IRON MOUNTAIN

Pete & Guinness enjoying the view from the meadow

Sept. 17-22
Iron Mountain is located in Ivanhoe, Virginia next to Mt. Rogers National Forest. This part of Virginia is absolutely beautiful with vistas that trick you into thinking they must be paintings by one of the Masters. The campground is situated at 3500 feet elevation; we ascended to 4500 feet on one of our hikes during our stay. The best feature of the campground is the 12x12 stalls for Maggie and Guinness. They checked into suites with full amenities! We had the pleasure of meeting an interesting fellow camper – a traveling cowboy of sorts. I will let Pete elaborate on this one… The trails were spectacular and diverse, but not marked well at all. Our route was only as good as the narrative directions and rudimentary map provided to us…ugh. The first day out was somewhat flawless; we only made two wrong turns, but caught them quickly. This five and a half hour ride was definitely one of our favorites. We rode along the Virginia Highlands Horse Trail for some bit of it, then along a creek. The trail then opened up into this beautiful open meadow with grazing cattle and a breathtaking view. Here’s an example of the trail directions on this ride: “once you enter the meadow, continue straight ahead until you see the silos. At about 200 yards short of the silos, bear left. Continue over the hill. Stay right of the stock pond and you will see a 4-foot gate ahead…” We actually followed these directions and made it to the gate which brought us back to an well-traveled trail path! Maggie and Guinness were very interested in the cattle while Pete and I just could not get over the view! The next day we did not follow the directions so successfully! We thought we would give the horses a bit of a break since we rode them so long the day before, so we chose a “4-hour ride.” The ride starts with a big, long climb of about 1,000 feet then breaks off into park trails and forestry roads. Well, we missed a turn (oops, the forestry gate the directions say to look for cannot be seen in the summer from the road we were on – we should have told you that!). The 4-hour ride turned into a 20-mile 7-hour ride! The good news is the GPS kept us going in the right direction, once we realized we were way off track. The bad news is we hit the “Devil’s Den” part of the trail ride at the 6th hour. The trail has this evil name for a good reason – it is a rapid decent full of rocks! At this 6th hour of the ride, the horses were tired and sore – this is prime time for a misstep, trip or fall! We made it back in one piece and we have the horses to thank for that. However, Guinness did not emerge unscathed. On the way back into camp, I noticed a hitch in his hind right hock, and after removing his saddle, found a very raw and rubbed sore on his lower back the swelled up like a muffin top. I never liked the trooper-like saddle that we bought for him (as we were instructed to buy by the trainer/breeder that we bought him from) and here was proof that the saddle was all wrong. I iced his hock and his back, rubbed liniment on all four legs and put salve on his back, said I was sooooo sorry and bedded him down for the night – hoping for the best in the morning. Obviously, we gave the horses a day off the following day. The owners of Iron Mountain operate a very well-equipped tack shop on the premises. Pete and I took this opportunity to talk to the owner, who has a lot of experience with gaited horses as that is about all they ride up this way. She recommended a Henri Miller Buena Vista saddle to try on Guinness. Her husband rides in the same saddle, so Pete and Guinness were able to try the saddle the next day, which was great. By then Guinness’ hock swelling was gone. His back was still a bit touchy, but this Henri Miller saddle did not rub it or exacerbate the soreness – from what I could tell. We saddled him and Maggie up and went for a fairly easy 4-hour ride up to a cabin. We tied the horses up and went out to a picnic table to enjoy an amazing, far-reaching view! When we returned to camp, Guinness was sound and the sore on his back was no worse from the wear – we bought a new saddle! Pete loves it, and I really like the way it fits and lays on Guinness. Tessa seems very comfortable here. Our campsite backs onto a small creek bed that she can run through, then up a hill, back down and around the trailer – she runs laps. As the weekend neared, more campers arrived and she started to get a little nervous and stayed close to the trailer. We had a great stay at Iron Mountain, and we will return! – The Girls

