Gotta toughen up these pretty hooves again! I can't get over how great they're starting to look.
"No thanks Mom, I'll just hang here with my new blonde girlfriend"
We took a new route today, one that loops to the back of the property that we hadn't been to in a while, they've been doing construction back there so it's been off-limits, but it was closed on Sunday. Once we reached the construction area, there were hoofprints so I figured we were clear to walk back there, no "keep out" signs or anything. Calvin did really well, I would have gotten pictures but I was wearing gloves (sun protection, yo!) and it doesn't work with my phone (#firstworldproblems). Anyway, it had a nice view of the mountains and we were above the trees for part of it. Calvin only briefly lost his mind when he saw construction fencing blowing in the wind.
Not on our trail (way too much grass), but a great example of what the horse-eating black fence looked like
So after a great trail ride we head back to the barn only to find they've blocked off the back entrance. Well, I sure as hell wasn't riding another 3 miles to the front entrance in 12pm, 95ยบ blazing sun. The back entrance barricade was a steep dirt pile. I decided to dismount because this dirt pile was concerning to Calvin. So I jumped down and hiked up this thing with Calvin in tow. The dirt was loose so we had a minor avalanche effect that made Calvin slightly worried, but he realized he wasn't falling pretty quickly and stood his ground despite the dirt sliding around him, good boy! Happy to be on the other side, I realized the back entrance to the property was fenced off :( Whoever put up the fence probably assumed no one in their right mind would go through the dense underbrush on either side and assumed this was sufficient to block horse and rider. But I don't have just any horse, I have a serious off-roading mustang! So we climb through some intense brush that ranged from knee height to up past my head. And keep in mind these are tumbleweed consistency plants that are overly dry and evil. However, my happy mustang had no problem stepping through the dense shrub that was touching his legs, belly, and his sides. Good horse.
Alright so we made it past the dirt barricade and the fence and shrub that underestimated my determination to get home. All clear right? We can head back? No. There's yet ANOTHER fence, this time creating a complete barrier with thick tree branches on either side. After climbing under the tree and realizing there's no way that I could fit a horse through there, it was either turn around and give up, or step over the 2.5' fence. Perhaps you can guess which I decided? If not, you underestimated my determination again because I said "Calvin you're stepping over this because I'll be damned if I just went through all this work to turn around." He didn't argue, but instead not-so-gracefully stepped on the fence and took it down. Oops. Luckily it broke cleanly and Calvin nonchalantly kept walking as if breaking a fence is nothing new (yeah it's definitely not anything new). Now I don't recommend breaking down fences to go somewhere off-limits, but if you find you're accidentally off-limits and just want to get home, sometimes you just do what you have to do.
Horse-1, Safety Fence-0 (Again not my picture, just a representation of "safety fence")
I was really proud that Calvin trusted me enough to follow me over all sorts of terrain and obstacles. This proves to me that if there's ever any type of emergency that requires leaving the groomed path and going over/through truly wild terrain, Calvin will willingly do so. I believe this level-headedness that Calvin exhibited in new and difficult circumstances is what makes a truly spectacular trail horse.
Post-workout reward: a bunch of carrots and the usual buffet of hay with good company
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