Hoodoos on Horseback – July 9, 2018

Before I say anything about today’s adventure, I want to express our amazement with how the Parks Department has upgraded the Grand Canyon making it accessible to every American and foreign visitor.  We had forgotten that our GC is one of the seven wonders of world until this trip which probably explains why English is not heard very much anywhere in the park.  There are visitors from all over the world who come to see this great treasure.  The park has something for everyone and if its not on your bucket list, you may want to think about adding it, (except maybe our friends with a fear of heights).

View along the way to Bryce Canyon from Grand Canyon

We were on the road by 5:15 this morning because we had a 1:15 pm tour in Bryce Canyon and heard there was construction delays on one of the roads.  Besides, we were up anyway!

Our Bryce Canyon adventure was a mule/horse ride into the canyon and back out.  It has been 50 years since I did any serious horseback riding and, truthfully, I was a little apprehensive about getting back in the saddle at all, much less down into a deep canyon.  But Jim had done it back in the 1980s and wanted to do it again so why not.

Jim and I each got a horse instead of a mule.  According to the wrangler, Jim’s horse, Buckets, was lazy and my horse, Blaze, was mean.

MG on Blaze, take notice he was tied up till we were ready to go

Not a good beginning in my mind.  Then I remembered why I gave up riding; it’s a long way up to the stirrup to get into the saddle from down here where my legs start and end!  Nothing like making a scene right off the bat.  Once in the saddle, I could see what they meant by mean.  Any time a horse or mule came near Blaze he would pull his ears back flat like he wanted to kick or bite.  Oh boy!  Do I really need this?

Off we go, with Jim in front of me and as the group of 35 or so split up, I wound up being the last in our group.  We were given strict instructions not to fall behind and to stay about 3 feet away from the horse in front of you.  I could watch Jim continually have to kick Buckets and encourage him to keep up, while I was trying to keep Blaze at a distance so he wouldn’t bite or kick anyone.  We started down the trail into the base of the canyon and the wrangler said they are trained to walk the edge of the trail but don’t panic because none of the animals are suicidal.  Every time we got incredibly close to the edge I just repeat, “your not suicidal remember”, which got me down with only sweaty palms.  About half way down, Buckets had to relieve himself again and came to a full stop.  The wrangler behind me told Jim to get him moving again because he just went and was just wasting time.  Well OK!

The views were spectacular whenever I took my eyes off the trail and Jim got some really good pictures.

View of the canyon from the top rim as we entered the Horse Trail

About half way around the canyon floor, we realized the mule in front of Jim was powered by natural gas which lingered long enough for us to ride through it.  That was also the point when I realized Buckets must be an older male horse with prostate issues.  In the meantime, Blaze and I had bonded.  After about 45 minutes my bottom was sore and I was wishing we had done this before I lost those 10 pounds.

Coming back up from bottom of the Canyon

The red towers in the canyon are called hoodoos created by the erosion over time from the elements.  They have very different and distinct shapes and they are given names to help identify them.  The only one I remembered seeing was called the Queen and hope it was not named after Queen Elizabeth because it was ugly.

On our way back up the canyon trail, I noticed Jim was dropping the reins and letting Buckets do all the work while he took pictures.  Blaze on the other hand was getting really tired and I had to keep kicking him to move but my legs had gone numb which made it hard.  I can’t tell who was happier to get back, me or Blaze.  I will admit, the wrangler had to help me off and I could not walk for awhile until the feeling came back.

On the drive to the hotel, we passed the Red Canyon where you had to drive through two rock tunnels and  took in some awesome views.

Tomorrow we drive to Ventura to celebrate my Grandson’s and my birthday.  We will be writing more when we resume our adventure on the 14th.  Come back, promise!