won’t leave me alone!

Intermission

Might as well take advantage.

Me, too

So Storm decided it was a good time to find HIS mama. But about a second after I took this shot, Butch walked up and parked himself right in front of them. Then Pinon became fair game again …

Sisters

Sweet girls, but notice the drama in the background.

Ember and Luna

Have I mentioned that the babies still all seem to be nursing?

Aww

Little sisters ARE good for something … like when you have an itchy face.

Mouse

Mouse seems to have given up on Piedra and slid into Hollywood’s position as Steeldust’s lieutenant. He has stayed with the band even while the other bachelors have split up recently. (And now you know it’s not Mouse who has the girls!)

Snow queen

Lovely Alpha is the color of snow.

Steeldusts band

Only Alpha and Mouse are missing from this “family portrait” of Steeldust’s band. (The wordpress program doesn’t like apostrophes in photo captions.)

Baby faces

Another zoomed in view of the youngsters – you can just see Pinon’s ears in the background.

Three of the bachelors were close, so I went to see them, thinking that Hollywood and his girls and the missing bachelors and possibly the new girls were just out of sight over the hill.

Still bachelors

Duke, Hook (back) and Chrome maintain their bachelor status. Points to you if you know the remaining three bachelors!

But Hollywood and the others weren’t over the hill or beyond the next ridge. In fact, from the top of a hill above Spring Creek, I could see a lot of country but no other horses. Because I had seen a lot of horses recently in the Flat Top-Round Top area, I decided to walk on out there to see what I could see.

I hit the road just before the first Spring Creek crossing and walked it all the way to the base of Round Top. It was really muddy, snowy, slightly less muddy and snowier in spots, and I think my trusty hiking shoes are toast (Santa, are you reading?).

I finally spotted a group of five horses between the road and Flat Top, but I thought I was looking for a group of nine horses, and Grey/Traveler and his band were in that area last week, and though the horses were darkish, I thought that could have been because of the weak light, mud and/or a horse out of sight below a ridge. I thought it would be too easy to find Hollywood – and the new mares – that quickly. So of course it was Hollywood, Piedra and Baylee … and two bachelors. Guess who?

They were far enough off the road, and I was far enough from a good view of the area around Round Top, and the mud was such a deterrent, that I decided not to go down and take pictures of them. Onward.

Bounce and Gaia came into view next – they were near the roller-coaster ridge pond. Dark Alegre was close by. For the same reasons as above – and one other – I decided not to go down to them, either.

That “other” reason is that I had spotted – through the binocs – the dun girls up in the trees on the east side of Round Top! Just call me a horse-findin’ fool.

By this point, I knew who had the girls because of the bachelor missing from Hollywood’s group (and you all peeked, I know you did!), but oddly enough, I never actually saw him until I got almost to them.

Pretty girls

These girls are smart. They already know me, so they weren’t worried at all when I came into view from the trail around the north side of Round Top. That makes me feel really good!

Fuzzy!

The apricot dun mare – look at her gorgeous winter coat! It was so still when I arrived in the basin that morning that I noticed it as soon as I stepped out of the Jeep. It’s always so windy out there, when it’s NOT, it’s a noticeable absence. You can HEAR the silence. But at almost 1:30 on the nose, the wind suddenly picked up out of the south-southwest. It was just above freezing when I arrived, and the Jeep showed 42 degrees when I got back, but I was plenty warm while walking. I spent enough time being still with the mares and their boy that I started to get cold, and I was envious of their thick coats!

Lovelies

Are you dying to know?! I know you all cheated and scrolled down, but drum roll, please ….

Who, me?

Kreach-a-licious!

Knock me over with a feather. Kreacher was low man on the Bachelor 7 totem pole, but he’s the only one I know of that actually had a band previously (Molly and Roja, with Seven now), so maybe that helped him. He is not what I call an outstanding stallion, and his personality is so laid back as to be prone on the ground, but I have become fond of him this past year. He did NOT act like a stallion when I showed up, but I’m unsure whether to attribute that to him knowing me and being comfortable with me, too, or being timid. The mares still interacted with each other (black mare still kind of poopy toward the apricot dun but not quite as much as before), but although they didn’t seem to mind Kreacher’s presence, they pretty much ignored him. (I’m sure they got a lot of the “get to know you” out of their systems in the past week together.) Another un-stallion-like behavior of his is that he stayed behind them almost the whole time; he never came up front to “protect” them. Again, because he knows me or something else? The only time he was closest to me was after they had passed me on their way up to the “saddle” and I crossed behind them back toward the trail and he just happened to be in back, and thus, closest.

Peace and hope to you and yours

I wish all of you a very merry Christmas and all the best in the coming year. I hope it’s as full of joy and wild beauty for you as the past year has been for me.

Grey/Traveler and his band showed up on the northwest side of Flat Top as I made my way back to the Jeep. Steeldust and his band and hangers-on had moved to the other side of Spring Creek, so I was glad I had my earlier visit with them. It was a very long walkabout (about 5.5 hours) and well worth every minute!

Amazing

The day was solidly cloudy … until the very last moments of sunset. As I was driving up the curvy-curvy road out of the Dolores River canyon, the above view stopped me in my tracks – literally. If you’ve been on that road, you know the view begs for a pullout (or five), but there aren’t really many good places to stop and get off the road. So don’t tell the authorities, but I pretty much just stopped in my lane and pointed the camera out the window.

Basin glow

Besides the (fading) glow, do you recognize what makes this view so significant? That’s the home of my ponies out there underneath that glowing sky. At the almost-very-far-right is that prominent, unnamed peak you can see from almost anywhere in the basin. Pretty beautiful, eh?

