Trying to Come Back

I've been thinking about things I need to be doing since I've come home from Musical Echoes.  Something happened while I was gone, spring took over in Ohio.  Not only did the yard need mowed, the trimming really got away from my wonderful husband.  I feel like we have been playing catch up and I was only gone a week!

It is hard to get back into the swing of things when you have a little vacation that totally absorbed every part of your being.  The little sunburn has since browned my skin, the waves at the beach are still in my mind and in my heart.  Most of all, I can still hear the sounds of Native American Flute music.  It was everywhere, people trying flutes all around the Ft.Walton Landing, music on stage by some of the best musicians across the country, newly purchased Cd's playing in the car.  Playing my own flutes with the wind, water and birds.  Magic happened last weekend for me, I want to keep that weekend close.  I'm afraid if I get too busy here at home, I'll stop remembering the special things that happened. 

Oh, I know you don't really forget these things.  I do know from past experiences that you loose some of the sensations.   For example, it's like having winter surrounding you, you see snow and it is very cold, can you remember how hot it was the summer before?  Sure you remember, but you lost the sensory response of that summer heat and humidity.  Maybe that is why I appreciate the change of seasons, they ease you into the next season, that gradual change is less difficult to experience depth of the next season.  I am not yet ready to loose the consciousness of warmth between  friends, the sounds of the beach and the music in the air all around me.

So forgive me if my blog is repetitive, my laundry lays unfolded, my gourds await artwork and I'm still not ready to give up my trip.  I hope having flute circle this Saturday will help with the adjustment, moving me gradually back to the other world, the one where my feet must touch the ground and while I'm here on the ground....  well, I will start manifesting the next flight into the world I left the other day.

Floating on a "Flute Cloud"

It's never easy when coming home from a vacation.  My best girlfriend and I have just returned from six days in heaven.  We went to Ft. Walton Beach, Florida.  It is in the Gulf Coast area.  My wonderful husband could not go with us, this is his busiest time of year, in the spring, he helps the Ag. teacher in the shop every morning at the school he has retired from.  Our critters need to be cared for and his real retirement job is mowing and grounds care for a home on the other side of Cedarville.  Plus this is planting season, he also farms a little on the side.   Did I say he retired? 

So my friend and I drove to Florida, we were attending for the first time Musical Echoes, a Native American Flute, Art and Cultural Festival.  We were excited enough to drive the thirteen hour trip in one day!  Having never been to this part of Florida when we saw the white beaches and beautiful Emerald Coast with white sands, we couldn't stop smiling!   I worry this morning that the oil spill from the off shore drilling disaster will touch this beautiful coastline and all the life that lives in these waters will be harmed.  Sending flute prayers today for all that live in these waters.

The exciting part about this trip is knowing that we'd be meeting up with friends who would be performing, friends that were vendors and friends we have come to know at other flute events.  It is always fun when people come together and share a common interest.  This is a "flute family" we are associated with and it is an amazing family. 

Because of some very wonderful friends, we were invited to go out on a pontoon boat the day before the festival was to begin.  Armed with sunscreen and food, we played in the water, walked the beach and generally soaked up the sun and the company and friendships offered.  What a wonderful day.  Can you have "too much fun"?

Our wonderful friends are vendors at the festival.  It was our pleasure to help them prepare their booth for the weekend.  As it turned out, because of the evening winds and storms, their booth had to be dismantled each evening and prepared again each morning!  Vendors work really hard at events with weather issues!

Helping them was always fun and many hands make fast work.

I entered the Art competition, the theme was Red-Tailed Hawk.  I made a beautiful gourd bowl with a carved Red-Tailed Hawk, some carved feathers, turquoise beads were inlaid and it got a third place ribbon!

It's hard to put a finger on what part of the festival we liked the most.  Of course hearing the different artist's perform is always wonderful.  Maybe it was trying out all the amazing flutes, maybe it was all the awesome people we talked to, many strangers, never to see again.  Many are now new friends who share our common love of the Native American Style Flute.  Perhaps it was talking to the performers, getting Cd's signed and becoming acquainted with their music style.  I can't forget the fun we had at the Drum Circle, it was awesome and it wasn't long enough!  Or maybe it was the big Flute Circle that formed back at the conference room of the motel because the evening concerts were cancelled due to weather.  Sixty-five people came, memories of Hawk Littlejohn were shared. Flutes and drums were played, it was AMAZING!

