Trail Log: 3-7-2026

Jim and Whiskey

• Trail: S. Eagle Eye - Tiger Wash
• Miles: 6.17
• Riders: Self - Jim - Celia
• Horses: Drifter - Whiskey - Dirt
• Dogs: No

Celia and Dirt

Notes: We unloaded at the spot formerly known as the first windmill and loped up the wash before popping out and heading toward Browns Canyon. It was gusty at times and more so on top the ridges and hills. Celia and I carry apps that track our mileage. Jim does not - but if Celia and I rode 6 miles - Jim must have rode 12. He's like taking along your bird dog that lopes out a head of you and circles back now and then. A couple times I thought we lost him but we'd hear his whistling in the distance and he'd eventually pop back up. 

Loping down Tiger Wash

Trail Log: 3-6-2026

Trail: E. Hwy 71 - Mile Post 99 - South

• Miles: 5.12
• Riders: Self - Celia
• Horses: Jack - Dirt
• Dogs: No

Notes: Finally, we get some time to ride. Celia has been busy with her Canyon Cowgirl Leather business and I've been busy doing other stuff. We drove east on 71 until we found a State Land gate that looked promising. We picked a good one! Cool rock formations and lots of vegetation. It was windy outside of the canyon we rode up but as long as we stayed between the hills, it was nice. We explored the area and marked it for further exploration. Celia saw one little snake but didn't get a good look at it to tell what kind.  

Trail Log: 3-3-2026

Drifter waiting patiently for the videagraphy to end

• Trail: State Land - Back Gate - Tank
• Miles: 5.19
• Riders: Self - Jim H
• Horses: Drifter - Whiskey 
• Dogs: Groot - Harley 

Notes: I have been helping Jim shoot videos for his Webcast "Hansons Horse Sense." I took him behind my place to the tank. It is a nice spot with pretty views. Other than shooting at the wrong time of day (sun glare) they turned out pretty good. 

Jim and Whiskey 

Trail Log: 3-2-2026

The "bromance" continues LOL

• Trail: State Land - Back Gate - Aguila
• Miles: 6.10
• Riders: Self - Dan L. - Mike D
• Horses: Jack - Bullseye - Big Drifter
• Dogs: Groot - Harley - Boo

Notes: Mike came to visit so we took him on a ride out in the desert. He rode Big Drifter - who was originally his horse before Dan and Robyn bought him last year. Mike hasn't ridden much outside the arena  and is a fairly new rider at that. He started mounted shooting and riding at the same time. He is super competitive and has moved up quickly and just one his first overall-overall at the last ACMSA shoot...which is amazing.  

Harley follows along very well!

2-26-2026

Flag pole looking good! 

• Trail: Aguila - Back Gate - State Land
• Miles: 5.5
• Riders: Self - Celia 
• Horses: Jack - Dirt
• Dogs: Groot - Boo

Notes: About a week prior to this ride, I found an odd, Styrofoam  item that turned out to be a sensor/detector/meter for atmospheric monitoring. About a quarter mile east and a week later, I found the weather balloon it was attached to. Weird...

Watering the dogs

Weather balloon

Trail Log: 2-6-2026

• Trail: Robson's Mining World
• Miles: 6.18
• Riders: Self - Jim H
• Horses: Drifter - Rowdy
• Dogs: No

Mining World

Notes: Played tour guide again and took Jim to Robson's Mining World. We tied up outside the town entrance and took a tour of the facility. Machelle was busy with a large group so she attached us to "Gary." I'm not 100% positive his name is Gary but he looks like a Gary. He was a great tour guide and I am happy that Machelle has a helper and is not up there alone. After the tour, we rode through town up the canyon to the end before looping back. 

The sheep! I forgot to mention that on the way in, we saw a band of mountain sheep just before coming into town. I've hear they are in the area but have not seen them until now. Gary was surprised they were that close  as he had never seen them that far off the mountains. It was pretty cool. The horses were convinced it wasn't nearly as cool as we thought but they managed OK. 

Horse eating sheep

Trail Log: 2-5-2026

• Trail: S. Eagle Eye - Tank
• Miles: 6.5
• Riders: Self - Celia
• Horses: Jack - Smoothie
• Dogs: Groot - Boo

Notes: Celia took her filly Smoothie for an outing. She is turning into a really nice ride. We rode toward Browns Canyon to the watering hole and looped back a ways past the wilderness boundary. 

Trail Log: 1-30-2026

Rudy looks more like a shrunken apple-head named RUBY

• Trail: N. Eagle Eye to Rudy Pass
• Miles: 10
• Riders: Self - Celia
• Horses: Dirt - Jack
• Dogs: Groot

Notes: Rode up N. Eagle Eye toward the Sleeping Giant through Rudy's Pass to the top. We checked on the geo-cache we left a couple months ago. It's still there!