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Categories : Alpha, Bachelor 7, Grey, Hollywood, Kreacher, Luna, Mahogany, New girls, Pinon, Steeldust, Storm

The cattle are in

8 12 2008

Holiday teaser

Who wouldn’t think “Christmas card” when they saw this scene? Bones, Poco and Roach.

If we don’t get snow to stick on the ground before I need to get my Christmas greetings in the mail, you’ll see something similar to the above photo as my Christmas wish to all of you before the holidays! (Of course, as I type this post, it’s snowing like crazy – and it’s sticking.)

The biggest change to the basin this weekend is that our bovine winter visitors are back in town (so to speak). The cows are in from Dec. 1 until the end of February.

Moo

This photo was taken near the first crossing of Spring Creek and is looking to the north-northwest. I saw other groups up in the north hills (where I did NOT see the new mares this past weekend), and there was a group east of the finger hills.

Several groups were in the area of Flat Top and Round Top again. Bounce and his lovely ladies were on the north side of the roller-coaster ridge. Grey/Traveler and his band were between the loop road and Flat Top. Seven and his girls were up at the base of Flat Top. Hollywood and his girls and a few of the bachelors were closer to Round Top, but I couldn’t see any of the main family band. I saw for sure later that they had separated – Steeldust and his band were up at the yucky puddle between the Tops, but I didn’t see them the first time I saw the other horses. Through the binocs, I thought I saw Shadow or David between the Tops … but I can’t confirm. Saw a lone dark horse to the east past Round Top that I finally identified as Poco, but Bones and Roach didn’t come into view until I hiked out to them. I lost a green Camelbak bottle last winter while I was hiking out there in the snow (remember when Seven had Houdini, Two Boots and Twister?), and the threesome was in that general area where I thought I lost it, so I decided to hike out to see them. (I never need much of an excuse to go visit those ponies!)

Have you ever wondered if Bones could lie down – even roll – with her healed, fractured pelvis? I have, and I was wondering that again just recently. Would you believe she cooperated and showed me she absolutely can?

Rolling Bones

Too bad I couldn’t divine the future from the way the “Bones” settled … 🙂 One reason I like Bones so much is her pluck. She looked so skinny last year, I named her thinking she wouldn’t make it through the winter. Not only did she survive, she has flourished!

The eagle and the raven

I call the ravens Heckle and Jekyll indiscriminately. They heckle me; I try to get them to help me find horses. None of us is very cooperative (!). While I was photographing P, B & R, a golden eagle soared low down an arroyo close by, then rose into the air in ever-ascending spirals. I guess I feel better that I’m not the only subject of Heckle’s heckling. There was one raven at first, then two. They were pretty far above me, and this photo is significantly cropped, but can you see how the eagle is looking at the raven? When you’re a human object of Heckle’s affection, there’s not much you can do. When you’re an eagle, you just fly away. By the time s/he flew away, four or five other ravens had joined the “game.”

What a view

The horses aren’t always in position for me to get shots of them with the mountains in the background, but most of them were cooperating Saturday for me to get a bunch of different potential Christmas card scenes. That’s Comanche, who was turning to lead Hollywood and his girls down the trail. It was at this point that I realized Steeldust’s band really wasn’t in the immediate neighborhood.

Walking the line

Comanche leads Aspen, Baylee, Piedra and Hollywood down a trail to an arroyo. When they got to the arroyo, they dropped out of sight for a little while … I’m not sure if they got water there? You can see in this photo how much Piedra resembles Comanche in color.

Grey boys

Chrome, Kreacher and Hook (and Duke) were about a minute behind Hollywood’s group on the same trail. If you’re wondering about bachelor Mouse, who has been after Piedra most of the year, he was the only bachelor still with the family band. That’s Knife Edge in the background.

El Duque

Big bay boy Duke stopped to say hi as his boys followed after Hollywood and Co. He has come a long way. He used to be pretty intolerant of people (me); now he almost seems to like me and will stop for prolonged (moments) visits.

Shades of grey

Grey/Traveler and his band were across an arroyo that emptied into the arroyo the boys (and Baylee and Piedra) went into – and I could see them ahead of us – so I trailed along with the ponies, down close to the arroyo, until I got to the silver boy and his family (remember when HE was one of the bachelors?).

Lunch

Big, growing girls need plenty of chow! I keep thinking about telling the tour folks back in October that I hadn’t seen any of last year’s foals still nursing last fall. I’ve still seen several of the babies nursing this fall … and not just youngest baby Storm. I like the picture above particularly because it also shows Two Boots, Houdini’s yearling filly.

Another spectacular view

And you know I’m not just talking about the landscape scenery!

Bosom buddies

Twister is another horse with a good dose of pluck. He was an orphan in the care of two stallions (Corazon and Cinch) when I first saw him last fall. Then he found mama Houdini and Two Boots and joined the family. That’s back when Seven was the head of the family. I wish he could stay young forever so he’d always have the comfort of his adopted family, but in another year or two, Grey will likely kick him out on his own. Maybe Two Boots will go with him. They’re pretty good pals.

Watching over baby

Jif and Iya. Most of the band napped while I sat on the ground; Houdini grazed most of the time, but then she came back and stood a little in front of Iya, just to the right out of the picture.

Mama

A different angle. Wise old girl Houdini has had her share of babies. Twister, in the background with Two Boots, is just one of her brood.

Itchy

I like how the plane of his face matches the line of Iya’s neck and body.

