Jackson, WY - Continued

 

Ari took this picture of me and Mercutio on the Kelly Trail. Mercy figured out that snow is pretty darn tasty, so whenever we stopped and there was snow, he would reach down to grab a mouthful.

Ari's cell service in Jackson was pretty sketchy so I wasn't able to get the pictures he took until after we left.

On Sunday, we returned to the Grand Teton National Park for another ride. We parked at the Cathedral Group parking lot and then bushwhacked through the fields to String Lake Trail, then took Paintbrush Trail. Altogether a four hour ride. I love how Mercy is checking out the view.

Cathy, the barn help, at Valor parked right behind us and said she was going to do the same ride as us, but wanted to ride alone.

So, she was right behind us - although we didn't see her again until we got back to the parking lot.

You can see String Lake in the background and the Tetons beyond.

When we go on long trail rides, I usually pack one of these in my saddle bag. It allows me to pee standing up behind a tree without pulling down my jeans. I just unzip and insert the cardboard funnel and position it to capture my urine.

Here is Ari with the Tetons ahead as we ride to String Lake.

This is the String Lake Trail.

This is on the Paintbrush Canyon Trail.

We had put boots on both horses for this ride because we knew it would be rocky in sections. For most of the ride, Ari was in the lead. But when we turned around, I was in the lead. When Ari is in front of me, I will check to make sure Lennox hasn't lost a boot during the ride. Ari is supposed to do the same, but he didn't. Or he claims that he couldn't tell that Mercy lost a boot because he had on the black socks. Black boots over black socks makes it harder to tell compared with the neon green boots Lennox has.

When we crossed the water by the bridge at the start of the String Lake trailhead, I checked Lennox to make sure he had on his boots and asked Ari to check Mercy. Mercy had lost the boot on his left foot.  We normally check after going through water or mud since that tends to be when a boot might get lost.

I was pretty upset about losing a boot - they aren't cheap. But we dismounted so I could take off the remaining boot and the two socks. 

We went back into the water a couple of times to backtrack looking for the missing boot, but no luck.

We had packed a lunch of sandwiches and stowed them in a cantle bag on the back of Ari's saddle. So, the remaining boot and socks went into the cantle bag for the remainder of the ride.

Ari took this beautiful picture of Jenny Lake from the trail.

When we got back to the parking lot, I was still peeved that Ari hadn't noticed when I lost that boot. Cathy rode up as we were unsaddling the horses and asked if we had lost a boot. She said a hiker had found it and tied it to a tree branch. She knew we had boots on the horses, so she was pretty sure the boot belonged to us. She grabbed it and tied it onto her saddle for the ride back. Ari can't believe how lucky I am. 

When we got back from our ride, Pia helped load some hay into the hay pod on our trailer. This meant that we had to unhook the water and electric and move the trailer next to the barn.

Pia left Monday morning to take a couple of her horses to a vet. This meant that on Monday Ari & I were basically the only ones on the premises while Cathy was at her job. We were leaving Tuesday morning. Ari spent the afternoon at the laundromat doing our laundry while I worked on one of my books. Ari said the laundromat was busy with lots of backpackers.

While Ari was at the laundromat, Terry and Mary drove in with their two horses. They are newlyweds doing a horsey honeymoon. They asked about trails and I recommended Game Creek because it was close by and an easy trail.

So, they loaded their horses back up and went off on their trail ride. When they came back, they said it was a great recommendation. They rode about an hour and had no problems at all.

They had a very interesting trailer. It was a 2 horse trailer with the door on the side and basically the engine as part of the trailer. It didn't have any living quarters, just a tack area. They were spending the night at the KOA down the street, renting a cabin and leaving the horses at the barn.

They had an Arab gelding and a mare. Mercutio fell instantly in love with the mare.

The Arab would try to get between Mercy and the mare to protect the mare and Mercy would charge the Arab, pin his ears, and yell at the Arab to get out of the way. He pretty much spent the entire night trying to get the mare's attention.

.

 

Jackson, WY - Continued

 We are spending a week in Jackson. This is our second time here with horses. We came here in July 2013 with Laertes and Oberon. So much has changed! 