Between moments at the Emerald Coast beaches and the festival, we were definitely on cloud nine!  It is hard to relate all the funny things that happened and  hard to share how much love is in this community of flute people.  It is truly heart warming seeing people come together to help one another, pray for one another and I am blessed to be a part of this caring family.  I long for the next event.  In the mean time we will keep in touch by phone, emails and facebook.

Can you tell, I am having difficulty coming down from the "flute cloud"?  I want to hold tight to the moments.  I look at the photos, I am back again, at Ft. Walton, Florida.

I better make a list of things I need to do...... the real world will not wait on me to come down from my moments of flying.   I must get my feet back on the ground, finding a new washer is today's project, how is that for reality? 

I am looking forward, our Flute Circle meets on Saturday, yes, I can go back to my "flute cloud" again!


Photos:   Upper right, the Emerald Coast, Florida
               Middle left, me standing at the landing in Ft.Walton
               Lower right, some performers & guests at Musical Echoes

Hitting the Road

Taking a trip?  Let the lists begin.  I am a seasoned traveler.  I have taken children and horses into the wilderness with a pick up truck and a sixteen foot trailer.  In the back of that truck was horse gear, horse hay/grain and water buckets.  Also, sleeping bags, tent, coolers, food for the family, extra coats, boots and chairs. Did I forget to mention the camp stove and maybe wood for a campfire.  I always checked the list so nothing was forgotten.  We'd pile into the truck and head out to a remote area to camp and spend the weekend riding horses.  What a blast!

I remember one trip, a girth belt was forgotten.  Trisha had to ride her horse bareback, a girth belt is necessary to hold a saddle on a horse.  We did some pretty major hills, she held onto mane while the horse climbed those hills.  More than once her grip on the mane was all that kept her on the horse.  She didn't forget that girth belt again.Food is always major when camping with kids, if they get hungry then they get grumpy.  We always had lots of food.  Camping was always a time when you brought lots of snack stuff, kids are always hungry when they are outside and playing.

We have traveled a lot, we went to California with horses in a motor home, we have traveled by car and truck and plane.   Nothing beats traveling across country.   I love seeing the land, getting to know different areas.   We have been to Wyoming, Montana, Iowa, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Florida, Maine, Arkansas, Washington state, Canada and all the states in between.  I couldn't begin to list them all, every state held an adventure and story.  I should maybe list the states we haven't explored......

When my wonderful husband and I take a trip, there are rules.  I cannot pack any higher than the windows, otherwise he can't see out.  I wonder why we have mirrors?  Of course, when we travel together, we have a little problem with bringing things home and the car does seem to get fuller and fuller with stuff.   One trip to Santa Fe and on to Sedona, produced drums and other amazing gourd adornments to bring home.  I had antlers, leather, beads, and then there were gifts for the kids and grand kids!   There are always things that get put in the car that we never use, but we are prepared.  A sleeping bag, things for cooler weather and things for warmer weather.  Always a cooler, reading material, Cd's (we don't share the same taste in music, unless it's country), notebook to keep count of the hawks and eagles.  Blanket and pillow, naps are a must when you travel across country.  Need I go on?

When my dear friend and I travel together and we do often, we both wonder why we take so many clothes.  Usually it is one big bag and one small bag of necessary clothes and stuff.  Always a pillow and blanket, she is always cold and I'm always warm in the car.  Flute music is a must, flutes, maybe drums, a cooler and snack stuff.  We also take a tarot cards and Animal Speak and a bird book, very necessary items.

She and I are headed to Florida tomorrow.  My wonderful husband is staying home to take care of the critters.  The dogs always pout when I leave, they start when they see me packing the bags.  To leave on a trip without Richard requires another list.  I must make sure he has plenty of food in the house, he will have to cook for himself and maybe even run the washer if necessary.   I have to be sure all the critters have food, can't run out while I'm gone!  Richard doesn't like some of the things I leave him to take care of, water the flowers, clean the kitty litter, feed the fish and mow the yard.  He does a great job when I'm gone, but as soon as I'm back those jobs are all mine!

Oh dear, I feel another list coming on, don't forget the maps, address of the place we are staying, phone numbers of friends we'll be meeting up with and a little extra cash for a new flute?   Maybe I'll take a few gourds, do you think someone will make a trade?   Oh my gosh, I can't forget to take some postcards and greeting cards, and I'm entering a gourd in the art contest, do I have the paperwork for the entry?  Now were are my sandals?  Gosh, I'll need sunscreen and a hat for Florida!  Oh no, I should paint my toenails for those sandles.  Oh dear, there must be something I'm forgetting.......

Deliverance

A friend used the word deliverance in her email to me today and it brought back a memory that makes me laugh today.