I had been keeping an eye on Seven, Molly and Roja up at the base of Flat Top while I hung out with Grey/Traveler, and that’s when I had seen Steeldust and his band up at the puddle. Eventually, they moved down, past Seven’s, toward Traveler’s and toward the bachelor boys and Hollywood’s. I walked up toward them on another trail and got into position so I could photograph them against the mountains, but they were on a mission to reunite with their boys, I guess, and they never stopped walking, grazing as they went. Consequently, I didn’t get many pix with their heads up!

Muddy boy Butch

Still muddy! Ooey gooey!

Sundance, clean

Sunny-boy was as muddy as Butch last weekend. He must have had a few good rolls since then.

Muddy Mouse

Mouse was the only bachelor still with the band. It looks like he waded into the water hole – look how deep it must be! He has mud all the way up to his belly, but it doesn’t look like he rolled in it. The “puddle” is pretty small. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned its dimensions, but I’d say it’s about 3 to 4 feet in diameter – tiny!

Pretty buckskin girls

Remember how muddy Kestrel was last weekend? She cleans up nice, eh?

Alpha and Storm

Lovelies.

Guardian

Kinda wild that I didn’t see Seven for almost two months, and now I’ve seen them the past three weekends – and all in the same area! And yes, I had been looking there all that time and never saw them. I do like seeing them.

Top of the hill

Seven and Roja on a short ridge at the base of Flat Top. Roja is ornery! When Steeldust’s horses came past them on the old road, I could see Roja trot out to meet them – kind of like a stallion will do. Seven stayed back on a little rise, and Steeldust’s horses seemed to be on a mission like I mentioned above, so they just ignored her; they never stopped moving until they got just a little past me and within view of the bachelors and Hollywood. Roja is a tough girl and fun to watch!

End of day

Here they’re on the shady eastern side of Flat Top, late afternoon. This pic doesn’t translate very well on the Web, but in the full version, I like the almost painterly quality of the light. Old Molly got the PZP last August before she was released, so she shouldn’t have a foal next year (her 2008 filly died sometime in August). She and Roja were with Kreacher last fall when I first saw them (remember that?); neither Roja nor Kreacher were gathered, and Roja didn’t have a foal. I expect Roja to have her first baby in the spring, and because Seven stole her and Molly from Kreacher in early March, I’m sure Seven’s the daddy.

After my visit with these guys, I headed back to the Jeep and on out to beat the dark home (not successful). I looked but didn’t see Bounce, Alegre and Gaia on my way out, and I scanned the north hills the whole time I was out for the new girls, but I never spotted them. I don’t know if they know about cows, but I wonder if the “tourists” will encourage them to come down from their hilly stronghold and meet some new friends.

What a gorgeous day! Chilly but gorgeous sunshine and great weather for hiking around and visiting with the ponies. The days are short, and I keep thinking about the past year, all that I’ve learned and experienced. I certainly don’t lack for peace, hope and joy this holiday season! It’s supposed to snow again next weekend, but I’m going to try to get out there because I’m taking a two-week holiday to visit my folks and home ponies, which will mean at least a three-week hiatus from the basin. That’s the most time (by far) I’ve spent away from the horses since February, but given the potential weather in December in Colorado, it’s probably the best time to plan to be away.

I’m tossing around the idea of asking you, blog readers, for suggestions to name the new girls. What do you think? Can’t keep calling them “the new girls” forever, and I want people to really know these horses as OURS. So if you have suggestions, leave a comment, and be sure to specify a name or names for each particular mare: the dun, the black pinto or the apricot dun.

Thanks for coming along on this journey of discovery and joy. As much as I’ve enjoyed sharing part of the horses’ lives, I’ve enjoyed sharing what I’ve learned with you. It’s not over by any means!

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Categories : Alpha, Bachelor 7, Bones, Grey, Hollywood, Houdini, Jif, Kreacher, Luna, Poco, Roach, Roja, Seven, Steeldust, Storm

And on the seventh day …

26 11 2008

Seven and his girls

Look who decided to make an appearance: Seven, left, Molly and Roja. They were at the yucky little water hole between Flat Top and Round Top on Saturday with Bruiser and Cinch. Molly is showing her age, but she looks pretty good. Roja is downright fat! Seven is handsome as ever. That light patch on Molly’s hip is just dried mud, in case you were wondering, like I was.

I walked out to them on the trail that goes around the west side of Round Top and connects to the trail that runs along the ridge sort of south of Flat Top down to the water hole that has been dry since April. Right along that ridge trail is where Bruiser and Cinch were grazing. Seven saw me for quite a while as I was hiking, but the spotted boys were oblivious until I was fairly close.

Wide open invisible

This is Cinch, with Seven in the background. I was standing in the middle of the trail here, in full view of Seven, and I had expected Cinch and Bruiser to spot me much earlier than this. In fact, although you can see Cinch’s eye here, he still hasn’t noticed me.

Hello!

Cinch pretends to finally notice Seven.

And hello!

Now they see me. Bruiser on the left.

Boys

A wider shot showing Seven in the background.

Molly and Roja

See how fat is Roja? She’s the sorrel mare walking away. The white stuff is the salty stuff around the little water puddle. And that’s Molly looking at me.

Mr. Handsome

Seven was not very happy about the proximity of the pinto stallions, but they insisted on sticking around.

Bruiser and Seven

Older and recent band stallion Bruiser seemed to recognize Seven’s dominance, and neither he nor Cinch put up much “fight.”

Arabian knight?

“How cool am I?” Seven seems to ask here. Isn’t he beautiful?

El Victorio

Very satisfied with himself.

Seven

I have definitely missed seeing this boy.

Molly, Seven and Roja

This was taken near the road to Round Top looking sort of northish, maybe slightly northeastish.

