Last night it was so hot (106 during the day out in the San Fernando Valley) that a group of us decided to start out after the sun had begun to set, roughly 8 PM. We rode out up the wash towards the Cowpens/Electric lines and it was a relatively pleasant ride although you could actually feel warm thermals at several points along the wash (it's bascially a wide canyon you ride up).
We finally made it up to the electric lines and then began to circle back by following the fire road and linking up with the lower Doc Larsen Trail. By this point it was getting dark so I was increasingly dependent on Max to find the way. Fortunately, he was well-behaved and actually thought about where he was placing his feet.
The work we'd done on the Doc Larsen Trail last weekend really paid off in that the weeds were cleared back and you could get a good idea where the trail led, except of course when you entered a shady area, which by now were pitch black. But even here, Max found his way with no problems.
Things got a little interesting when at one point, while making our way back through the wash, the horses saw something potentially threatening and Max began to prance about. My companions told me it was a deer but I couldn't see a thing. I managed to calm Max down and keep him moving so there were no mishaps (thank god!).
By the time we hit the open area just south of Middle Ranch, a full moon had come out and was lighting up the entire area and the temperature was finally cooling down. We were out for about an hour and a half but it was pretty awesome. I've done a lot of riding at night but I still can't get over the limited visibility in darkness. The horses have much better night vision so they can move a lot better than we can and you just have to have complete trust and confidence in your horse- there were places that all I could do is keep a relaxed seat and hope Max made the right decision.
If the weather keeps up this way, I may be doing more riding at night.
We finally made it up to the electric lines and then began to circle back by following the fire road and linking up with the lower Doc Larsen Trail. By this point it was getting dark so I was increasingly dependent on Max to find the way. Fortunately, he was well-behaved and actually thought about where he was placing his feet.
The work we'd done on the Doc Larsen Trail last weekend really paid off in that the weeds were cleared back and you could get a good idea where the trail led, except of course when you entered a shady area, which by now were pitch black. But even here, Max found his way with no problems.
Things got a little interesting when at one point, while making our way back through the wash, the horses saw something potentially threatening and Max began to prance about. My companions told me it was a deer but I couldn't see a thing. I managed to calm Max down and keep him moving so there were no mishaps (thank god!).
By the time we hit the open area just south of Middle Ranch, a full moon had come out and was lighting up the entire area and the temperature was finally cooling down. We were out for about an hour and a half but it was pretty awesome. I've done a lot of riding at night but I still can't get over the limited visibility in darkness. The horses have much better night vision so they can move a lot better than we can and you just have to have complete trust and confidence in your horse- there were places that all I could do is keep a relaxed seat and hope Max made the right decision.
If the weather keeps up this way, I may be doing more riding at night.
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