Spring Creek Basin Mustangs

From there to there

14 08 2010

Not 15 minutes inside the basin for the first time in three weeks, I had to leave again because of a wall of rain coming straight at us from the western hills. I just had time to spot Hollywood’s … then Comanche, Kestrel and Winona …

The road in isn’t as bad as I expected – though there’s evidence one poor person got stuck: s/he left staves in the road from where s/he dug him/herself out of the mud. But it is cut in numerous places where hard-rushing water flowed in mean little rivulets from high to low. When the road is dry, you may not need four-wheel drive, but you definitely want high clearance – and good shocks.

Crossing a couple of the interior arroyos, you have to dodge rocks (I moved one for you, but you’ll still have to squeak between the wall of the arroyo and the new “drain hole”) and climb or descend a couple of new sandy ledges formed by the fast-moving water. At one of the Spring Creek crossings, there’s evidence the water reached 12 yards above the base of the arroyo!! WOW. I don’t think your Porsche or your mini van is going to cut it for a travel vehicle there. (Even the Jeep scraped bottom on one of those new sandy shelves – still “pristine,” not yet worn down.)

After waiting out a second wave of rain (!), I went cautiously back into the basin.

From a long way away, I saw horses running – Comanche’s had joined Hollywood’s – ‘Nona was leading the whole group, playing ahead of mama Kestrel.

Kestrel and Winona in the lead, followed by Comanche in foreground, center. Piedra and Tenaz almost behind the greasewood behind Kestrel, Hollywood and Sage, Baylee and Iya.

I gained a higher vantage, but I couldn’t tell that they were running *from* anything, and they were running basically toward me (in the Jeep), so I wasn’t the cause of their – dare I say it – joyful celebration?!

Coming up out of Spring Creek

They paused once to look at me … (you can see by their blowing forelocks that it was pretty windy)

… then continued on their way, following Comanche following Kestrel. (Check out Baylee; her ears are forward in every photo!)

They were close to me now, so I stopped and waited for a while – I thought I had an idea where they were going, but I was wrong. When I thought I’d given them enough time, I eased up the road, looked all around … and finally spotted them way out “yonder” … and that’s how I found out Cinch had Liberty. They settled in a big “valley” full of – you guessed it – more green, and that’s where they stayed the rest of the day. Twister and Cuatro were even farther beyond them, but they were nearly hidden, and I didn’t know at that point who they were. I thought I’d seen other horses that I thought may have been Hook’s band, but as it turned out, Hook’s were one of the few horses I didn’t see (along with David’s little family and Bruiser).

Comments : 3 Comments »

Categories : Baylee, Comanche, Hollywood, Iya, Kestrel, Piedra, Sage, Tenaz, Winona

Mosquitoes, mushrooms and more!

13 08 2010

Or: August = green!

Or: Holy grass!

Or: Monsoon madness!

This morning, when the sun broke through the cloud bank and turned the basin into a shimmering emerald jewel, I thought I’d been transported to Ireland. It is THAT green out there, people.

I had to fend off mosquitoes while photographing Chrome’s band, and mushrooms are growing in this crazy newly-wet beautiful Spring Creek Basin, not to mention one of the invasive types of “sunflowers.” Missing the paintbrush this spring? Not to worry, now they’re growing in bushes 2 feet tall with dozens of “flowers” on every “stalk”! I’m pretty sure they’re paintbrush, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen it grow like that before, and certainly not in the basin.

I wish I could describe it in all the exquisite detail it deserves, but not even my photos come close to illustrating the green-tinged curves of hills, the grass in bunches the horses seem lazily content with – like it will last all the rest of the summer – the whole marvelous wonder of it all.

Looking south from the northwestish – Filly Peak at far right.

Looking up to the far northwest, near Klondike Basin.

From the northwest looking southeast: unnamed promontory and McKenna Peak (“pyramid”) at upper right.

Between the road and Filly Peak …

You know it’s crazy when I take pictures of actual grass!

Also a lot of this yuckiness adding to the greenness …

I think this is what someone told me will become tumbleweeds.