One of the best parts of this trip was meeting a variety of interesting people. Everyone was full of information, opinions and helpful ideas. Especially Tim. We met Tim our first day in camp when he volunteered to drive up and get Chris who was running the campground so we could check in. Later we went to visit him at his campfire where he told some stories, and shared some advice about trail-riding. Tim was a real cowboy who’d been riding all his life and loved to ride all day, every day. He’d been on the road for several months and was heading home in a week or so. Tim was surprised that we didn’t ride with a substantial saddle bag. His, for example, held his daily 12-pack of beer, which is just enough apparently to get him back to the barn. I asked him about food and he explained that he really didn’t eat much. A piece of beef jerky now and then was about it. Beer and cigarettes seemed to be his two major food groups. I kept silent about the fact that I was happy to just make it back from a trail ride in the saddle, and that adding beer to the equation was not a likely move for me. For a few minutes Tim may have assumed that we were experienced veteran riders and he spoke to us like insiders. When Kim mentioned that we ride in “fishing vests” so we could carry our cellphones and GPS device, that illusion melted away as his face twisted into an expression that suggested he just bit into a nasty lemon. I thought he was going to say “you’re gonna have to go away now”, but he composed himself and politely resumed the conversation for a few minutes, but the magic was gone – we had been exposed! He shared some great stories, trail and camping advice but occasionally got mixed up because as he put it, “between the drugs, alcohol, and this little scar on my forehead (a recent brain aneurism)” things get a little jumbled up there. Still, Tim was very cool – a little bit Willie Nelson complete with a feather in his well-worn cowboy hat. There were several other couples at all of our stops, so it’s good to know we’re not the only crazy ones out there who enjoy this kind of experience. We’re a little sad to end the camping part of the trip. But Leatherwood has some nice features to it that will probably ease the pain. Later, Pete


Jake & Tessa loved the Chuck-It field at Iron Mountain!

The silos described in the trail directions are in the background

Cripple Creek crossing

Kim & Jake getting smoked out by the morning campfire

View from the cabin ride

HONEY CREEK HORSE CAMP

Pete & Guinness at the Double Arches

Sept. 13 – 17
Honey Creek Horse Camp in the Big South Fork National Park is located in the northeast section of Tennessee. This is trail riding heaven! It’s all about horses here and getting on the trails. We arrived on Thursday after a five-hour haul from Many Cedars. The barn is built on a hillside and kind of stair-steps down the hill. Maggie and Guinness bedded down well. Stalls are small but the horses seem fine. We had some company at this campground; a group of 21 horses was in for the long weekend and they partied it up a bit! Friday it rained most of the early morning to early afternoon, but as soon as it cleared up we saddled up and hit the trails for a quick 2 ½ hour ride to the Double Arches and back. The trails here are spectacular. There are destinations of phenomenal rock formations, overlooks and a railroad bed that parallels a beautiful creek. We climbed trails that had stair steps of sandstone. The horses did great. The sandstone has a surface much like sandpaper, so not slippery at all. We rode up to about 1500-foot elevation to an overlook that gifted us with a gorgeous view of the mountain valley, rock wall and creek below. To get out to the overlook, we tied the horses to a picket line – first time ever for that! They did great, of course. We road to the Needles’ Eye on Saturday and what a kick that was. We tied the horses and hiked a short trail to the rock formation then climbed down a ladder to walk through to the other side. On Sunday we took a trail that took us down the mountain side to the creek and rode a very scenic railroad bed along the river. It was a lot of fun to trot the horses out with the creek alongside – exhilarating is an understatement. The trail demanded that we cross this creek twice. It was fantastic! The water was a foot or more deep in parts and the horses had to navigate dangerously wobbly rock under hoof. Maggie has a few wounds on the back of her leg and fetlock to show for it but doing fine. Bad thing about coming down the mountain is that you have to go back up to get back to camp, but as usual, the horses got us there. There were so many more trails to explore that we hated to pull out on Monday. But, we will be back! – The Girls