In Rockbridge, Ohio every year I take my beautiful gourd art to a Fine Art Show called Lilyfest.  This is my favorite show during the summer season of shows.  I often find myself comparing other shows to it and when people ask how this or that show went, I will often reply, "Well, it was/wasn't  a Lilyfest show." 

Lilyfest is held every July, just as all the lilies begin to bloom.  The show is held in the forest of Hocking Hills.  It is on top of a hill and trees shade the grounds beautifully.  There are wonderful gardens with lilies, water ponds, frogs, dragonflies and sculptured art made and displayed by the host Bobbie Bishop. Plus there are somewhere around 50 artists sprinkled throughout the gardens, displaying and selling their wonderful handmade art.   This three day show is filled with people who love gardens and art!

I decided one year to include my daughters and their children (my grandchildren) to a weekend getaway by renting a cabin for all of us to share.  This gives me a little Grandma time in the evening after the show, it gives the girls and the cousins time to play together for a few days.  While I'm at the show, they can explore Hocking Hills. 

The first year we did this I rented a cabin that have horses and trails to ride.  Some of the grandchildren were pretty small so riding was really not a priority.  Being horse people, the thought of horses around was appealing.  The girls came to visit me at Lilyfest after checking into the cabin.  Cait my oldest grand daughter came running to me shouting that something was dead under the porch of the cabin and it smelled really bad!  Oh dear, that isn't something I want to hear.  It was also one of the hottest Lilyfest weekends on record.  When I got to the cabin I was confronted with the smell Cait was talking about and I found out there was no air conditioning!  No closing the windows to get away from the smell.  It was unbearably hot and not a breeze moving the air.  Trisha's youngest, Kellen, slept in only a diaper, he was just a month old........ it just didn't seem right.

The next morning when I stepped outside the cabin door, I knew it wasn't something dead under the porch.
This "ranch" had spread sludge on a field behind the cabins!  I hope you all know what sludge is....  Needless to say we would never recommend this ranch outside of Laurelville, to anyone!

The next year I was on the search for another cabin.  Looking for a cabin with 5 adults and 6 kids is not easy.  Each family needed a room they could go and get away if need be.  Having more than one bathroom is a plus and a big kitchen is necessary.  I made reservations at Turtle Hill Cabins.   The girls always open the cabin and I come at the end of the first day of the show.  My friend Jayme who was helping me with my booth was also included in this adventure with my family.   When we located the drive to the cabin that night, I was pretty stunned.  It was up the steepest hill I have ever driven a vehicle, let alone my van!  I use to have dreams of driving up these kind of hills, they always ended with the car tumbling end over end back down the hill.  Nightmares really!  The drive was gravel and pine branches brushed off the van on both sides all the way up the hill.  I had to really gun the van, throwing rocks everywhere to keep the momentum to climb the hill.    I look over at Jayme and she was gripping the door with white knuckles!  I think she was prepared to leap if she needed to!

When we got to the top the girls were outside the cabin and were laughing their heads off!  We all couldn't stop talking about driving up that hill!  We are girls that have ridden horses on bigger hills than this, but really, this was scary to drive.  The cabin was wonderful, big enough for all, air conditioning and very clean.
I still couldn't book next years weekend there because of the drive up that graved hill!

The next year I found the PERFECT place.   Not far from the Lilyfest, big enough for all the growing kids, a nice yard and we all loved it!   Couldn't wait to book it for the next year and I did!  The first of January I got a call from the owner of this perfect cabin.  He broke the news to me that his mother-in-law was moving into our perfect cabin and it would not be available.  Oh, no! 

Back to the Hocking Hills guide for tourists...........  I found a cabin, it had enough room if we took our air mattresses for the kids to sleep on,  it sounded perfect and fit all the requirements.  This year Jayme and I decided to set up the gourd booth a day before the show and so we got to find the cabin and open it up before the girls arrived.  We had the address and were driving down this back country road looking for the mailbox with the house number.  The further we went the scarier it began to look.  I felt we were in the movie Deliverance, the houses were run down, unkept yards and cars on blocks.  Oh dear, what have I done?  We were close to the address but must have passed it, the road ended.  I hope it wasn't the house with the above ground pool with one side collapsed............  We turned around to take a second look and  found this cute little cabin on the other sided of the road from the collapsed above ground pool.  It was tucked back into a pretty little grove of trees and had a nice feel about it.  We had the best weekend there, strangely the move Deliverance was in the cabin, my girls had never seen it, and it was worst than I remembered! 