All of that, and two ponds are still dry. The kicker is that they’re not even on BLM’s list of ponds to dig out this year – hopefully, they can. The day’s miraculous forecast was for sunshine (been “thunderstorms likely” for three weeks now), and we’re in the middle of monsoon season, which happens every year in Colorado, and I had to leave the basin three times for rain – the third time finally kicked me out for good near the end of the day.

Here, although there’s not a horse in *sight,* they ARE there – out there! – it sums up my weekend:

Gorgeous with a touch of danger. That’s Filly Peak from the outside looking in when I had to leave for good in the evening – life-giving rain filling all the background, which is Spring Creek Basin to the faint ridge outline in the background – covered by a wildly vibrant rainbow (even with a polarizer hastily attached, the colors here aren’t nearly as magnificent as they were in person … or maybe it’s my “rose-colored glasses” … ;)). And do you see the lightning strike? Yes, OK, so it could strike a tree (or worse), but talk about lucky: That’s handheld. It’s not nearly as shocking (sorry) as it really was, either.

In addition to the shining green all around (I’ll tell ya, it makes my head spin), there are some surprises in the herd. Unfortunately, I don’t have pictures (!) because I watched from a distance because a few bands had gotten together, and I didn’t want to add to the chaos. Cinch has Liberty, and Twister is with – drum roll, please! – Cuatro! They ended up playing with Ze and Sage for a little bit. Not sure why year-and-3-month-old Cuatro struck out on his own. Did he get kicked out already? His mama has a foal, and the other mare in his band (Jif) isn’t due for a month. Another dysfunctionality of our tiny herd. (I can’t explain why young Cuatro – and others as young – have left their mothers/bands and horses like Butch and Sundance – at least 4 now? – stayed with their bands.)

And because no post would be complete without the reason for this whole blog:

Two Boots and Rio.

More to come.

Comments : 4 Comments »

Categories : Ponds, Rio, Two Boots, Water

Celebrating

9 08 2010

Carrying the theme … 🙂 Here’s a little girl who makes it easy to celebrate what’s right with the world! Gemma – daughter of Grey/Traveler and Houdini. I don’t think I posted this photo previously, though I did post some from this visit, about a month ago. The fastest-greying foal I’ve seen since I’ve started the documentation. Love her curiosity and big, bright star!

Comments : 3 Comments »

Categories : Gemma

Lashing out

8 08 2010

I get so overwhelmed sometimes by the cruelty humans inflict on each other – animals, children, women (in no particular order, of course) – a stone in the road, using a stone from the road.

Worthless – the acts and my rage (how different am I?!) – and nothing happens. Nothing changes. One act begets another, worse, “eye for an eye.”

But what if we all had an eye for beauty and turned a blind eye to conflict – not to its happening but to continuing to fuel it?

When I say, several times a day, “I hate people,” this is what I mean. I love our capacity for compassion … I hate that so many people seem to have willed it out of themselves. I hate that I feel driven to say that.

Cold isn’t a season or a temperature but an emotion – lack thereof? I’d protect everyone in the world from it if I could … if they could be protected from such a hideous, snaking, crawling, ugly thing.

Did you see on the news that 10 people – caregivers, medical people, people overflowing with compassion and a driving need to help people, to bring something good to people who see little of it – were killed by Taliban? Gunned down – “their bodies were found riddled by bullets” by vehicles in a wooded area off a road. This story has a “why” that some – most – of us can’t even conceive – that the “spy missions” of these 10 people – people I probably wouldn’t hate – was to bring Christianity to people just trying to survive the ills the world (in their part of the world, the Taliban) inflicts upon them. Peace paid by bullets. The accurate why (though it was a “Christian aid group”) is that they were trying to bring compassion with their medical skills to people in dire need of both those things.

One of the people was from Durango, we found out today. Spy? Well, we ran a story the other day about how an office building near Durango holds a repository of top-secret U.S. intelligence (the address is in the phone book). He was a dentist.

