"2008 - Scenes at the White Stallion Ranch (1)" Tucson Travelogue by Kaspian

My first real horseback ride ever! ... Other than those pony rides they have at the fair when you're a little kid and some guy leads you and your tiny animal around the inside of a pen.
Because of my outrageous height, they brought out a tall horse for me--an 11 year-old gelding (which means a castrated male--something I didn't know before that weekend) named "Mesa." The White Stallion originally bought him cheap from a different ranch where he had been classified as "lame" and couldn't even walk very well. But the vet at the White Stallion found two rocks embedded deep in his hoof and he was good as new once they took the stones out. Poor thing!

He Already Knows Where to Go (2008)

I never imagined that horses had such personality! On the morning ride it took about an hour before I realized Mesa kept playing little games on me--stopping to munch bramble brushes and trees when he thought I wasn't paying attention; testing the limits to see if I was the boss or if he was. The second trip, later that afternoon, I gave him a horse cookie "treat" before we left, one halfway through the ride, and one at the end. He could smell that I had them in my pocket and was good as gold the whole ride. ...The beggar.

After only one day of riding I loved my horse and felt very protective of him--didn't even like the idea of anyone else ever riding him. I learned that people can't understand the relationship between a cowboy and a horse unless they've experienced it because out there you depend on each other for survival--each has to fully trust the other.

On the Trail (2008)

The wranglers were great! "Wranglers" are the people that take care of the horses and lead the trail rides. If you're lucky enough to be near one during one of the rides they'll answer questions, help you with your technique, point out mountain ridges of interest, animals, and identify certain plants. They always greeted everyone with a "Mornin'!" or a "Howdy!" Some of them had left professional white-collar jobs that paid three times as much to come work on this ranch. ...And I can't say I blame them one bit. If the ranch had asked me to stay on, I definitely would have.

Cowboy Campfire Singalong (2008)

Next Page >>