Bear Valley After-Action Report, Part II

Well, the next day dawned cold and overcast- perfect for riding, so long as it doesn't rain. After tacking up the horses, we proceeded to hit the trail. Things went relatively fine, even after getting lost a couple of times (no big deal there).

Max was acting up a bit because he was struggling for keep up with a Thoroughbred who could walk much faster- Max would struggle to keep up and then keep trotting and sometimes jig. Worse, I have come to the conclusion that Max likes to be the leader and it wasn't until the occassional moment that he was in the lead that Max would actually relax. It was not a very fun ride and in the future, I'm going to give more consideration to the breed of horse I'm riding with. It's just not fun and the other riders were probably ticked off. Oh well, you can only do so much with what you have.

Our party then split up and three of us proceeded to head on a trail towards the mountains (we were already an approximately 4000 foot elevation). No problem I thought, I've done this a lot of times and Max is a pretty fit horse. However, I was also using my new/used Western saddle and it weighs substantially more than what I've used in the past (why the hell I didn't think of this earlier escapes me)...

Several miles later, the trail began to climb and we went up about a 1000 feet in 2 miles- a pretty steep grade. Worse, the trail is a narrow single-track trail so if something happens, there's NOWHERE to go except down and that's a pretty steep drop-off. As we made out way, a deer popped out from behind a bush and scared the horse behind me. Before I knew it, the horse and rider to my rear had spun out and was now some 50 feet down the slope. Fortunately, at this point, we were on a piece that had about 200 feet of gentle slope before the sheer drop-off. Oh, did I also mention that there was a great view of the San Joaquin Valley?

We finally managed to get everthing sorted out but in the interest of safety, we decided to walk the horses downhill once we'd cleared the ridge. That was fun constantly having to keep Max from stepping on me as I led him. We must have walked about three more miles up some more steep trail and by this time both Max and I were getting pretty exhausted and I realized that the altitude was beginning to take its toll on us. My big fear here was that Max would tie up- tieing up basically happens when the horse doesn't get enough Oxygen so the muscles are not getting enough Oxygen and they literally "lock up". If that happens, then you're screwed because any attempt to force the horse to move will result in severe muscle damage.

We proceeded slowly, keeping the horse moving to prevent muscle cramping and trying to give Max a change to breathe more and work less. As for myself, I felt like crap and it suddenly dawned on me that I am not the same person I was at 21- I could got for more miles on foot with no problem at any altitude but that was some 20 pounds and 20 years ago when I was in the Army. Boy, did I feel like an idiot.

Fortunately, after another five miles, the trail crossed a major roadway and at that point I turned off and followed it back down into the valley and back to camp. I don't think my companions were too happy but in reality, the trail was a lot longer and harder than anyone expected and we wouldn't have gotten back until after dark (which didn't seem like a fun prospect in a forest at night on mountainous trails). I was more concerned about Max's well-being than my ego and that's just the way it went.

When I got back to camp, Max had recovered somewhat and I mixed up a special bucket of feed and electrolytes. I never saw a horse consume his feed and water so fast. I knew we were OK when he then proceeded to pass a ton of urine and manure (how do you think they make Coors beer... ). Anyway, lesson learned- I got my ass kicked because I wasn't prepared sufficiently and used the wrong saddle. Fortunately, Max is forgiving.