The people were carrying “spy gadgets.” Well, those sinister-looking things on the sterilized tray are all rather pointy. Said with as much sarcasm as I can muster through tears for that man’s family – for the families of all those people – ALL THOSE PEOPLE – who are dying, injured, mutilated for someONE’s idea of … of what, exactly? All those people I can’t hate, can’t love, can’t know, can’t fathom.

“Unbelievable” has become a word I use frequently. A word I use unfortunately. I word I find unfortunate to use, as a lover of language, of beauty, to have to resort to such an ugly, unfortunate, un-enough word.

I try to keep this blog wrapped in beauty, try to exclude the outside happenings to be found on other blogs, websites, handheld newspapers, etcetera. As this blog, beauty is a small thing, wrapped in this greater world of insanity and cruelty and slaughter of hopes and ideals, literally, of people, horses, homes.

I’ve shared this before; it fits here: http://www.celebratewhatsright.com/

What’s important is that *concept*: “Celebrate what’s right with the world.” Because even as the whole world seems to descend into madness, there IS *right* with the world … and it’s up to you and I and the other lovers of right to celebrate it.

Here’s an example:

For those who can’t (won’t?), celebrate: beauty, life, people, animals, rocks in the road.

If cruelty makes you angry, celebrate what makes you happy … and share it. Every chance you get. It’s the least – and the *act* of it the most, after all – we can do.

Comments : 8 Comments »

Categories : Advocacy

Wet and dry, green and rain

6 08 2010

The basin is greener than I think I’ve ever seen it – even in spring. And it’s not just the “false” green, looking over the countryside and seeing the green of greasewood and saltbush and pinon/juniper – there’s also grass. Bright green tufts of it. Everywhere. Evidence of insane amounts of carving water iseverywhere – in some places, it was at least 3 feet deep. It’s been over the county road – and a(t least one) big mud flow prevents safe travel into the basin.

But hiking in from dysfunction junction was no problem. Not totally dry, but much drier than I had warned visitors it was likely to be!

Our wonderful friends Karen Keene Day (see her website in the blog roll) and her husband, F, and their friends R&K (and collectors of their art) visited the basin this week – from the lowlands of South Carolina! K&R said their house is at 16 feet. The basin is roughly 6,000 feet higher than that! I’m pretty sure I swatted at four mosquitoes.

I should have taken more pix of the wild and awesome evidence of the power of Ma Nature, but we were late to the basin already, and I wanted very much for them to see horses – if any kind of luck was with us.

The last time I was out – also with Karen – I was driving along the herd area, marveling at the water running in arroyos, thinking “look at this water! I wish horses were here to take advantage …” – and shazam – there were Shadow and Wind and David!

Would you believe luck struck again? I was thinking, “Please be visible for these folks from South Carolina. They really want to see you, and so do I …” – Can I say it again? It’s so much fun! SHAZAM!

David, our David. Isn’t he a handsome boy?

Shadow was perfectly content on the other side of the big arroyo, “hiding” behind greasewood, and this is the only time while we watched that I saw her actually look at us; I never saw her even lift her head.

Neither did Wind! I can’t believe how much he looks like Liberty, in color, at least.

There was still a possibility we’d see the pintos up the next drainage … and as we proceeded down the road, I spotted a pinto I thought at first was Corazon. But when I looked through the binocs, I realized it was Bruiser! He’s still by himself … but Lady Luck was completely on our side, and the pinto band was nearby. He’s keeping his distance, but he’s also keeping an eye on them.

With the second storm wave since Karen and I arrived passing across the north end of the basin (rain might have fallen on the north hills), and lightning flashing – but us in partial sunshine – we hiked in – on dry land. The side arroyos were dry, but the big arroyo that comes through that drainage was still muddy. No standing water that we saw in our brief glimpses, but I’d be astounded to learn that any possible “pond” in the basin is not holding water right now. We’re right smack dab in the middle of our normal monsoon season … but this isn’t quite normal!

