Tag: #trailponies

Weekend Coffee Share; Early December Fun!

On By DianaIn Barn stories, weekend coffee share19 Comments
  • Welcome to my weekend coffee share where we share what’s been happening in our world!

Welcome, can I get you a hot cup of Joe? or hot tea? I have hot cocoa too, and some mini marshmallows for the top. It’s been so chilly but I know not as cold as some places. My sister just texted me today and she is in Colorado and she said it is really cold there at 18F, brrr….. And I was complaining yesterday at 55F. I had three layers on and my hands were freezing. I did not ride yesterday but had fun visiting my bestfriend with Gracie who is now two stables down from where I board my horses. I don’t see her every day any more so it was fun to catch up with her and I spent the morning there and then tended to my horses. Gracie has settled into her new home and now has some new neighbors, horse neighbors that is and so it goes as we move into a new chapter with our horses. As Gracie is now officially retired, I am not at that point yet with my horses so I am able to ride out on the trails with other stable friends or as we fondly call each other pony sister’s! 😀

This morning when I woke up the sun was shining brightly and the gloomy clouds were all blown away. I was excited and finally went out on my walk. It is amazing how good that feels to get out and walk. It got my blood flowing and I was feeling warmed up and ready to start my day. Today I was able to get out there on the trails and I rode with another good friend, Jane. We had a wonderful ride together.

Since my ponies are serviceably sound (that means they have some issues where they may limp or have some pain which we control with pain meds, but they are still rideable and exercise is really good for many arthritic older horses.) I usually do not go out on the trail for more than an hour. We have a short trail loop that is just about 25 minutes depending on their walking speed. Today we went longer which was a perfect 45 minutes and Jane took some photos of our ride. I’m so happy she thought of taking some photos which isn’t always easy on the trail! Haha, she had to do selfie mode and try and find me behind her!

This is Janes horse, Irish. He is such a good boy! He is a Morgan and a wonderful trail pony!
Here we are on the trail! I am riding Chloe and Zack is along side as I pony him down the trail. ❤

The trails we ride on are well groomed and run through a newer housing track. All the houses here are horse property houses. Usually the trail is only on one side of the street as you can see in the photo. We are in a hilly area so if you wanted to get your horse in shape there are many hills to go up and down and the views are gorgeous. However, my horses are past their prime and like I already mentioned with their leg issues steep hill riding is not possible or not really fair to them.

We can do small inclines with no problem as it’s impossible to avoid some up and down in the course of our rides. There are some pretty flat blocks, and so I break it up and will do some very small hills one day and do flat riding blocks another. The really steep hills are left for the younger, sounder horses. I asked Jane for a recent favorite photo that she took so that I could share on my blog and she sent me this next one. Great choice Jane! It is BEAUTIFUL! 😀

Thank you Jane, my pony sister for sharing your gorgeous photo!

I thought this was at a golf course at first, but as Jane and I chatted she explained where she took this photo which was at the top of one of those steep hills in this pretty area. This is just a front yard and I love the vibrant colors with the beautiful sky, such a wonderful day out horse back riding! She rides more often than not by herself. I am so thankful when I can join her ride. We are so truly blessed to have all these wonderful trails right outside the front gate!

Can I get you a refill? I have a few giant ginger cookies to finish up and you can have one too! I want to thank you for visiting today as we wrap up this weekend. I am getting ready to go shopping as I want to finish up the Christmas gifts list. I am waiting for a package to arrive I ordered online and after my shopping today I will put a box together for my family in Arizona. We will video chat on Christmas day and watch each other open our secret Santa gifts we do each year, and the gifts sent for grand children!

They sure made my weekend special! Thank you Chloe and Zack for your gentle kindness!

I better get this published! I can’t believe this weekend is just about over. I hope you all have a great week ahead. Maybe next week I can actually complete my weekend coffee share as the weekend starts, instead of when it is ending. 😀

Happy riding these pretty horses!

~Diana ❤

Summer Trail Rides and Horse Fun!

On By DianaIn Barn stories, Horse stories9 Comments
  • Miss Chloe waiting for Zack to visit with me in the turn out arena!