We all decided it would be a good place to stay again next year.  I booked it and in January I got the call from the owner.  She sold the cabin, it would not be for rent in July!   Back to square one........  Still looking for the perfect cabin for five adults and six grandchildren to rent in Hocking Hills.

Soldiers Meadows (Nevada)

Back in 1989 we took a trip to California.  (To become acquainted with that trip, check blog posts, California or Bust.)  You will note that we traveled in a big old motor-home with a sixteen foot horse trailer behind.  You will  learn we made this journey with a friend who a pulled a two horse trailer behind his much newer motor-home.  On this trip to California there were three horses going and four coming home.  Three adults and five children under the age of seventeen were sharing this adventure.

Soldiers Meadows, Nevada, why would anyone want to travel this Black Rock Desert land? Soldiers Meadows is a very historical area and if you want to know more it can be Googled.  As for us, the adults, children and horses, we were there to do an endurance ride that was being held in the middle of nowhere.  After driving the dusty road from Gerlack to Soldiers Meadows, we were shocked to see the little crowd of horse rigs parked on either side of the road we were traveling.  We made camp and found that we were pretty much the center of attention.  Our Ohio licence plates gave others a heads up about the easterners in camp!

The folks in the west have a different way of running rides than we do in the east.  It became obvious when there seemed to be no set time for the "ride meeting".  These valuable meetings in the east are held the evening before the event.  The eastern ride manager goes over trail conditions, in Ohio and Indiana that usually means were to find the most knee deep, mud sucking trail hazards.  They would advise you about following the ribbons of surveyors tape, one flag means you on on the correct trail, two flags would alert you to a turn coming.  If two flags hang on the right, it means a right turn.  This can be vital if the main trail continues straight, but a side trail may turn right, you don't want to miss that turn!  I don't recall seeing many ribbons at the Soldiers Meadows ride.   The eastern trail manager would also tell you what time the start of the ride would be and information about the half way point.   In the east, the half way point is a vet check for the horses and a 30 minute hold after your horse has his pulse checked.  At this hold their is usually hay and water for the horses, food and drink for the riders and usually your "pit crew" is there to meet you with these things.  They will also help holding the horse and be at your beck and call for that 30 minutes.  In the west, we knew there was a half way point, somewhere out there in the desert!  The western ride manager did hold a ride meeting, about a half hour before departure time.  Oh, yes, she mentioned a few flags were out there, but mostly told the historical accounts of the area!  I remember one of her comments about a point we would reach......."When you get to the spot there are several choices of trail to take, stick to the ones on the left."   Now, talk about vague directions!  Panic was setting in, deep inside my stomach!

We went back to finish tacking horses and used our grease markers to mark the ride number on our horses

butt.  Big red number marked my horse, it matched his red bridle and blanket.  My friend also used my markers to number his horse.  In the east there are checkers on trail to mark when a horse passed through, the numbers told them when all the horses had passed.  If someone was lagging behind or lost, the checkers knew it happened somewhere on the trail before their checkpoint.  It was soon after we mounted that we realized, no one else had numbers on their horses.  I don't have any idea how they keep track of lost riders in the west.    Oh dear, this was worse than driving in with our Ohio license plates, they knew we weren't from the west!  The western ride manager was probably grateful for our numbers, she would know exactly who the strangers were!

Doc and I were the only ones from our two campers riding this 25 mile endurance ride.  Since we had the motor homes and no pick up trucks to head to half way point, we threw our hay and drinks in the back of another truck going to the half way point.  At the last minute I decided that Trisha and cousin Carrie could ride to half way and be our pit crew.  They were off while I finished tacking up my horse. The girls were thirteen years old and had done this before, I thought nothing more about that decision.

When the shotgun start happened, my horse was ready, he wanted to go with the front of the pack.  I could not let him do that, he doesn't handle the adrenaline rush of a fast start.  I also knew that I didn't want to be left behind, never having ridden this trail before.  I didn't think my horse or myself could afford to be lost in the desert!  So I ended up riding with about 5 other women who were some of the last riders out of camp. 

Two comments stick out in my mind, even after all these years.  One woman ask what the number was for, did I just buy this horse at an auction?   The other was when one of them commented that she found this so restful.  I was not sure I heard her correctly, I was finding the entire thing very stressful, where were the trees!!!!!   It wasn't long, maybe five miles out that I began to notice the tell tale signs that my horse wasn't handling the speed well.  He was beginning to "tye up".  This just means my horses muscles were cramping.  It is something he is prone to when he doesn't have time (a few miles) to warm up his muscles slowly.  I was trying to baby him along and two things happened.  I considered them "signs"!   The women I was riding with didn't want to go slower while he worked out his cramps.  I wasn't going to be alone and lost in this desert by riding last.  The second sign was the dead mustang along the side of the trail.  That was enough for me to get off my horse and lead him back to camp.   By the time we had returned, he was fine, he'd walked out of the cramp and I was just plain tired. 