We got up to within hailing distance of the ponies, and Ty, then Mesa finally saw us as they trailed after the band, slowing grazing along the base of “their” hill (really, aren’t all the hills theirs?!). Mesa came out between us and the band, not alarmed, and Corazon, before he knew what Mesa was looking at, came out to meet him.

Kiowa finally saw us – Maiku took advantage of her pause to grab a snack. Copper in the foreground, Chipeta behind Kiowa and Spook at right.

Back to grazing.

No foal yet from Chipeta …

Bruiser stayed near the base of the hill across the arroyo where I found the band last time, just watching.

We kept our eyes on the lightning and pretty soon decided to head back.

No agenda; just luck. Amazing.

Just amazing.

It started raining about dawn the next morning, and two hours later, it was still raining, so I thanked my lucky stars and headed home. A few weeks ago, it was so dry, all the ponds were dry, and the horses were relying on little trickles in secret pockets for their water. Now, it’s like a second spring in August. Monsoons in a Colorado summer – gotta love ’em!

Teaser:

Disappointment Creek (outside the herd area)

Comments : 3 Comments »

Categories : Bruiser, Chipeta, Copper, David, Kiowa, Maiku, Milagro, pintos, Shadow, Spook, Water, Wind

The Kes and ‘Nona show

3 08 2010

When I was tweaking pictures to show of Gideon’s learned behavior to mark mares’ manure piles, I found these images of Kestrel and Winona and realized I hadn’t shared any of them. I do have a good excuse – I went on vacation immediately after that visit. So I thought I’d tweak a couple of pictures of this picturesque mama-daughter pair … and I kept choosing and choosing and choosing! Thus all the following pictures are of Kestrel and Winona! (But I don’t think you’ll mind.)

Mama’s scratch of an itch must have hit a sweet spot!

Walking around mama to get to the “bar” – note that the top of ‘Nona’s forearm is right at the top of mama’s head – still trying to help mama with that itch, maybe.

Half a second later. Sheesh, kid, you have all of the great outdoors to roam, and you have to walk over my head?

Zeroing in on the goods.

Of course, Kes wasn’t at all upset. 🙂

Such a good mama!

Remember these?:

Sego lily …

Skeleton weed …

I got distracted for a little bit …

‘Nona must have wondered what the heck I was doing, crawling around on the ground … or she thought I was just her size!

Mama grazed a few steps away while Winona was watching, so she had to “hoof it” to catch up – see her looking?

She stopped again …

And she was off again. Don’t you love her determined little walk, those little black fetlocks (they’ll darken up to her knees/hocks)!

Darling divine girl, we love you so. 🙂

Comments : 9 Comments »

Categories : Kestrel, Winona

Stallion samba

1 08 2010

Here’s the little series I’ve been wanting to show for a while …

It was a beautiful morning in early June. Remember this?:

Gideon napping while Mouse (bachelor) stands guard and Aspen (bachelor) grazes nearby.

Napping was the “activity” that morning:

Head … so … heavy … This was seconds before he was flat out …

Which Storm found utterly irresistible! However, Butch is a bit different than playmates Hannah and Pinon, and he was NOT amused, and Storm did NOT stick around to bother him – even though Butch didn’t get up.

Big guy … They look so vulnerable like this, don’t they …

Not far away: Gideon still napping … Mahogany grazing while Sundance, Mouse and Aspen (in that order) try to catch some winks behind her. They’re still following her like this (which was less than a month after she lost her foal).

And pretty soon, she also laid down … She’d kind of nibble around her … then have a great, legs-to-the-sky rollover … then quiet again …

Comfortable enough to stretch full out with the boys standing guard over her. Interestingly, I’m sure Sundance is the youngest of these stallions; I think Mouse and Aspen are roughly the same age. Sundance grew up with “rank” in the band, though, while Mouse and Aspen came in as bachelors.

But idyllic summer mornings don’t last long … Pretty soon, Mahogany was up again, which prompted some stallion action, which alerted Gideon, who realized Mama had grazed away a short distance …

While stallions’ “snaking” behavior looks rather fierce and “mean,” it’s really a protective gesture, meant to move horses in a particular direction – including wayward sons back to the protection of the band/their mothers. You can see by Gideon’s body language and ears that he’s alert to and responding to Aspen’s signal to move, but he’s not afraid of Aspen.