One of my major accomplishments this stop was finally winning Kim over to realizing that Wal-Mart is cool. I’ve been preaching this for years but she has failed to listen – till now. Now, granted I’m biased being a major stockholder (100 shares has got to make me almost on the Board), but the organic vegetables and the bakery fresh semolina rolls pushed her over the edge. We went there twice! Our campground was rockin’. The 21-horse brigade with their beers-on-the-trail approach to trail riding were loud, raucous and entertaining. In their “trailer huddle” on the other side of the campground, they had a campfire the size of Mt. Saint Helens in its eruptive days, and college football on Friday and Saturday nights at a volume only heard at the Rolling Stones’ stadium concerts in the 1980s. Did I tell you that “FOOTBALL IS EVERYTHING!” It may have been a Big Screen TV. I couldn’t get that close because I was afraid to be singed by the flames. Credit to the horses for keeping us alive on this one. Maggie especially gets a thumbs-up for her performance as team leader. For a horse that could not successfully navigate our blacktop driveway at home, where she slipped and fell and struggled to stand back up (this is all true!) to see her leaping up and down wet rock staircases after a rainstorm was almost incomprehensible. You may be asking, “Pete, where are the pictures of these situations you talk about?” My answer is: My white knuckles that were clutching reins, mane, horn or whatever were frozen in fear and not capable of snapping a photo of my upcoming tumble down the rocky ravines of death I was staring into. Finally, our last day at the campground, where the deer (no antelope) played...constantly, consisting of an early morning runaway by both dogs pursuing two young deer. They vanished into the woods, and I took off after them – after I put my pants on. Well, they came back to the campsite after 15 minutes while yours truly got turned around a bit (after all, I didn’t even have a cup of coffee yet!), and was gone for over an hour. And to make it worse, I didn’t even have my tags on! The great American poet Robert Frost wrote “The woods are lovely, dark and deep”, but they really suck when you’re lost. (I added that last part). I’m sure that will never happen again! (right). -- Later, Pete


Our campsite tucked into the trees

The deer would visit each morning and evening


Dinner time!

Tacking up

We loved the creek crossings!

OK -- This one is for Danielle (Ugh!)

The Needle's Eye -- standing out front

Climbing the ladder down was pretty cool!

Making our way back to the top

Maggie & Guinness (in background) tied to picket line

View of river (the one Maggie & I crossed earlier) from trail lookout

Go ahead, see if you can get the girth any tighter!

MANY CEDARS CAMPGROUND & TRAIL RIDE

Sunset on the Buffalo River at Many Cedars

Sept. 9 – 13
Oh, what a beautiful Buffalo River Home (I’m sure Pete will elaborate on that reference later). After about a short three-hour haul into Tennessee, we landed in Hohenwald at the Many Cedars Campground and Horse Trails. Again, we had the campground to ourselves and enjoyed the primo campsite – a pull-through site along the banks of the Buffalo River. It was spectacular! The trails were challenging and a bit rocky, but the horses did great. A portion of the first trail was in a rocky stream. The horses had to walk through the rock and rushing water for about 100 yards or so, then up the mountain from there – very cool. The loose rock on the steep downhills had me holding my breath at times, but Maggie just sat back and expertly stepped her way down safely. Guinness tends to want to rush the downhills a bit but luckily he is very sure-footed. Our second day at Many Cedars was a rain out. We certainly couldn’t complain and the folks there were very glad to see the steady rain having suffered a drought this summer. A perfect day for us to take our sojourn into the local Walmart Supercenter! We also searched and searched for an Internet connection – none. But, back at the campground office, Karen, the operator, had wireless and a washer and dryer – Nirvana! Wednesday, the day after the soaker, was a beautiful sunny day! We hit the trails and made a loop around Napier Lake which was very nice. Pete took a wild cowboy ride on Guinness’ neck during this outing! Maggie and I were ahead and had just crossed a road onto an open, flat trail which was heading back toward the barn (horses have an amazing barn-direction instinct). Well, apparently Guinness’ instinct kicked in big time. He wanted to get there fast and in the process let out a buck which landed Pete ahead of the saddle, hugging and straddling Guinness’ neck – yelling “Stop! Stop!” When I turned around to see what all the yelling was about, I wasn’t sure stopping was the best option! I moved Maggie in front of Guinness to slow him down and Pete was able to recover – sit up a bit and grab reins. My cowboy stayed on! I got off Maggie to collect Pete’s ball cap and sunglasses that landed back on the trail, while Pete pulled Guinness’ nose back to his ass and turned him in a few circles to remind him who is boss. Really, it was a beautiful day and a glorious ride. – The Girls