I have been wanting to share some more trail riding fun and as I get ready to go out on any given day, I always give my horses some time in an arena. It might be our round pen, which is a smaller round arena (usually around 24X24 round, but I think the one at this barn is bigger) where I make them trot around and stretch their legs. I may turn them out in our big arena where I will ask them to run and/or gallop to really stretch their legs! I have shared a video of them running in the big arena here. And sometimes I let them out in this turn out where there are trail obstacles permanently in this arena and so it is not a good place to make them run because there are all those big poles on the ground and I wouldn’t want them to run too fast in this arena and trip and fall. So this arena I let them do what they want, they often are scratching each others back as I let them mosey around.

UP CLOSE! HAHA! Chloe looking for a treat as Zack is photo bombing! They are not shy, not at all and she knows if she gives me a kiss (which I taught her to do) that I just may have a horse cookie in my pocket. Kind of a dirty nose, but then its the stables and they sniff and smell stuff and well, can be plenty dirty until I groom them and clean them all up. And then we do it all again the next day! Its a labor of love, and one I will never stop loving. I enjoy grooming them as much as they enjoy getting dirty! You have to love the outdoors and not mind the dust and dirt as it is EVERYWHERE! 😀

  • Out on the trail and I am all alone with both my horses!

Mission Accomplished!! If you follow my blog you will know that what I LOVE doing with my horses is trail riding. We have miles of trails in our town and I do not trail ride alone very often. But there are times where my girlfriend is working and so if I don’t want to ride in the arena, I have to trail ride alone with both my horses. They are very good on the trails having logged in hundreds if not thousands of miles over the last 12 years. I ride Chloe and pony Zack (which means I have Zack leading next to me with a lead line while I ride Chloe in my western saddle). Here is a photo of Zack walking next to Chloe.

I am so proud of both my ponies and I am proud of myself for finally getting out there and riding. It has been my goal after moving to this new barn to ride alone with my horses on the trails. I’m a happy cowgirl! 😀

  • After my trail ride I turned out my girlfriends horse Gracie. She is 28 years old, doesn’t she look great! She is still riding her on trail and going strong!

I decided to give both horses a bath and usually I spray them off kind of like a car. Not that the spray is really hard but it helps to spray to get the sweat and dirt off their coat. But today I just let the water run over them and boy how they loved the water just running off their backs. I took videos but because my hands were wet, I tried to dry them off and then for some reason I held my phone at an angle and both videos are sideways. I’ve been debating whether I should share, because it bugs me that I can’t rotate them so it’s not right. I suppose you can just turn your head and still see them getting this wonderful cool bath on a hot summer day! Okay, I’ve talked myself into sharing one video of Chloe. I have a video of Zack which I think you have to turn your head to the left to watch. Haha, I swear I had my phone positioned correctly – apparently not! Next time I will do better and have the video straight! It’s all a learning curve right? 😀

Goodness, I am talking kind of strange too… haha, I am just a crazy horse loving girl and so forgive the sideways video. For those of you who do not own horses I thought you would enjoy it even though you have to turn your head. At least it’s not upside down, I would not share if it was! Since I took some still photos I will finish up sharing those as this post is all about my summer fun with my ponies!!! ❤ ❤ ❤

  • Nice and clean, so soft!
  • Treat please!!
  • He is the goofy one – Silly Zack! He is nice and clean!

Thanks for coming along with me on my horsey fun. We turned out the horses, rode out on the trail, turned out my girlfriends horse and then gave Chloe and Zack a nice bath! It was a beautiful day, and I have been wanting to share. I will have to make another trail ride video soon. I have shared one already which is here if you missed it. Loving my big furry friends!

~Diana ❤

P.S. If you really want to see Zack’s video I can share on another post, let me know in the comments. It’s okay if no one comments. It’s the same watery fun only you have to turn your head to view! Lol

Weekend Coffee Share; Spring Trail Rides!

On By DianaIn Barn stories, Horse stories, Living life, weekend coffee share27 Comments
Weekend Coffee share is a time for us to take a break out of our busy lives and enjoy some time catching up with friends (old and new). Please grab a cup of coffee or tea and share with us!