Boys with spots

One more of Cinch, left, and Bruiser. What if Bruiser is Cinch’s sire? Similar faces, eh? But check out those little curvy hooks at the tips of Cinch’s ears! Cute!

Quiet time

Steeldust’s band was right along the base of the roller-coaster ridge, just a little southeast of the pond. They were fairly spread out. Mouse was close to the family band (seen above minus Kestrel, Steeldust and Mahogany and Pinon), Aspen, Comanche and Duke were hanging out with Hollywood, Piedra and Baylee, and the breakaway boys – Chrome, Kreacher and Hook – were even farther south. In the photo above, from left, Storm, Alpha, Ember and Luna, Butch (hard to see) and Sundance. You may not be able to see it in this small photo, but Ember is totally eyeing me even while having her snack.

Luna and Kestrel

Luna and her yearling filly, Kestrel. Even though yearling filly Baylee (Mahogany’s daughter) decided to join Hollywood’s little band with Piedra (who might be her big sister), Kestrel is still with the big family.

Luna and her babies

Luna and her youngest babies, Ember and Kestrel. And a bonus background. Can you guess? That’s Filly Peak way off yonder to the west.

Steeldust

Family man Steely Dan walking toward Luna (and Ember and Kestrel) with the beautiful La Sal Mountains in the background.

Pinon and Mahogany

I think young Mr. Pinon is growing up to be such a handsome young man!

Alpha, Storm and Sundance

Storm looks slightly disembodied here, but he’s still lying down as in that first photo of the group.

Little prince

A closer look …

Soooo sleepy

Check out his wispy little “Trojan horse” mane!

Napping

Daddy Steeldust was taking advantage of the warm sunshine, too. Flat Top in the background.

Boo-boo

Hollywood and Mouse got into a little play fight last Sunday while we watched them near the end of the day. Although none of us thought they were being at all serious, Hollywood came away with a cut on his lip, and Mouse has an apple-size swelling on his neck.

Hearts

Say it with me now: Awwwww. I love how their faces seem to mimic the shape of a heart. Piedra, left, and Hollywood.

Alegre and Gaia

These last photos were actually taken at the very end of the day Friday (all the other pictures on this post were taken Saturday). Bounce and his girls were down on the other, north, side of the roller-coaster ridge.

Bounce m'boy

Such a handsome boy! That’s McKenna Peak (thanks, Kathe and Bob) in the background, namesake of the McKenna Peak Wilderness Study Area.

Only beautiful

I love this boy, Bounce. And I love his look here.

Can you have too many beautiful weekends in the wild? As I’m writing this, it’s the day before Thanksgiving. I could never take the horses, their beauty and grace, for granted. My heartfelt thanks to them for what they teach me every time I’m with them.

I do still have some photos from Sunday to tweak and post, including more of Seven and his girls, and some from a lovely visit with the new girls. Over the course of the weekend, I saw all the horses but David and Shadow! (So now who’s the object of the wild horse chase, eh?) Thanks also to you readers who have come along in this journey of getting to know our Spring Creek Basin horses.

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Categories : Alegre, Alpha, Bounce, Bruiser, Cinch, Hollywood, Luna, Mahogany, Molly, Pinon, Seven, Steeldust, Storm

Wild magic

16 09 2008

Some days I go to the basin and enter this sort of magic bubble. (OK, a lot of days that happens.) Part of the magic is that I KNOW it’s magic as I’m experiencing it. Sometimes, I can come right home and go through photos and post them to share the horses with all of you … sometimes, it’s an experience I just want to keep all to myself.

On the surface, there was nothing particularly special about Sunday. It was sunny, with a light breeze; hardly a cloud in the sky. But the light was enveloping rather than harsh, even in the middle of the day. At one point, I sat on a rock, Grey and Two Boots and Jif peaceful right in front of me, and I just marveled at the bliss of it all. I’m still overwhelmed by it.

What a year this has been, and it’s far from over. Blessed am I to be able to feel that wild magic on a regular basis. How can I possibly bring to the horses what they bring to me? Maybe a little protection … maybe sharing their stories helps. If you can spend time with wild horses, whether in Spring Creek Basin or elsewhere, do it. You will never forget their special magic.

New family

What to call this new family? Copper’s band, which he stole from pinto stallion Bruiser, includes Kiowa, Reya, Spook and Chipeta … and his bachelor pals Corazon, Ty and Mesa. Copper does seem to be still in charge. I hiked in from the road without seeing them and found them where they were a couple of weeks ago. Copper is a little ribby but looks otherwise fine. The mares don’t seem too impressed with him …

Spook, Kiowa and Copper

What a mudball! But just on this side. The only ones NOT covered in mud were Spook and the bachelors, Corazon, Ty and Mesa. Yearling filly Reya was so covered in mud she looked grey.

Can't be bothered

Chipeta, in particular, didn’t hustle to obey her new stallion. Copper was trying to snake her back to the band, to the left, but her attitude here clearly shows her indifference. She stood there, even as he walked right up to her with his nose practically on the ground; she snoozed; she looked at me; she wiggled her ears at him. …

If you insist

Finally she decided to go back to the band. I doubt Copper is a whole lot older than she is.

I didn’t see Bruiser and Cinch; I hope they’re still together. Neither did I see David and Shadow.

Right after I drove in the main entrance to the basin, I found filmmaker James Kleinert and a friend saying their good-byes after a weekend camping trip. James told me Grey/Traveler and his band were out in the open near the water catchment. After most of the day looking for them last Sunday, this past Sunday, they were waiting to welcome me!