Then Mahogany cut across behind him (probably also a protective gesture on her part), which prompted Gideon into a gallop – but he’s still relaxed.

Such grace …

He found Mama nearly immediately and with the single-minded focus of foals was concerned – immediately – about connecting with his morning breakfast! But look at Luna – very tense and ears focused on the drama behind her. She did not allow him to nurse just then. Too much going on to fall into the trance state of baby nursing.

This is quite an illustration: They’ve come around and are now “in front of” Luna and Gideon and Butch (back to the right). Mahogany is looking for a way forward from Sundance (behind her) and Mouse (left) and away from Steeldust (right), who is blocking her from getting to “his” band, which includes Alpha and Storm and Luna & Co. – *because* she brings trouble – aka Sundance, Mouse and Aspen – with her. She had first tried to go to Steeldust’s right, but he blocked her, and now she’s going around his left.

That’s right – you’re on camera! Mouse now turned toward Aspen to keep him away from Mahogany – and Sundance. Poor Mouse … always the bachelor, never the, uh, groom.

I’ve mentioned before, but the dynamics of the band formerly known as Steeldust’s band have changed, and that’s what I’m trying to illustrate here (although I didn’t include pix of Alpha, she stays pretty close to Luna). Butch ignores Alpha in favor of Luna (and Gideon). In an interesting switcharoo, Steeldust has become the “lieutenant” to Butch – who is very likely his son – in his effort to keep Alpha, who has apparently bonded tightly to Luna (interestingly, the bond from Alpha to Luna is more apparent than vice versa … it may be because Luna has had foals the last two years, and Alpha has not (she got the PZP-22 at the 2007 roundup, and it worked only on her of four surviving mares; because of her likely age – 15+? – I’m grateful, at least, for the break in babies for her)). Mahogany found herself pretty much on the outskirts – with Kestrel for a while, until Kes had Winona – and surrounded by hale and hearty young stallions. They separated for a while – with Kestrel and her new stallion, Comanche (former first sergeant to Lt. Mouse), following at a slight distance – but just after Mahogany foaled and lost it, she was back with “Steeldust’s band,” which, I suppose, is more appropriately now called Luna’s band because, although the stallions very zealously guard their girls, Luna clearly is alpha in all senses.

So now we come to the little series I thought was so interesting and amazing at the time and had planned to post long before life took other directions (which simply means I didn’t have time, then forgot about it).

In the course of all the running around, Mahogany “pooped.” (Really, is there a delicate term?) And thus began the topic of this post: the stallion – and soon-to-be – samba:

Gideon and Butch were the first to discover the delightful pile – eau de Mahogany (sorry – really!).

But Butch asserted elder dominance and claimed it even while Gideon was *trying* to mark it – see Butch pawing and see Gideon “clacking”?

Gideon gave way, and there’s Butch with one more particular sniff before stepping forward to pee on it. (Look at Gideon’s face …)

Butch finished, Gideon took his turn … but look who’s coming up behind him …

Now this one, I just LOVE: Check out Steeldust – he is completely crowding the young mister, who is NOT giving way! Look at his face – the posture of his head and neck. He’s a little intimidated but determined! “I had to wait for Butch, Daddy, now you wait your turn!” This little one is one to watch!

Now look at him – all relaxed and happy! Steeldust pees while Butch pretends to graze while he shepherds the young man back to Mama – who is just ahead of him – I think you can see her shadow on the ground through his legs.

But wait!

Here’s Storm, almost 2, last in the samba line, giving it a determined sniff …

Circle of/cycle of life … importance of mamas AND daddies (even stepdaddies) and all ages to learn the ways of the world. It’s a small world, but it’s THEIR world.

Pretty damn incredible, right?