I am really happy it is Spring! The weather is warming up a little bit. As a matter of fact, the weather here where I live is actually PERFECT right now and has been for the last few weeks. Other than the rainy days, the temps outside are so nice. It has been in the 60’s most days which is so comfortable. The horses don’t get too hot after a ride and the fly’s at the stables are not bad, still asleep or whatever they do when it is cool outside. The fly’s are terrible in the heat, as that is when they are most active. Sorry about going on about bugs, and the only ones we really complain about at the stables are the fly’s. Mosquitoes don’t come around until Summer, and they aren’t bad here either. We are looking at temps in the 60’s into next week where it will start to warm up into the 80’s by end of week. Great trail riding weather! Can I get you another cup of your favorite drink? I wanted to share the last two days, riding in the best weather! 😀

Let’s get ready for our trail ride Zack!
Come on Chloe! Let’s go for a ride. Today it will be just Chloe, Zack and I on the trail.
This is our tie rail where I am tacking up Chloe. My saddle is on her and Zack waiting with his trail boots on for our ride. They are well behaved and tie well.
You know I have to take a lot of photos of getting ready for our trail ride! I think Zack’s tail looks so beautiful. I make sure to keep it clean and it’s not hard. I just brush it every day! 😀

I ride Chloe and pony Zack which means that he walks with a lead line next to Chloe and I control him by keeping her by her side with his lead rope. He LOVES Chloe, and willingly walks along side her and my horses now have months of training on the trials riding side by side. I am so very proud of them and proud of myself going out and getting trail miles. It’s so fun riding with these two ponies. It is such joy to be outside listening to the birds sing and seeing the spring flowers bloom.

I had to take this photo quickly as I have a lot of ropes in my hands. Not the best photo but still wanted to share!
I am using cross-ties which is where we have hoses so we can wash them off if needed. I just washed their legs today. They are all done today, my pretty ponies! ❤

I am enjoying my weekend as I got to ride the next day with my girlfriend and her horse Gracie. I told my girlfriend I wanted to ride to River Rd. where I can get a great view of our local mountains. The last of the snow for this season is about to melt away from the last storm that blew through. I will share a photo I took of Mt. Baldy. I’ve shared this mountain before and its snow peaks, just trying to get all I can get outside this weekend. How is your weekend going? I know we all are staying home, I am lucky to be just over a mile from my stables. And our stables is open, lot’s of space and am thankful for my trail rides. It is the best therapy in the world, at least in my world.

The last of the snow on our local mountains. This is Mt. Baldy! All the trees in the foreground is the Santa Ana Riverbed. There are a lot of trails in the riverbed.
My girlfriend on Gracie and I on the trail! We are on River Rd after I took my mountain photo!

Thank you for visiting and am always so happy to hear from you. Drop me a comment or two if you feel so inclined. I always love hearing how you all are doing. My life has not really changed too much, mostly eating out is gone for now, but everything else is good. I am so thankful I can get outside not only for walks but also for my trail rides. ❤ ❤ ❤

Stay safe, stay strong! AND don’t touch your face, and always wash your hands!

Love, Diana 😀

Trail Riding Adventures!

On By DianaIn Barn stories, Horse stories, Living life10 Comments
Love this view!! Looking between the ears of my mighty steed! ❤

I started writing this blog because of my love for my horses! As the title states I definitely want to share my life but I don’t want to forget about my horse stories and so I wanted to get back to sharing my beautiful horses. I have a fun story to share, it really wasn’t scary, I suppose it could have gone awry but my calm and well trained horses took everything in stride. And the key to a great outcome is I didn’t get nervous or show fear, I was more like “really? did this just happen? “

I was out on the trail with my best friend who was riding her horse Gracie. I was riding Chloe and Zack was at her side as I was ponying him on this ride. We crossed a busy street and as we were walking along the trail and talking, I noticed that the lead rope on Zack had slipped under the front of my stirrup and went under my leg back to his head. He was walking by Chloe’s side (on my right side) and I thought this is not good, as I now have no control over his head. So I told Sally I have to stop to fix this rope and I said “Whoa” to Chloe and pulled back on her reins. As I pulled the reins, SNAP! my left rein just pulled off of her bit and I now had only one rein controlling her head!! OH NO!