They were just at the southeast corner of Filly Peak. Most of the band were just west of the road, but baby Iya was on the other side of the road, rubbing and chewing on one of the uranium claim stakes (you go, girl!). I stopped and walked up to almost the base of the butte, where I found the perfect rock to sit on. There I sat and watched and happily composed photos while they (Grey and Two Boots at first, then Jif) wandered quite close, grazing all the while.

Iya at lunch time

Iya finally abandoned the stake for a snack.

Grazing

Water was close by (the road and water catchment are down to the left), and they had good grass there.

Scratching post, err, rock

Iya investigated this big boulder and decided it was most perfectly suited for heiny itches.

Peek-a-boo

Big sister Two Boots also investigated this big boulder and decided it was best suited for a game of hide-n-seek.

Beautiful from any angle

You wouldn’t know unless I told you, but this is one shot in a short series where he looks normal; in most of the others, he was chewing, which gave him a pretty funny expression. He looks up so briefly, it’s hard to catch him at it.

Watchful

I had been sitting with them about 15 to 20 minutes when this truck appeared on the road. Two Boots saw it first and turned around to watch. Grey/Traveler walked down to her, and Houdini, Iya and Twister walked away from the road a short distance toward them (they’re to the right). I was worried they’d bolt away, but the guy drove slowly, and I talked to them, and after the truck passed, they went back to grazing. Jif had come around the boulder toward me while grazing, then looked up at me, then walked down and around Grey and Two Boots where they had turned back toward me, then looked at me again, then went back to grazing. Funny girl. She has filled out and looks pretty good. After another 15 minutes or so, Grey started grazing back down toward Houdini. TwoB and Jif followed him, and when they had gone back past the big boulder, I got up and went back down to the Jeep. Wow.

Luna and Mahogany

Two great broads for wildness.

I found Steeldust’s band around the loop in the east, right off the road, napping in the end-of-day sunlight. Mouse (eternally yearning for Piedra) and his buddies Comanche and Aspen were with the band, but Duke and Hook, Kreacher and Chrome were off on some adventure of their own.

Sleepy time

Comanche and Aspen napping near the band.

More sleepy boys

The little dark butt Butch is rubbing on is Pinon’s. He wandered over to take a nap with his big buddies and his daddy.

Big softie

Don’t let the tough-guy act fool ya. Steely Dan is a sweetheart! I imagine Butch is one of his sons, 2 or 3 years old, and I’ve been waiting to see if he was going to kick him and Sundance out of the band. Maybe with the other bachelor boys hanging around, those two youngsters will enjoy the family a little longer. You can see Kestrel at back left and Ember’s face.

Boys 'n' babies

From left, Steeldust, Mouse in the background, Butch, Sundance, Pinon and Ember (the only girl in the pic!).

Pinon, Storm and Alpha

Here’s Alpha looking after the boys. I keep marveling at how gracious she has been, allowing me such access to her baby. Not only does she graze (with her head down, not always watching me), like she moved off to do right after I took this photo, but she doesn’t seem to worry about keeping Storm right with her. Thank you, my beautiful girl!

Little man

Our baby Storm is growing like the proverbial weed!

Queen of the hill

When everybody woke up, they walked down into an arroyo and up the hill on the other side. Sisters Kestrel and Ember liked this little outcropping.

Storm on the ridge

I didn’t even realize I had this photo until I was going through them on the computer. Although it looks like I’m right next to him, I’m down the hill and across the arroyo. Power of the (long) lens.

They wandered up the side of the hill onto the top, and I bid them farewell and went back to check on Grey’s band. James had said he got some fantastic footage of the horses the previous night with the moon coming up behind them. Wow?!! So I thought I’d hang around a little and see if I could get that lucky.

Curious girl!

Iya is one curious baby! She likes to check everything out, including the water tank by the water catchment. She walked all the way around it, sniffing and licking the edges and checking out the water.

Jif

I don’t think you can see it in this small photo, but she was looking in the direction of the setting sun, and she had a little sparkle in her eye. Does she look serene or what? She may be sporting the world’s longest dreadlock there.

Basin moonrise

Sometimes you just have to let the magic speak for itself.

Comments : 5 Comments »

Categories : Alpha, Corazon, Grey, Houdini, Jif, Luna, Mahogany, Pinon, Steeldust, Storm

Calm after the storm

3 08 2008

OK, it’s a little punny, but it’s true. I went back out to the basin Saturday afternoon. I had an assignment for the paper Saturday morning up at the Calico Trail above Rico, which is kinda, sorta, semi-in the same general vague vicinity as the basin. I did not see the clueless man, and I saw only Bounce, Alegre and Gaia, and Steeldust’s band and the Bachelor 7 *minus* Chrome and Hook (I can’t even confirm that they were or were not with the band Friday because I never got close enough to see the whole group). Those two have been wandering off by themselves lately, though, so I’m not too worried about them.

The good news is that Alegre, Gaia and Bounce were up in the trees on the hill past (eastish) the road that goes off to Klondike Basin and seemed very calm, and Steeldust’s band also was relaxed. Still, I was very careful with them and parked a long way away and walked off the road and out around them (they were just at the curve where the road goes from almost straight east to almost straight south). I had thought Alpha’s tolerance of me last week after she had her baby might have been a fluke, and I was worried that after Friday’s mess, the band wouldn’t want any part of a two-legged, but she barely looked up from grazing.

Before emotion strikes and I can’t write about it, I want to say again how awesome is the gift the horses have given me, of their grace and spirit and tolerance. I was so worried about them, but they allowed me back into their world as if I’d been there all along.