The day passed, I wondered if the girls were doing okay.  They would be there helping Doc and I am not sure what they might be wondering since I never made an appearance.  The afternoon wore on and pretty soon the riders were returning.   Doc was back and said he'd seen the girls.  Carrie and Trisha still weren't back!  I couldn't understand, they only went to the half way point and now all the riders had returned, still no pick up truck with my girls.  In the east at an endurance ride, if you choose to go to the half way point, it's just a matter of miles, the crew is always back to camp and taking naps long before you finish your ride!

I have no idea what time they returned but when they returned I hardly recognized them!  The pickup truck had the adults inside and my two girls in the truck bed.  The dust in the desert is awful, they looked like ghosts!  Their hair was white from the dust!  I found out later, that by truck it was a 25 mile drive to the half way point.  So that is 50 miles in the back of a truck in the desert!  Oh, did I forget to mention, the girls went with no food or water.  They managed to get water at the half way point and they stole a candy bar from another riders goodies.  The girls have never forgiven me for this adventure!  Pretty bad when they no longer trust their Mother or Aunt.

The moral of this story.............  they don't do rides in the west like they do in the east.


Picture upper left:  The riders leaving Soldiers Meadow horse camp, last horse and rider is me.
Picture lower right:  daughter Trisha and neice Carrie

Wagon Train Ride on the Oregon Trail, 1995

In 1995 we went back on the Oregon Trail Wagon Train Ride.  We had so much fun the year before that our friends decided to join us on this year's trip.  I mentioned in my previous writing about the 1994 wagon train ride, our host gave Ryan and Tere a free trip for a wedding gift, because they became engaged on the  trip the year before.  We couldn't let that pass by, now could we?

I also mentioned in the last writing about the artist, Tom Lucas.  We stopped by his home and shop to see his artwork.  This year my goal was to find elk teeth ivory's and beaver teeth.  I so wanted to have earrings and a necklace like our "Annie Oakley" friend from last years adventure.  I was sure Tom would have these items.  Come to find out, he had beaver teeth, but they were still in the skulls.  As I mentioned before, he traps beaver to feed their "pet" bobcats.  He gladly gave me three skulls and told me if I put them in pots of boiling water and let them cook awhile, the teeth could then be extracted. So we left with beaver skulls and visions of beaver tooth necklaces in our heads.

We stayed the night before our wagon train ride in the town of Atlantic City, WY.  Had fun at the bar/restaurant playing cards and just relaxing.  Talk turned to last year's trip and our chance meeting with Marcy and Brian.  We just happen to mention them to someone in the bar and found out that they were in a camper just outside the building.  How interesting to run into this couple again this year.   We went knocking on the camper door and were greeted like old friends.  (Have I mentioned that Marcy is still a friend today, almost 20 years later!  Yep, it is true, and she was just here visiting us this past week on her way West.)

There were twelve of us on this trip.  Matt was the youngest and he was probably nine.  Friends and family members are all horse people and wanted to ride a horse and not be riding in a covered wagon for miles on a bumpy hard road.  So our host said we could have as many horses as we needed, we thought that was perfect.  When we arrived at the tumbled down starting point of our event, there were indeed horses of all sizes and conformations.  Tack was laying wherever it had been dropped.  We were told to pick our horses and saddle up!!!   There was not horse and saddle that went together, you found what you needed and made it work.  The trading of equipment until everything fit the horse you were riding went on for some time.  Bridles had to be fitted, girths were swapped, and stirrups adjusted.  It truly was like doing a live jigsaw puzzle.   Meanwhile, our host's just watched while we worked it out.   (I'm not sure they had a clue about getting that many horses ready.)  This wasn't difficult, we all knew how to tack up, but it should have been a clue about the knowledge of our hosts.

Our journey on the Oregon Trail (Mormon Trail) was so much fun, the sky is never ending, the smell of sage was in the air.  Horses were very nice to handle and we stopped at some tumbledown places that people tried to live at one time or another.   Weather worn wood barns and homes, trickles of water nearby were barely enough to water even one horse.   We felt the presence of the past and what it might have been like to travel this vast open land for a piece of land to call home.