Zack walking along and you can see the blue and black lead rope which went under my right leg on the stirrup of my saddle!

As I pulled Chloe’s right rein to stop I hopped off of her as fast as I could because I had no control to speak of, just turning her would not last and I have Zack to think about also. Oh dear, as I look at my rein I could see right away what happened. The leather that keeps the reins attached to the bit is called a “water loop” and the small leather pieces that ties it onto the rein had come untied! As Sally sat on her mare watching me work on the rein, she told me Zack is lose on the other side of Chloe! “What? Oh no!” BUT he just put his head down close by her and was eating some weeds and grass. I went to the other side of Chloe and took the lead rope which fell from behind the stirrup and I put it around my saddle horn. I just looped it around a couple times because I wanted to get that darn rein tied back onto Chloe’s bit!

This is a photo to show the reins coming from her bit. They are tied on and I never thought in a million years that these leather pieces would come untied! THEY DO! This is not from the day in my story as I had no time or inclination to take any photos as things unfolded!

I was very thankful that I had not lost the leather piece that needed to get threaded back through the holes in the reins and retied. I checked the other side and sure enough it had come untied once. These leather pieces are in triple knots and over time these knots loosen and come untied! YIKES! I am learning, CHECK YOUR TACK before you ride. I purposely do not have these screws that can hold your leather together. In western gear, these screws are called Chicago screws and once they come unscrewed and fall, they can be hard to find. I suppose you could carry extra, but then you would need to carry a screw driver to tighten them. English gear just has buckles, very small like how you would buckle a belt around your waist, but they can break too…. I have had a thin leather english rein break riding Chloe years ago, same scenario only I was just riding her and did not have another horse with me.

After I attached the rein, I lead the horses to a fence that runs along the trail so I could step up on a rail to get on Chloe. She is tall so a little step up is nice if one is around. As I was walking my girlfriend says “Zack is lose again!” DARN IT ALL! the rope which was just looped around my saddle horn slipped off and he was just walking over to eat again! Haha, I have to laugh, because in the end it was rather comical and I am so thankful nothing bad happened. I slip knot tied his rope back on the saddle horn, led Chloe to the fence and once on we just rode down the trail like nothing happened!! I know all the non-horse people out there may not be able to picture what happened, but I am sure thankful for very calm trail ponies!!

She is the BEST EVER Trail Pony! Miss Chloe is so calm, I LOVE her so much!
Chloe and I, my girl, she is the sweetest horse I have ever owned!!!
I rode Zack the next day!
Zack is so silly, he would not open his eyes! He probably didn’t like the rim of my hat. HAHA! I have to share anyways!
He is a goof ball. This is him begging for a treat! Silly boy!

I enjoyed sharing my trail fiasco as anything can happen and am very thankful my girlfriend was with me as I was so busy attending to Chloe and the reins I could not keep an eye on Zack. I may have been more nervous or upset if I had been by myself when all of this happened. I just know that remaining calm in a sticky situation is key to a much better outcome! How do you handle problems that arise that are out of your control, until you can get things back in control again?? Haha, that was a really long question. I hope you enjoyed my trail story. I have SO MUCH FUN with these horses. They bring me much joy and happiness. ❤ ❤ ❤

They melt my heart!

Crazy horse loving cowgirl!

~Diana

Weekend Coffee Share; Trail Riding Success!

On By DianaIn Barn stories, Horse stories, Living life, weekend coffee share12 Comments

Weekend Coffee share is a time for us to take a break out of our busy lives and enjoy some time catching up with friends (old and new)! Please grab a cup of coffee or tea and share with us! What’s been going on in your life? any weekend plans?