And something a little funny/endearing: They are the coolest cats when it comes to “circling the wagons” around the babies. Go ahead and try to get pictures of the babies without a head, a butt, a swishing tail, legs. They’re the most strategic of generals. No matter where you are, or where a baby is, there will be a horse (or two or four) – oh-so-casually – between you and the foal. And even the bachelors help close ranks when need arises. When Storm laid down for a nap, I tried my through-the-legs tactic, but the grass up there is so high, the picture looks like a lot of legs – and a tiny little baby face, just his eyes and ears.

Storm through legs

Kestrel is closest; Butch, Luna and Alpha also are in the frame.

Scratchies

See what I mean? Here’s Hollywood, standing between me and Ember and Pinon. I’d take a step to the right, he’d take a step forward. And look how calm he is … “just here grazing along …” Pretty cool.

Itchies

Kestrel, at right, getting ready to block my view (they learn it young!) and Mouse at left.

Disagreement

Hollywood patiently explaining to Mouse that no, he still can’t have Piedra (background). The compression factor of the 400mm lens makes Piedra look closer than she was. They didn’t get very animated, but just a few seconds after I took this, Hollywood walked off, and Mouse lunged at poor Comanche, who was minding his own business but close enough – and subordinate enough – for Mouse to vent on!

Hungry boy

Luna ready to step in if needed.

Bounce, Gaia and Alegre

I wanted desperately to find Grey/Traveler, but ugly storm clouds were brewing over the east ridge, and I didn’t want to spend too much time with the horses on the heels of Friday’s incident, so I headed out. I had seen shadow-black Bounce and a flick of Alegre’s tail up in the trees when I first passed, but they were in the open when I went back past them. Took a couple shots over the hood of the Jeep and drove on.

As it turned out, I don’t think it rained a drop. However, on the moisture front, I have some cool news to report: The little water hole just off the road back in that area is full of water again! It makes me wonder if the pond that dried up most recently off the double track at east park has any water in it. The grass actually looks pretty decent there in the east, and I guess the horses think so, too, because that’s where most of them were (I think Seven’s and Grey’s and probably Poco’s were just farther to the south). Also, the spring area has water in the low “creekbed” behind the old “dam,” and it trickles over the spillway, but right there it just goes into the ground (the standing water is pretty smelly, but the tracks are fresh). There’s no water from that point on. There’s also still a tiny trickle coming out of the seep between the intersections. And, back near the entrance to the herd area, the pond off the road to the trap site also has a little water in it.

I was really glad to see those “renewed” water sources. Even though there is grass (clumps but definitely grass) in the east, for the first time this weekend, I noticed how parched and crispy the basin looks. And did I mention how hot it was? Friday, the Jeep showed 100 degrees, and that was under a huge cloud. Saturday felt much hotter, but the gauge refused to rise above 99. Ha. It must be too hot even for most of the bugs. The gnats are gone but a few flies remain. The ponies constantly swish, and the babies are always itching and scratching – and Ember and Pinon look kind of ragged (I don’t know whether that’s because of bug bites or shedding or what). I put pix of Storm and Molly’s filly on the “Find a (Wild) Horse” page and was looking back at the baby pix of Ember and Pinon and Iya – they look so little! They do grow up fast.

By Saturday early evening as I was leaving the basin, I realized the beautiful, wild magic had kicked in again, and even though I hadn’t seen my beautiful boy, Grey (Traveler), my spirits were boosted. Billie, who keeps a blog on the Little Book Cliffs horses (see blogroll), reminds me that visits to the ranges are “musts,” a natural tonic to what ails us in the unnatural world. Amen!

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Categories : Alpha, Bounce, Hollywood, Luna, Pinon, Steeldust, Storm

Finally … still waiting … huh?

21 06 2008

Where to start?

Look who finally decided to make an appearance!

Duke saw me; I saw Duke. I think we surprised each other. Just to the left (his right) is the little entrance to Wildcat Spring off the main loop road. He shied at something I couldn’t see, and although I didn’t think too much about it at the time, it may prove significant …

$Grey\'s band$

This photo of Grey/Traveler’s band is similar to one I had on the previous post. Who’s missing? The significant part is that Jif is NOT just off to the side like she was outside the frame of the previous pic. She wasn’t anywhere. This is the “huh?” part of this post’s title.

Almost all the northern bands were clustered right in the same area, just north of the little water hole off the doubletrack (I’m afraid it’s going to be dry in another week or two). The only band missing was Seven’s, and I thought Jif might have been with them (however unlikely). They were farther to the south – no Jif. So then I started wondering if she’s with Duke – what he shied at. I saw him before I saw any of the other horses (except the pinto family, from the county road, on my drive to the basin), and I wasn’t looking for any other horse(s) with him. I really, really, really hope she’s with him because I don’t really like the alternative. It’s like a flashback to Slate’s disappearance.

And the “still waiting” comes to rest, of course, right squarely on Alpha’s (still-) round belly. She looks completely serene and calm (how many babies has she had??) … but no baby yet.

$Grey\'s band with bachelors nearby$

Grey/Traveler’s band in the background with some of the Bachelor 6 nearby. Left to right, the bachelors are (in order of heads): Hook, Chrome, Aspen, Kreacher. They’re not *quite* as close as they look because of the compression caused by the telephoto lens, but they’re pretty close. It was like being in the Pryors with all the bands so close.

$Mouse and Steeldust\'s band$

This is just to the right of the previous photo: Mouse and Steeldust’s band. Mouse and Comanche – and sometimes bold Kreacher – are hanging out fairly close to the band. These pix were taken right from the road, and they were all just napping. It was hot (mid-90s) and windy, and the gnats are ferocious.