Pia, our host, recommended that we bring in this chiropractor to make adjustments to the horses. We normally have the horses checked a couple of times per year - at the beginning of the riding season and at the end - but we haven't been successful getting a chiropractor to come out to our barn in Cupertino. So, we said "sure, hook us up.". $140 ($70 per horse) and Dr Tiger spent less than 15 minutes on each horse. We normally pay around $120 and the provider spends at least an hour. Regardless, both horses seem happier and more relaxed since their treatments.

We took a day off of trail riding so we could spend a day in Jackson, playing tourist. We stopped to get the truck a car wash. It was pretty dirty and muddy from all the off roading we have been doing. At least half the places we have stayed have been on unpaved roads.

I thought this sign reminding folks to practice social distancing was pretty cute. It says "Feel free to roam - just know yer range." And has a 6' balloon coming from the bison.

We did some light shopping, but the shops in downtown Jackson have gotten super pricey. We were looking for some riding gloves and Ari spotted a pair with a price tag of $160. These were Santana Row or Rodeo Drive prices. So, mostly we browsed. Ari bought a flannel shirt and I bought a coffee mug for my morning chai lattes.

We stopped at an Albertson's to pick up some groceries on our way back and I loved this display of venison meat in the middle of the grocery store. I picked up some elk steaks and bison sausages.

This morning's breakfast in the LQ. Ari felt like Southern style pecan waffles. Luckily, I brought our waffle iron, so we are not suffering even living full-time in a trailer.

Back in 2013, we rode the Game Creek Trail - located a little south of Jackson. The trail is still there, but it has been greatly improved. Our best ride yet in the past month.

The two horse bumper pull trailer fit just fine at the Game Creek Trailhead. 

We stopped to let the horses drink from Game Creek.

Back in 2013, there wasn't this nice parking area or the trail map and the trails weren't so nice. It was an easy ride, some shade, and not that rocky.

Valor Horse Facility - Jackson, WY

 

The Valor Horse Facility is a big favorite for equestrians with LQs. Pia, the owner, is a big reason why. She is totally organized and has the business down. There are only two local trails you can ride from her property, but she rents small trailers to guests so you can trailer to Yellowstone and the Great Tetons.

This is a little mini Palomino which grazes on the property.

The horse facility has a resident rooster who is a bit of a character. He wanders up on the deck and pecks at the door to be let into the house, then pauses to admire his reflection. He is definitely a beauty.

View from the deck. There is a hot tub! Oh, joy! We tried it when we arrived and it was wonderful. It's been pretty cold at night, so the only time we can use it is during the day.

The LQs are packed in tightly. If you have a slide out on your LQ, it can be a challenge.

This is our loaner bumper pull trailer we will be using this week to travel into the Tetons.

It's a slant load and the horses like it just fine. Ari loves pulling it. Compared to the LQ, it is so easy.

Our first ride was on the Kelly Trail which supposedly takes you to an overlook with a great view. You can see the Tetons in the background.

There is snow on the ground as they had a couple of inches of snow right before we arrived. Night time temps have been in the teens, so it has been cold. We expect it to warm up later in the week. Snow covered parts of the trail, so we would lose it, then rediscover it.

Overall, we were not happy with the ride...mostly because it wasn't very long and parts of the trail were simply missing.

When we got back to our trailer, we saw a bear coming up - possibly attracted to our trailer looking for food - but when he saw us he turned and ran. Couldn't get a picture because by the time my phone was out he was out of sight and into the trees.

We went into Moose Lodge, a small town, and ate lunch at Dornan's Chuckwagon. Pia had recommended Dornan's. Turns out we went to the wrong Dornan's. There is a pizza place across from the chuckwagon and that's the restaurant she recommended. The Chuckwagon is overpriced and underwhelming. $13 for a hamburger with potato chips and the burger is poorly prepared. I ordered a bowl of lukewarm chili - which tasted like it came from a can.

We were so disappointed by the morning's ride and we were already in the park, so we thought we would try to ride around Jenny Lake. 

The park was packed - so many tourists! It was like Yosemite in high season. The park has changed so much since the last time we were here and the trails we rode last time are gone. We ended up bushwhacking next to the road just to get some saddle time.

Hoping for better rides tomorrow and in the following days.