I am completely enjoying this month as we move into fall. You can smell it in the air as we cool down especially at night so the mornings stay fairly cool for many hours. The nights will start to dip down into the 50’s soon a very welcome reprieve from the summer months. I often mention how time flies as we get older, it just goes by faster each year so it seems. I really do try and savor each day. I have dreams for the future that sometimes feel out of reach, so instead of getting frustrated I try and concentrate on each day to each week. It does make life more fulfilling this way in my eyes! How is your coffee this morning? I had a delicious cup with my oatmeal and english muffin. Or maybe you are drinking tea? I have been having a wonderful time this last month trail riding on my horses, and it took some experimenting but I figured out a way to pony Zack next to Chloe with little to no biting. I’ll explain!

Miss Chloe and Zack, I ride Chloe and have Zack follow on the lead line. This is SO DIFFERENT for me and my youth training of riding Hunter/ Jumpers. This is a whole new discipline of riding that I am enjoying very much! ❤
I ride Miss Chloe with a short rein that is easy to hold, since I have to hold Zack’s lead rope as well. I am getting very comfortable with them both. TONS OF FUN!
I bought a trail riding muzzle, not very successful! He can still be annoying!

When I started on my trail rides ponying Zack I started with just his blue halter with a stud shank (the chain that is attached to the halter) and the lead rope. For those of you who do not know horses, the stud shank chain adds a bit of strength for us puny humans. Most horses weigh around 1,000 pounds give or take 100 pounds. (Zack weighs about 1,000 pounds, Chloe weighs just over 1,200 pounds. We use a tape that measures their height on one side of the tape and measures their weight on the other side that goes around their barrel/belly and approximates how much they weigh. We use it for treatment purposes, as I have to watch Zack’s weight because he has Insulin resistance a metabolic syndrome older horses sometimes acquire as they age. It is nice to have if you want to see how tall your horse is too!)

Zack knows his strength and my sister and I have had him just put his head down with us holding the lead rope while we lead him and he would trot off pulling us on the other end! He is too strong and he knows exactly what he is doing and so we have to let go or be dragged. I have been working on his ground manners with GREAT SUCCESS! And he hasn’t tried to “run off” like that in some years. But I do not want to lose him on the trail, should he shy or spook at something I want as much control of him as I can while riding Chloe. This chain works PERFECT! It goes over their nose and up the side and they have nerves on their nose which when pressured applied, they will comply. It doesn’t hurt him unless he tries to pull away. He actually LOVES Chloe so he stays pretty close, but that’s where the biting comes into play. He just nips and bites her butt, side or my leg as I ride! He is such a brat!!!

He can actually bite the lead rope through the muzzle I bought him which I show in the last photo above. He can grab the lead rope with the muzzle and lead rope in his mouth and then pull and pull on my arm. UGH! He then bumps Chloe trying to bite her through the muzzle which after awhile she gets VERY ANNOYED! STOP IT ZACK!!

I decided to try a bridle with a bit and I took off the reins. Low and behold he is so much happier with the bit in his mouth. He has an oral fixation and just chews and chews on the bit and rarely tries to bite as we ride along. I finally found a solution to my problem as the trail rides were getting more and more annoying with all the nipping and biting. I was about to give up, but it is absolutely the best thing I started doing because I can exercise both horses at the same time and he really needs the exercise! It is usually 30 up to 50 minutes of walking depending on the trails we choose to ride on any given day.

I am a happy cowgirl, thankful for my ponies and the fun and joy they bring to my life. I was asked on my weekly smile to share a photo of my haircut. So I will share what I took here. 😀 weekly smile

I didn’t share because I thought it was a little blurry in the background. I love my color as it always comes out great. Thank you Preference by L’Oreal! Hehe!
I can barely braid it now that its cut, but a small braid is better than none. I like a braid for the stables as I ride with a helmet. So now I have a short braid, better than no braid at all! Haha!

I hope you have a wonderful weekend and thank you for stopping by my weekend coffee share! I am heading to the stables and am thinking this will be bath day for my ponies. Zack is starting to grow his winter coat and each year I always pray it won’t grow to thick. I know I am hoping for a miracle because he just grows a super thick coat like he lives in Alaska or something. I will just shave the hair off once November arrives. It is just to hard to manage in this warm winter climate here in So Cal. Chloe does not grow a long coat, Love that girl! ❤

Happy trail riding Cowgirl!

~Diana ❤