Bounce, Alegre and Gaia. Look how big she’s getting! I didn’t realize I’d caught Gaia and Bounce in the same stride until I saw the photos on the computer. I don’t know whether Bounce is Gaia’s sire or not. He was gathered with Slate, but Alegre was not gathered.

Hollywood is a fierce protector of his adopted family, even though he’s not the band stallion. But that evening, when the band went to water, he drank right beside Mouse and Comanche – although he *was* between them and the band!

Later in the day, here he’s watching over Baylee while she took a little snooze.

Finally got a good look at Molly’s foal – I think she’s another filly. She’s sorrel like Roja, and not a white marking on her – like Roja. If I’m right about the resemblance between Molly and Roja, Roja is baby’s big sister.

Seven, later in the day, as they were headed to water.

Pinon and Ember were playing together late in the day and stopped to scratch each other’s backs. The sun was just barely gone from a far ridge. That’s daddy Steeldust at left.

These are my favorite two photos of the whole day:

Pinon, left, and Ember, wild, wild babies. I love how the light just cradles them in its glow.

That’s Hollywood at left, guarding the babies. The only thing I did to these last photos was “unsharp mask” and a little cropping. That’s just how they came out of the camera.

At the risk of being totally mushy, I have to say again that each time I’m able to enter the basin and share the horses’ world is a blessing unmatched. Their world goes on with or without me, and as wild and beautiful as they are, for them to allow me to sit back and observe them and take photos of them is just crazy cool. I’m grateful to them. This day was really the first time in a long time I saw them just hang out in the same place without being constantly on the move with the bachelors following.

Looking for Jif, I went up on the tall mesa just north (northeast?) of Knife Ridge so I could look down on the whole area the horses have been frequenting recently. I didn’t see her, but they were still there, snoozing in the sunshine, seemingly not nearly as bothered by the gnats as I was.

I wonder sometimes how they see their world, about all the trails and good grazing and drinking spots they hold in their memories. The foals are starting to nibble on things, following their mothers’ examples. (Luna, by the way, is fat. I’m sorry, girl, but there’s just no other word! Ember was 2 months old Thursday, and Luna is just as broad as Alpha.) That evening, I saw them go to the water hole, and I circled around the bachelors to see what they did. Mahogany led the way, but Luna drank first, followed by Alpha, then Mahogany, then the rest of the band. Mouse and Comanche weren’t shy; they stepped right up to the water and drank, so Hollywood joined them – like they were pals. Was he careful to drink between them and the band, or was that pure coincidence? Ha. Doubt it.

Two last photos:

One of my favorite-ever photos of Alpha, taken just near sunset.

And this one: Chrome, Aspen and Hook, running through the June sunshine just before sunset. Happy boys.

Comments : 3 Comments »

Categories : Alpha, Bachelor 7, Bounce, Grey, Hollywood, Luna, Molly, pintos, Seven, Steeldust

Back in the basin

18 06 2008

Yep.

Nope.

And no sign of Duke.

Ms. Molly had her foal between June 3 and June 7. David Glynn, who visits the herd area frequently, provided news about the new foal while I was on vacation. He also emailed that he saw Duke this past weekend, not limping, and that he was interacting with some of the bands. Good news.

Molly is thinner than the other mares, but given her estimated age (older than 20!), that’s to be expected. This might be her last foal; she was gathered and released, and she got the immunocontraceptive. In her case, I think it might be beneficial for her overall health. I didn’t get very close to her, but her foal is a sorrel with the “muley” coloring around its muzzle. No telling yet if it’s a colt or a filly.

Alpha might be going for a world record gestation … or I have another theory. Last April, she was with Grey/Traveler, but she was gathered with a stallion I called Junior. She has always been one of the last to foal, and although I didn’t follow her (or the other horses) as closely in the past as I do now, I didn’t think it was quite this late when she foaled previously. So, what if, between Grey and Junior, she missed her heat and was bred a month “late”? She looks like she’s bagging up, so I hope she’s close.

The “other” bachelor group was down in the southwestern part of the herd area when I saw them, right from the county road. This photo shows all the boys but Ty, who was a short distance to the left. Here, from left: Cinch, Corazon, David, Copper and Mesa. I stopped and took pictures from over the roof of the Jeep until they “hid” behind some juniper trees. I moved down the fence until they moved into the open. They ran back and forth some as their wariness vied with their natural curiosity.

David (bay with the blaze), Mesa (solid bay) and Cinch.

Copper, Corazon and Mesa. Copper is a slight muley bay with left front and hind pasterns; his mane falls mostly on the right side of his neck. Mesa is solid bay; his mane falls on the left side of his neck.

Copper and Ty (black). Such sweet boys.

With such a fortunate encounter for my first sighting of the horses since my return from vacation, I knew it was going to be a great day. I used four memory cards (of various storage) and *saved* almost 800 photos (I probably culled at least that many). I don’t know why I took so many pictures this particular day, but a friend suggested that maybe it was because I really missed the horses. 🙂 She might be right.

The northern bands were all up in the northeastern part of the basin again … which is really, truly the eastern part. I tend to think of it as northeastern because it’s “in the back” as far as the loop road goes, and tucked under the natural boundary hills. But I looked at a map recently (who needs a map when you know where you’re going?), and realized it’s pretty well centrally east. In this photo, Alegre and Gaia are in the foreground, and Molly, her foal, Roja and Seven are in the background. You can see the road in the foreground.

Sweet baby Ember and mama Luna.