Comments : 7 Comments »

Categories : Aspen, Butch, Gideon, Luna, Mahogany, Mouse, Steeldust, Storm, Sundance

Gideon see, Gideon do

30 07 2010

These pictures never made it to the blog … victims of lack of time, I suppose. They’re from back in June, during T&L’s visit from Florida.

It’s pretty safe to say – in any context – that Gideon adores Butch. His mimicry of his stepdaddy is pronounced. I realized when I looked back at these photos that there’s another little series I had wanted to show and apparently never gotten around to … Maybe that will be my next post.

In the meantime, Steeldust’s band – which is sort of “back together,” but Steeldust is not particularly in charge – was up above a steep little canyon in the north hills. It’s rockier up there, with lots of cacti around, but there are trees – and grass, actual long-stemmed blades of the stuff.

When Chrome first laid down, Gideon walked up right behind him to investigate. Here’s the big guy – my size!

But when the big guy started throwing those long legs around, things got a little alarming!

Love this expression on Gideon’s face as he watches Butch roll.

A little rest after a successful roll. Mama Luna in the background, by the way.

The next thing we knew, after Butch got up, Gideon laid down in exactly the same spot!

Woo hoo! This IS fun!

A mid-roll check to make sure Mama hasn’t left the vicinity.

Oooh, it feels so good just to lie here in the sunshine … Alpha strolling in the background …

Gathering for the final effort …

And up he goes again!

It must have felt good to both of them. I’m just glad they didn’t hit one of these, which I found later, not toooo close …

Unfortunately, what led me to find this prickly beauty was a beer can some nincompoop had stuck bottoms-up on a dead tree, that I walked over to retrieve. Really? You’re going to carry it all the way up there, presumably sit and knock it back – enjoying the view – then leave it to spoil someone else’s?!

So I leave you with a better thought:

Gideon with (likely) daddy Steeldust, sharing a moment of hang-out time under a tree. 🙂

Comments : 6 Comments »

Categories : Alpha, Butch, Gideon, Luna, Steeldust

Heavens, open

28 07 2010

Heavy rains hit SW Colo, set off rock slides
NORWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Heavy rains in southwestern Colorado have caused rock slides, closing part of a highway.
San Miguel County spokeswoman Jennifer Dinsmore says rocks and debris about 4 feet high slid onto Colorado 145 between Norwood and Telluride on Tuesday. No cars were trapped, and no one was injured.
Highway crews hoped to reopen the highway by Tuesday evening. The slide occurred three miles east of Norwood.
The area was under a flash flood warning until early evening. Dinsmore says the soil is saturated from heavy rains the past few days.

*****

That was the content of an email I sent a friend last night with the pronouncement: We’re not getting into the basin tomorrow.

Norwood is almost directly north of the basin as the raven flaps or the kestrel darts or the golden eagle soars.

We have been getting RAIN. Last week’s episode was just a teaser of things to come. I can hardly wait now to get back and see – and report on – all the ponds rippling with water (hopeful, hopeful!). But it’s going to have to wait because the arroyos are likely running and/or thick with mud that hasn’t had a chance to dry so *I* can cross ’em! (How selfish of me!)

And then came the last-minute other-wrench – I have to work my Saturday. Well, if I can’t get out to the basin, OK – it’s raining, after all – though it’s not great for my mental outlook to work six days and have only one off, in any kind of weather.

But I figured if I can’t present new pix, I ought to be able to come up with past pix that I haven’t posted yet. This is one of those:

This was after their little rearing episode: Corazon and Mesa greet each other politely while Ty paws in the background. Aren’t they handsome with their arched necks and alert expressions?

Comments : 1 Comment »

Categories : Corazon, Mesa, Ty

Happy birthday, Storm!

25 07 2010

This big boy has to be one of my favorites. Sure it’s possible his sire is my favorite Grey/Traveler, but his mother is one of my favorite mares, released after the 2007 roundup – I hope – because of recognition of her alpha status, which means her knowledge and wisdom is required by future generations – including her son!

He and I have known each other since the day he was born, and his birth-day photos are some of my favorite mare-foal pictures ever.