I’m writing this column standing up . . . just kidding. My perfect record of not being “bucked off” continues, with an asterisk, maybe. The way I see it I just landed a bit north of the saddle – driver error. John Hiatt’s “Buffalo River Home” is a great song and I’m sure he wrote it in Many Cedars. By the way, we have theme music for every stop. Our overall trip theme song is “A Night in the Box” by Phil Lee which speaks to the joys of spending the night in a trailer. It starts out “Well, I got a little place out on Highway 10 – Ya’ gotta duck your head when you walk in – Go 3 steps and lay down flat – Babe, my little box is where it’s at”. We played that song at Suwannee, which was just off I-10, but the theme song for that site was the BoDeans ”She’s a Little Runaway” in honor of you-know-who. Look for the CD in stores just in time for the holidays. The perfectly relaxing campsite was a polar opposite to some of the trails. When Kim says she’s “holding her breath” read that to mean that Pete is turning “a whiter shade of pale”. Know that some of these trails, if you came to hike them, you would be on your butt or your hands and knees grabbing at roots and rock edges. My new technique is to simply fold my hands together and look earnestly toward Heaven. Hohenwald, Tenn., by the way, is the home to an elephant sanctuary, where circus elephants hang out when they’re not in the center ring. I inquired about how to get there and was informed that it’s not open to the public. But why? He asked. Apparently, last year one of the elephants trampled one of its trainers to death. I guess traumatizing the small kids on a field trip from the local elementary school is something the Sanctuary is not interested in at this time. But watch out for the next installment of “When Animals Attack” on your local Fox network. Thank God that America will get the truth from “the fair and balanced” network – these “cover-ups” should not continue in a free society.
Later, Pete


Rock wall directly across from our campsite


Ask for campsite "A" at Many Cedars -- it's the best!

It's a dog's life

Today, it's the Border Collie River instead of the Buffalo River!

SEVEN SPRINGS LODGE

Sept. 6 – 9
Seven Springs Lodge is a very romantic name for this barren campground located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in Tuscumbia, Alabama. There really isn’t a lodge (it’s the owner’s home) and there is not a tree in the campground! The stalls are 8x8 (very small) but our horses were lucky! There was only one other couple camping, so the horses could use the paddock next to the stalls – whew! Although the campground is not the most picturesque, the trails were hilly, scenic, rocky, interesting and challenging (Seven Springs Lodge’s redeeming amenity). The first day we took the trails to a bald that offered a 360 degree view of mountain ridges. It was beautiful. The second day, we rode the other side of the mountain that had two Indian shelters to explore and the rock was spectacular! Riding along the rock walls was a new experience and we had a great time. We decided with all the rock and much more of it to come, we should have shoes put on the back hoofs of each horse. I had them shod, fronts only, before we left Naples, but all-fours are a must in these mountains. So, with my fingers crossed and a few prayers, the owner of Seven Springs arranged for the local farrier to come to the campground and shoe them. He was actually pretty good and nice guy. This was a first time experience for Guinness, and he did rather well. Much to my chagrin, Walmart Supercenters are now an oasis. I have learned that when on the road in these very small and remote towns, a Walmart Supercenter is a real find. Pete is gloating about the fact that I have finally been converted! Ugh! Another, not such a great thing to brag about is my craving for a pizza; I had to resort to a “Hot Stuff” pizza from the corner Shell Oil station! And, I loved every bite of it!!! Pete thought if we had not died by midnight, we were going to be okay. – The Girls

