Finally, arrived at South T Bar in Canon City

Our best meal so far this trip was at the Lost Cajun in Salida, CO.

http://thelostcajun.com/

I was super impressed that they have this little sample board where guests can try samples of the gumbo, the etoufee, etc. prior to ordering.  Ari gobbled up the samples.

They also serve beignets!  We ordered hush puppies on the side.  They were different from the hush puppies we've had in Virginia and the Carolinas, but still very good.

The chef was extremely interested in how we liked the food and came to check on us more than once.

This place is worthy of a detour if you are ever in the area.

Upon arriving at Rob & Robin's place at the South T-Bar ranch, we promptly discovered we were down a SECOND tire on the trailer.  Rob helped Ari put on our spare tire which is a real tire, not one of those half-ass tires, and even taught him a couple of tricks on how to tighten lug nuts and mount a tire.

So, we have now replaced 50% of the tires on the trailer.  Keep in mind that we took the trailer in in April to be checked and the guy said at the time that the tires were fine.

So, I am going to have to add tire replacements to our traveling budget for future long trips.

The tire had a nail in it, but didn't have enough tread left to make it worth patching.  We ended up replacing it at a Walmart tire center in Pueblo after we left Canon City.

Rob & Robin have a beautiful mountain home at South T Bar ranch.  They have a view of Pike's Peak right from their living room.  Robin has done an amazing job of decorating the guest rooms.  We had the entire basement to ourselves which included a lovely guest room, a kitchenette, and a full bath.

Robin and Rob are both open to hosting horses and their owners.  They are just lovely people.

Here's Robin holding on to the horses while they graze on her grass.

Here's Rob filling up the stock tank with water so we can put up our portable corral.

The horses were in heaven with all the grass to eat and feeling extremely happy.

You can see Pike's Peak in the distance from Rob & Robin's property.

We have owned property at South T Bar for almost 20 years, but this is the first time we have been able to attend a POA (property owner association) meeting.  It was interesting to me.  There were about 60 property owners in attendance.  They started the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance.  I can't recall the last time I recited the pledge and was surprised I actually recalled the words.

But, when I recited "with liberty and justice for all" I almost teared up, because right now, we do not live in a country with liberty and justice for all.  We live in a country where people of color are incarcerated at a rate of more than double that of whites.

https://www.openinvest.co/blog/statistics-prison-america/

We live in a country that is imprisoning babies and children who have committed no crime other than the crime of not being white.  Seeking asylum is not a crime.

We live in a country where white supremacists are empowered to enact mass shootings against Muslims, gays, Jews, and African Americans and not be treated as what they are - domestic terrorists.

It could be argued that America has never been a country "with liberty and justice for all".  After all, we have a history of slavery, the genocide of Native Americans, Irish and Catholics need not apply, Japanese internment camps, Jim Crow, etc.  But, at least we aspired to be better.  

Following the POA meeting, we were served fresh pizza from a portable pizza oven.  That was pretty cool.  We basically got pizza to order.

I enjoyed talking to the other property owners and hearing why they purchased on South T-Bar, whether they were full-time residents or part-time, what their plans were, etc. When Ari & I purchased our land, we envisioned a horse community.  We thought most of the property owners would be equestrians.  Turns out we are pretty much the only equestrians on the ranch.  Most of the property owners are interested in hunting.

Riding in South T Bar

After the meeting, Ari and I did a ride around the ranch - something we had dreamed about ever since we bought our property there.  We rode an ATV trail.  The horses struggled a bit due to the high altitude, but both horses put out their best effort.  

I am so impressed with Mercutio.  He has come into his own as a solid trail horse.

After the trail ride, we drove into Canon City.  I wanted to see how much it had changed since our last visit about 12 years ago.

The downtown has added some cool public art.  I had hoped that the downtown would have improved some, but it actually is more run-down.

We had hoped to join some neighbors for a party Saturday night, but by the time we got back to the ranch and located the party people were packing up to return to their homes.

Sunday morning we reluctantly said our good-byes to Rob and Robin.  Before we left the ranch, we stopped at our parcel.  Twelve years ago, we had brought Isaiah to the ranch and we planted a bunch of trees and shrubs.  We wanted to see if any of the plants had survived.  Imagine our surprise to see an entire grove of trees we had planted looking healthy and beautiful.

Tonight the horses are at Bruton Stables in Raton, New Mexico.

https://www.horsemotel.com/A1MobilePages/A3MobileNewMexicoJacksonStables.html

They have traded in the cushy grass on the South T Bar Ranch for dust and dirt, but they are in a nice large enclosure with their food and fresh water.

This fellow checked us in.  I got a real kick out of him.  He is a chatty Texan, wearing boots, spurs, and cowboy hat.  

Tomorrow we hope to ride in Sugarite State Park before heading to our next stop...Santa Fe.

We are heading home.