We arrived at a different spot this year to call camp.  The tipi's were up and it was in another grove of aspen trees.  Very beautiful setting. Campfires, the guys brought guns to shoot targets, we gathered plant material to fill baskets to take home, we did day rides from base camp to places of interest and food was great.  After our evening meal one night we gathered cans of water to "cook" our beaver skulls.  This was suppose to be a project for the females in the group, kind of a ceremony to create our own "tribe", to remember the trip with this touchstone or in this case a beaver tooth necklace.  Our name would be the Beaver-tooth Tribe.  Well, six females gathered around the fire, the skulls were put in the hot water and then it happened.  The smell of these skulls cooking was more then the "tribe" could stand, one by one they left me to attend to the project.  Oh my, the smell was really bad, but I couldn't just forget about those skulls, I had to be the one to finish the project.

Then it happened, my friend "Annie Oakley", Marcy came riding into camp with Brian.  She found me by the fire and she helped me to extract beaver teeth from the skulls.  To this day we laugh at the story, each of the girls on the trip did get their stylish beaver tooth necklace.  I still wear mine, I don't often see the others wearing theirs, but I know they have them tucked away in a special place to remember the aspen grove with tipi's, the big night sky, the smell of sage and cooking skulls, Brian playing his guitar around the campfire.  They'll remember the horses they rode and the vast, windy desert of Wyoming on the Oregon Trail.

Our trip together continued, we went to Cody, WY and into Yellowstone, camping in tents, taking turns at making meals, sharing a wonderful time together.   It is also reminding me of another story or two........

Wagon Train Ride on the Oregon Trail, 1994

Richard and I, along with our son Ryan and then girlfriend Tere decided to vacation together back in 1994.  We headed to Wyoming with our destination point being Atlantic City, Wyoming.  Historic South Pass City is old mining town, it is the closest thing to Atlantic City and can be found on a AAA map.  South Pass City was a boom town, boasting 2,000 inhabitants in 1871.  By 1875 South Pass City was nearly deserted.  Both places are south and west of Lander, Wyoming.    Atlantic City pretty much consists of a dozen houses, two bars and a couple of A frames for overnight guests.  It is located in the middle of Bureau of Land Management country and cattle are seen grazing right outside the bar/restaurant's door. 

We often learn lessons in life that might be considered by others before an event is planned.  I, however, think only the best about anything and never consider that it could be any thing different that what is advertised. It was in the AAA book afterall!    The company we were doing the Wagon Train ride with, is no longer in business, I don't wonder why.  In all seriousness, we had a great time.  Just not exactly what  we maybe envisioned.

When we arrived at the starting point our first hint of things revealed themselves.   It was a fallen down house (shack) and barn.  Electric fence pens for horses with no grass (what am I thinking we are in the desert).  One wagon, a team of horses and some saddle horses.  The couple were very nice, but lived in Mississippi and come to find out they leased this bit of land for their "Wagon Train Ride on the Oregon Trail" business.  It was later discovered they lease these horses and probably all other components to host their business.  It is not to say we didn't have a wonderful time, we did, but things are not always what they seem and that is the lesson.

The plans were to take a Wagon Train trip on the Oregon Trail, which consisted of an entire day of traveling in a covered wagon.  We made stops at historic landmarks along the way and after hours of travel we arrived at an aspen grove with tipi lodges to spend the night.  The road we traveled still holds the scars of the early pioneers, the wagon wheels etched themselves in the hard desert floor.  This is also the trail the Mormons used to pull their handcarts across this country on their journey to Utah.  One of the landmarks we stopped to view was the site of  one group of Mormon travelers that lost their lives due to the onset of early winter.  Unprepared for the cold of winter, they died on this open and windy plain.  As romantic as the west seems, it is raw and unforgiving.  I respect those who survived and those that still live out there.  It is a hard life.  The sun and wind and cold and wind is constant.  And yet, it is some of the most beautiful country you'd ever want to see.  The sky was always beautiful, day or night.  The land makes you wonder how anything can survive.

Our host for the covered wagon trip were very nice, as I think back I wonder, "did they know any more about the area than we already knew?"  Were we just "easterners" looking for a connection to the history of the west?   Today, I'd answer yes.........  we wanted to know and experience a few days of what life might have been like, we didn't even scratch the surface to really knowing. 

We had wonderful meals, campfires and we even were treated with a visitor who showed us knapping.  That is the art of making arrowheads.  He was married to an Shoshone native woman and they lived on the Wind River Indian Reservation at Lander.  He was an artist and we were invited to their home and his studio after the wagon train ride was over.  We found when we visited them, they kept two beautiful bobcats and trapped beaver to feed them.  His studio was wonderful, with many beautiful items from jewelery to antler and horn items, his name was Tom Lucas and he was quite a craftsman.