I learned that you’ve got to have a team (football, of course) to be able to talk to other men in Alabama. You don’t necessarily have to root for Auburn or ‘Bama, but you’ve got to have A team. Luckily. I remembered that my Alma Mater Wake Forest had a legendary season last year so I redeemed myself slightly or I’d of had to resort to a chorus of “Free Bird”. The grocery stores in the rural South are amazing. They’ll have less in them than a small 7-11, and none of it looks particularly edible. At one stop, Kim suggested that they might not have rice milk, which I like in my coffee. I looked around quickly to make sure no one heard, and I admonished her and said “We don’t want any trouble here”. Don’t even ask Kim about the time, she asked for “polenta”. We’ve got the whole trailer set-up and breakdown going well and the best part of packing up is you never really unpack, so it’s almost impossible to leave anything. Just look in your rearview mirror when you’re pulling out and if there’s nothing there, you’re good to go! Later, Pete

Saddled up and ready to go


A beautiful view from a bald along the trail

HEART OF DIXIE TRAILRIDE & CAMPGROUND

September 3 – 6

Sunrise from the campsite

We stayed at the Heart of Dixie Trail Ride in Troy, Alabama, and had the campground to ourselves. The horses were able to stay in a paddock rather than a stall, which was great after a five hour trailer ride. The sunrises were beautiful, and trails were fun – some open, some cut into the woods and some hills to give us just a taste of what is to come as we get further north into the mountains. The campground was very nice and quiet, which was a blessing after the crazy Labor Day experience at the Sprit of the Suwannee. Tessa is suffering from post traumatic stress syndrome. Every load noise sends her into a panic. So we have to watch her carefully and keep her safely tied up. Playing with the ball is the best therapy for her at this point. After we set up camp on Monday night, Pete and I both totally exhausted from no sleep the night before and very stressed thinking we would never see Tessa again, we collapsed into our chairs with a cooler of ice cold beer next to us – we proceeded to have a few and really soak in how lucky we are. We were still feeling a bit sluggish on Tuesday – it’s amazing what stress does to your body! -- The Girls.

“Sweet Home Alabama . . . . Where the skies are blue, and the campers few”. Knowing a lot of Lynyrd Skynyrd songs is my personal strategy for making friends and getting out of potential skirmishes. Nothing but really nice people so far, very talkative and friendly – southern hospitality. From the chaos of Suwannee to the peace and quiet of Heart of Dixie was a welcome relief. Troy, AL is the home of the Trojans, which is a football team that everyone is very excited about; and I wanted to debate the fact that everyone that lives in Troy would technically be considered a Trojan even if they never donned pads and a helmet, but Kim said to be quiet. Two cool things about Troy: an awesome Wal-Mart supercenter, and the campground had cable, so we could watch some US OPEN tennis, and listen to Keith Olberman rail against GW. The dogs are loving Alabama ‘cause we’re playing fetch with the ball for hours everyday. Our plan is to wear them out so we can sleep longer through the night. I think they’re just getting fitter and drinking more water – so, ‘bout the same. Great trails, the adventure continues . . . (clap, clap, clap, clap) deep in the heart of Dixie. Later, Pete


Above the lake with the campground in background



Pete and Guinness hit a 300-yard drive!

SPIRIT OF THE SUWANNEE

Sept. 1-3

Saddled up at our campsite

Pete and I arrived safely to the Spirit of the Suwannee campground. The drive up from Naples was a breeze -- no traffic and no bad weather. So we were pleased to make the trip in six hours! Spirit of the Suwannee is located just off of I-10 in northern Florida, about 70 miles east of Tallahassee. We enjoyed a roomy, shady campsite that was about 100 yards from the barn. Sunday morning we saddled up the ponies and headed out on the trail. We did see one deer along the way, but the majority of the four-legged creatures were golf carts that just about all the other campers enjoyed off-roading in, which was interesting! The horses did great though, and the golf cart cowboys were very respectful of the horses. Once we got out of the campground on the trail, we enjoyed walking along the Suwannee River under the shade of the trees. It was beautiful. We even took the horses down a steep sandy slope to get onto a “beach” along the shore. The sand was very soft and deep, but the horses just trudged through it like it was heavy snow (not that we would know what that is like!). The best was riding them back up the slope – they both dug in deep and cantered their way up! It is truly amazing what they are able to do. It was awesome! All I can say is, it was a great ride to kick off our trip with. Labor Day weekend beckons “headliner” entertainment at the Spirit of the Suwannee. – Kim, Maggie & Tessa (The Girls)