$Grey\'s band, minus Jif$

Grey/Traveler and his family also were in the area, closest to the water hole – what’s keeping all the bands in this area, I think. Jif was just a little apart from them.

A picture like this is my favorite to take because it’s my favorite thing to see: interaction and evidence of affection among the horses. That’s Two Boots with her head over Twister’s back. They’re about shed out now. Two Boots shed out a lot lighter, even though she’s still dark grey. Last fall, she was *really* dark. And Twister is showing his pretty rosy grey color. Stepdaddy Grey in the background.

Too cute! Pinon here, standing up nice and straight for the camera. Definitely a colt. His little dark patch is clearly visible here. I’ve noticed something similar on a couple of other horses: Luna has an ever-so-slightly-darker spot on her right barrel, behind her shoulder, and Comanche has a dark spot that’s maybe about the size of a baseball on his right barrel. Luna’s spot is bigger but almost unnoticeable.

Back to front: Aspen, Chrome and Hook. While I was thinking about Duke, I realized the Bachelor 7 (six without Duke) have been dogging Steeldust’s band since just after I realized he was limping, around April 15.

Aspen and Hook decided to relieve the monotony by play fighting – with an audience. In the immediate vicinity were the other bachelors, Grey’s band, Steeldust’s band (of course) and Bounce’s family. Hook initiated the whole thing (tattle tale), and at one point, he got one foreleg up over Aspen’s back, and they went around in a full circle before Aspen was able to shake him off. Notice Mouse and Comanche snoozing in the background. That’s Kreacher at upper left, and in the middle ground is Grey and his band.

I had walked out from the road, over a hill, through a couple of arroyos and up another hill to try to get a better look at Molly and her new foal and was returning to the Jeep when I saw Bounce, Alegre and Gaia closest to me and the other horses a little farther out. I took the above pix of Aspen and Hook, wishing I was closer to them, but then I had an opportunity to get a little closer to where Gaia had just laid down and Alegre was grazing. A juniper shielded me from Alegre, but Bounce had me in full view. Conspirator? I’m pretty sure that even Grey and some of the other horses also knew I was there, but I don’t think Alegre ever did. She grazed farther away from me and closer to the other horses (which were back toward the water hole), and I waited until they were gone before moseying on back to the road.

Alegre and Gaia near sunset, taken from the road.

I drove around the loop road twice, looking hard for Duke. Never did see him, but on my way out, I saw Poco, Bones and Roach at the water hole below the roller-coaster ridge road.

He’s in the (obviously) dry part of the water hole – photo taken from the ridge road. Poco and Bones were just behind him to the east. This water hole and the one in the east, off the doubletrack, are the only water holes I know of that still have water. Spring Creek has water in places. No sign of the horses anywhere near the water catchment.

Not quite full … but pretty cool.

It’s good to be back.

Comments : 4 Comments »

Categories : Alpha, Bachelor 7, Bounce, Cinch, Corazon, David, Grey, Luna, Molly, Roach, Seven, Steeldust, Ty

Baby pictures – Sunday, April 20, 2008

22 04 2008

Luna and her baby.

Steeldust had his band way up on the north hills Sunday. I hadn’t seen horses in that area since I started the project last fall, but I talked to a rancher who was trying to gather a few errant cattle, and he said he had been seeing horses in that area all spring. Grey/Traveler had his family on the north side of what I call the “finger hills,” just northeast of the dugout intersection. He moved them there while I was talking to a couple named Roy and Sue, who were out looking at the horses. Roy said he grew up in the Disappointment, and when they were kids, he and his brother used to ride out with the wild horses. Now he and Sue go out every spring to see the horses.

Houdini is still pregnant as of Sunday, but I fully expect her to have her foal this week!

Grey looking back at his band. He is traditionally a good daddy; he’s been good with Two Boots and Twister, and I have no doubt he’ll take care of Houdini’s foal like it’s his own. I hope he’ll be a sire again in the future.

$Luna\'s filly nursing$

Filmmaker James Kleinert came out to the basin Sunday – good timing. I took him across the hill close to where Steeldust’s band was grazing. I wanted us to be in full view of the horses so they could determine the distance between us. There were still some trees between us in places, but the light was gorgeous, and the horses gave us the gift of allowing us to stand and watch them for several long minutes.

We ended up fairly close but a couple of gullies away, and the horses gave us the remarkable gift of quietly browsing up the hill. They moseyed on, and we moseyed away.

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Categories : April, Grey, Houdini, Luna, Steeldust

The stork arrives in the basin!

21 04 2008

$Luna\'s filly$

Luna had the first foal of the 2008 season – a beautiful, long-legged sorrel filly with a star and strip!

She was born Friday night or sometime Saturday. I saw the horses Friday, and Luna was as big as ever. I camped with horse folk Friday and Saturday nights, and I didn’t see Steeldust’s band again until Sunday afternoon – voila!

Nothing yet from Houdini – any day now! I expect Alpha to foal sometime in May, but the due dates of the other mares – and exactly which ones are pregnant – is anybody’s guess!

Wonderful weekend – green sprang up on the hillsides practically overnight! That crazy wind did its best to leach the moisture out of every single everything! I saw the first paintbrush of the season this weekend, too.

Special thanks to Tif for bringing her wonderful pinto Bashkir Curly horse Apache for me to ride, and to Sue, Ted and Kelly (and Tif, too) for the delicious food, the laughs and companionship at camp, and for showing me the basin through new, taller eyes! How cool was it to RIDE the trails in the actual hoof steps of wild horses!?

I’ll have more photos later, but it’s been a long, dry, windy, surprising weekend, and I’m ready for bed!

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Categories : Luna

Spring Creek Basin Mustangs