While camping in this aspen grove, I was thrilled to discover the red -shafted woodpecker, a kin to our eastern yellow-shafted woodpecker.  This was my first experience sleeping in tipi lodges, I loved it!  (When I looked at pictures to post with this, I laughed at the tipi's, our host's had no idea how to put up a tipi lodge.)  Richard and Ryan brought their guns and set up targets (cans) to shoot at and they had so much fun.  In the late afternoon, we noticed a four wheeler coming our way.........  a couple were riding the four wheeler and they were drawn to our tipi lodges.  When they got off the ATV Richard was sure he was meeting Annie Oakley!   She had on a holster with guns in them!   The couple pretty much hung out with the boys and continued to shoot, while the women tended the fire and cooked.   I'm thinking I would not have been a very happy pioneer, I wanted to hang out with the horses and the boys too!

Later they came to the fire and food and we also got to enjoy the company of Marcy and Brian.  Marcy is pretty amazing and to my delight we are still friends today.  Marcy not only had six guns on her hips, she wore elk tooth earrings and a beaver tooth necklace.  She was very cool!  (I feel sure she is laughing as she reads this blog!)  Marcy and Brian were living the life of the west, Brian liked to look for gold and they traveled around the west on their quest to strike the Mother load.  They gave our trip so much flavor and color, what fun.

While we enjoyed our time at the aspen grove, one very important event took place.  Ryan and Tere took a sunset ride away from camp and he proposed marriage to Tere and she said "Yes!".  The couple hosting our trip gave them as a wedding gift a FREE wagon train ride for the next summer!   Yes, of course, we were all looking forward to coming back! 

Headin' Home From California

On our California or Bust trip back in 1989, you have read my posts regarding traveling with kids and horses.  Probably also read that we drove an old motor home and the problems we encountered.  Another memory comes to mind on the trip home. 

We had a pretty long day of driving, it was my turn at the wheel and it was after 11 PM.  We had been following the other driver, Doc, in his motor home and since he was leading, he was expected to find the place for our overnight sleep.  When you are out west, these choices are often far between one another.  No rest areas, no campgrounds, and no fairgrounds to be found.  I remember using the CB to tell Doc, "the longer we drive tonight, the later we sleep in the morning."  Hoping this would be enough to advise him that I was very tired!   Still he couldn't find anything. 

In the west an exit off the Interstate might only be an exit to a ranch that you couldn't even see from the highway.  It usually was an exit onto a dirt road that was some one's lane.  Sometimes there would be a big circle that looked as if it were a turn around for trucks before getting back on the Interstate.  It was decided that we would get off at the next exit and "camp" at the end of someones lane and in the circle turn around.

We finally were pulling into such a circle off the interstate and happy to think about sleep.   We "circled the wagons" for the night.   Since Richard and I were hauling an extra horse on the way home (one that had never been in a trailer before).  To give our mare, Trudy a chance to relax, we unloaded her, tied up a hay bag and tied her to the trailer. Trudy was on the inside of our "circled wagons".  This would give both horses space and Trudy was pretty wise, she was fine being tied outside the trailer. 

Everyone soon was into bed and off to dreamland.  When suddenly, out of nowhere, a train went flying by!

It was so loud and so close, I was sure we'd parked our rigs on the tracks!  If we didn't park on the tracks, this train surly went right between our "circled wagons"!  Scared us to death!!!! 

I got up to check our horse, she was happily munching hay, as if nothing at all happened.  So back to bed I went.  If another train passed, we never heard it.  When we awoke the next morning we found that a semi truck driver joined our "circled wagons".  He too needed sleep.  The worse part..... we never heard him come and park his rig.  We must have been tired, don't you think?

California or Bust, Part Two

I remember on this trip to California our son Ryan was then sixteen.  He was pretty capable and had grown up doing farm things, this would include driving equipment.  When the driver of the other motor home, Doc, called us on the CB as we were driving in 6 lanes of traffic going through Salt Lake City, Utah and told me Ryan was driving his motor home, I nearly had a heart attack!  I didn't even want to watch driving  through Salt Lake City!  Ryan did a great job and he didn't seem phased.  

Traveling in motor homes is pretty fun, thankfully gas was still cheap then.  I'm sure we didn't get more than 10 miles to the gallon with that big old motor home we drove.   The trip was not without motor home problems.  We camped one night in Cheyenne, Wyoming at a county fairgrounds.  The next morning the motor home wouldn't start.   I don't recall why, but they fixed it and we were off with just a few hours delay.