Don’t let Kim’s narrative fool you; the drive up was tougher than she lets on. She drove, as you may know, so there was intense pressure on me to navigate (okay, she did provide me with mapquest instructions) and correct any driving errors she could make (there were none, but in between naps I was trying to keep her in between the lines). By the way if you’ve never stopped at a “flying J” it is a must, people! It’s like a trucker’s supercenter, and they will sell you an amazing number of things that no one I know would ever consider purchasing. Exit 285 just north of Tampa on I-75: just do it. Pulling into S.O.S. (Spirit of the Suwannee) was like arriving at Woodstock for RV’s. Everyone we’ve met has numerous tattoos, (even some of the horses), wild and reckless children, and a penchant for loudness. Playing bad country music so loud it hurts your spleen, yelling as loud as you can at your spouse, your feral child, your muffler-less ATV (camouflage pattern, of course), or your ridiculous, brain-damaged excuse for a dog. It’s tough owning Border collies at a place like this; it’s like dropping your honor student prodigy off at the Sheriff’s Boot Camp for the bad juvenile offenders kicked out of the detention center - you just pray they don’t pick up on anything. My boney butt survived today’s ride, (bike shorts under the jeans, my brothers!) so I guess we’ll continue to Alabama, but it will be hard to match today’s ride which is the best trail I’ve seen in Florida. Gotta go – I have a sudden urge to go scream at something. Where’s GeorgeW. when you need him. - Later, Pete

On a sandy beach edge of the Suwannee River









Footnote: We suffered a very traumatic experience with Tessa – but all is well. On Sunday night of the Labor Day weekend, the SOS set off a fireworks display. This was not your ordinary fireworks experience. Rather than the fireworks that shoot up into the air with a poof and fan out way up in the sky, the SOS show was a quick series of “bombs” exploding in rapid succession -- not at all what we expected. Jake handled it well, but Tessa panicked, jumped off the ground and in sheer fright pulled herself right out of her collar and ran – she was gone. We soon find out that she ran back toward the barn area near our trailer. We were told a black and white dog just went through here like a bullet! We a least knew at this point which way she fled. Needless to say we had several fellow campers helping us call and look for her. We exhausted ourselves on Sunday night to no avail and decided after midnight that she was hunkered down and would probably come back in the morning. It was awful. She had no tags on her, because I had her collar. I was very afraid that someone would take her if they found her. It goes without saying that neither of us slept that night, and at first light, we hit the trails again calling her. By nine o’clock there was still no sign of her. Twelve hours missing!!! We went to the guided trail ride barn to leave them my cell number and ask them to keep a look out for her. While we were talking to the manager of the barn, he said, THERE SHE IS! We turned around and Tessa was just peeking out from the far tree line. Once I called her, she came a runnin’!!! A miracle! Once we had her in our grips, I finally broke down and cried like a baby. What a relief. In the grips of total exhaustion and elation, we packed up the trailer, loaded the horses and headed for Troy, Alabama – two dogs and two horses – life is good!




Our sweet Tessa...

RENAB WAS FAB!

Our shady campsite under a live oak and cedar

Last weekend Pete and I visited Renab Ranch, owned by Lillian Baner. This beautiful farm is perched on top of a hill next to the Withlacoochee State Forest. Lillian and her many critters were welcoming hosts. We had the place to ourselves, so of course picked the primo location for hookup. The trail riding was hot but fun, and the trails are some of the best in the state. We rode 7.5 miles on Saturday and 11.5 miles on Sunday...and the horses did great! We stop about every hour to give our butts a rest and to let the horses graze and cool off a bit. Jake was very busy with his job -- herding Lillian's three goats and one lamb. He was in his glory! I think we've got the hook-up procedure pretty nailed at this point. And, Pete and I very comfortably assumed set-up and break-down chores. We love the trailer. It is very comfortable and I have mastered some amazing culinary treats for us out of our "camper kitchen." We will be back to Renab Ranch this winter for sure!

Guinness is telling Pete a thing or two!

Jake on the job!

Heading to the trail under the canopy of the cedar trees

A trail in the forest

A Percheron mare with her foal on the ranch