Snags and Nags GC

Trail Log: 1-29-2026

• Trail: Wickenburg Stagecoach Massacre Site
• Miles: 7.83
• Riders: Self - Jim H. 
• Horses: Drifter - Rowdy
• Dogs: None

Notes: Jim spends most of his time giving lessons and clinics and hasn't explored much beyond where he spends winters outside of Congress. I took him to the Wickenburg Stagecoach massacre site. I have been there several times but I've never gotten to it the same way twice. I left my GPS at home to see if I could find it without it. I figured if I got us lost I could tell him anything and he wouldn't know: "See that pile of  rocks right there..that's where they buried one of the bodies. Cool, huh?" 

Jim and Rowdy

Trail Log: 1-24-2026

• Trail: Back gate to Sheep/Donkey Ruins
• Miles: 12
• Riders: Self - Jim H. 
• Horses: Jack - Oakie - Whiskey 
• Dogs: Groot - Boo

Notes: I have been taking mounted shooting/horsemanship lessons from clinician Jim Hanson while he is in Arizona. I took a clinic from him years ago when he was at the Diamond P shoot in West Yellowstone. I learned more in that one short session than any clinic I've done before or after. I normally hold practice at my arena on Wednesday's but everyone had other obligations so I offered to take Jim on a tour of the sheep/donkey containment ruins. 

Hanson's Horse Sense website

Trail Log: 1-16-2026

Celia on Smoothie towing Dirt

• Trail: Hwy 60 - NW Wickenburg
• Miles: 4.86
• Riders: Self - Celia
• Horses: Jack - Dirt - Smoothie
• Dogs: No

Notes: Celia's little filly Smoothie is back from the trainer and ready for miles under saddle. She rode Dirt in and Smoothie out. So far she is a nice little filly and should be a good one. Nothing seems to bother her. She looks to be taking to mounted shooting well too as we worked with her last week exposing her to gunfire. She didn't bobble an ear. It is warmer than normal here in AZ and the weather has been awesome. 

Finally got a flag up

Trail Log: 1-12-2026

Ruins...whether sheep or burro

• Trail: Eagle Eye - Sheep/Burro Ruins
• Miles: 4.18    
• Riders: Self - Robyn
• Horses: Jack - Big Driffter
• Dogs: Groot

Notes: Roby needed a break and she has not been to the ruins. We hauled to Eagle Eye and rode in to the ruins. I've been told in the past they were built for sheep but recently was told it is a burro containment for the mines. That actually makes more sense as there are mines all around the ruins and burros were used in the mines. Not much can be found on them but I'll dig deeper when I have time in an attempt to find out more info on them. Whatever they are...it's one of my favorite spots in this area.

Robyn  and Big Drifter

 

Trail Log: 1-11-2026

• Trail: State Land - Transformers to home
• Miles: 5.58
• Riders: Self
• Horses: Drifter
• Dogs: Groot

Notes: I hauled Drifter to the transformers west off hwy 60. I parked the truck and trailer and started to ride to my place.  My plan was to ride Drifter home, swap horses and ride Jack back to get my rig. It was fairly uneventful for the most part. About half way home, Drifter got animated quick and was spooked by something coming up behind us. I expected it to be Groot. It was not Groot. At first it looked like a big hairy dog...too big for a coyote and the wrong color. I quickly rationalized it was not a dog but a javelina trotting up behind us. I'm guessing this is the first time Driff has encountered such a beast! I really don't know much about them other than some say they are technically not a pig but a rodent. Other research just calls them "pig like" peccary. Whatever they are - if they look like a pig, sound like a pig, act like a pig and smell like a pig...it's probably a pig! Plus, horses are terrified of them...same as they are pigs. I've never had my horses try to jump out from under me when a kangaroo rat strolled by. Drifter handled it pretty well and I let him scoot on through the wash and put distance between us and "it." I doubt it was chasing us. I imagine Groot scared it up and it was trotting away from Groot and didn't know it was heading right toward us. Like pigs...these non-pig big rats have poor eyesight! Damn things are pigs...I don't care what Wikipedia says. 

We made it home without another pig/rat sighting. It was a beautiful day after several pretty cold ones. I caught a ride back to my truck instead of saddling Jack so I could help Dan and Robyn transport their RV (used to be my RV) to Forepaugh to it's eventual new owners. 

No, I didn't get a picture of the javelina. I didn't get a picture of the ones Jack and I encountered several years ago either. I was too busy trying to not get ejected from my saddle!