Out west fairgrounds are perfect places to stay when you are hauling horses.  Horses are unloaded, moved around and they can relax without being in a trailer.   There were nights we also stayed in Rest Areas, mostly Iowa east.  Fairgrounds aren't as friendly in the mid-west.  Afraid of transient horses contaminating their race horses I suppose.   Today you can subscribe to a catalog of host homes across the US that are horse friendly for over night stays.

We had another serious breakdown on the way home with our motor home.  We were out in the middle of Nevada.   We were out there with our horses to do a ride at a place called Soldiers Meadows.  There was nothing but desert, wild horses, rattle snakes and supposedly a trail!  But that is another story. This ride was 50 miles from the last "town" which had a service station and a cafe, and maybe a house or two. This particular ride was 5day/50 miles each day.  Our friend wanted to ride 3 days of the 5day ride, I started the first day and had to come back, my horse was having metabolic problems.  So we (our motor home family) decided to move our "camp" to Reno, Nevada and have a little fun while our friend, Doc, was riding two more days.  We loaded everything up and the motor home wouldn't start!  Having no idea what the problems was there was only one thing to do, go back to "town" and talk with the service man.  Richard managed to get someone to take him back to Gerlock, he talked with the service man about the possibilities and came back.  It took three hours to travel that 50 miles one way!  The service man said he had no intention of coming out to look at our motor home!  All the suggestions he offered were not changing the problem, the motor home would not start.  We were ready to leave it and call it our summer home!

Doc made the decision not to ride the third day.  So this time he packed up camp, we all got into his motor home and made the trip back to Gerlock and the service man.  Meanwhile our rig, Ryan and my horse standing in Soldiers Meadows with the hope someone would be coming back.  The Service man took pity on our crusty crew, but would do nothing until he had breakfast.  He and Richard raided his junkyard and picked up parts and then went back to the motor home.  The rest of us headed to Reno and showers!  I now can't believe that we left them with the faith that all would be well and they would catch up with us in Reno!  We had to call the service station to let Richard know where we were staying in Reno, just in case they actually got the motor home going again.  I still can't believe we just left them,  but, that is what happened, the motor home was fixed by this man in Gerlock and many hours later we were all reunited at a casino in Reno.

I remember walking into this fancy looking casino, dusty and crusty.  All of us carrying our clothes in pillowcases from the motor home to our rooms.  The horses were at a stable nearby and we regrouped for a couple days before heading back toward Ohio. 

Other than the gas lines vapor locking as we went over the mountains into California, things went pretty smoothly with the old motor home.  We only had two trailer problems, one was a wheel bearing problem, that was "fixed" temporarily by tying a rope to the axle and taking it over the trailer to the other side to hold it up until we could drive to a place to get it fixed. The other problem could have been major, Doc's two horse trailer started coming apart at the seams from all the road vibrations.   We crossed our fingers it would make it home without littering the highway with parts falling off.  We lucked out, it got home with no parts lost.

California or Bust, part one

We decided to go to California, a family vacation with horses.  Well, they are part of the family.  We drove the big old motor home and pulled a 16ft. horse trailer.  We took two horses, four kids and all the stuff you need to care for horses and kids for a month.  We traveled with a friend who also had a motor home and a two horse trailer, he was hauling one horse and bringing home two.  His son was also with him.  Total three horses (four horses coming home), five kids and three adults.  Sound fun?

We would stop at rest areas and unload horses, move them around a little and water them and then load them back up again.  Having the horses out was a little frightening, we were so close to interstate highways.  Our friend always allowed his 11 year old to hold his horse, this made me very nervous, I know how quickly things can happen to startle a horse.  So at one rest stop, for some reason, I got to hold this horse.  She was very relaxed and actually laid down to roll in the grass.  When she stood up and shook off I realized the lead strap was over her head.  I let go to reach up and pull it down.  She knew the instant I let go of that lead and took off running!!!  Away from all of us, just strutting around like she owned the world!  I kept saying to the other two holding horses, "hang on and don't let them go with her."  Horses are herd animals and if one is having fun, they will all want to have fun.  Beni (the loose horse) grazed and pranced and grazed some more.  No one could chase her, it would cause her to run more.  So we stood quietly watching.  As quickly as she left, she came back to us.  It probably only took few minutes for all of this to happen.  I have to say it seemed like a lifetime!!!!!   In fact, she was back with all of us before her owner came to join us.  I never questioned the 11 year old holding her again, he did a better job that I did holding that horse.