Chip Goes to Horseshoe Bend

 Last month, I took Chip on his first serious off property trail ride (second formal field trip). It was the first time he'd meet other horses away from home. In fact, there were several first. Baby's first biting bugs. Baby's first time breaking a sweat. Baby's first bridges. Baby's first rocky climb. It was such a good day that I'm still beaming just thinking about it.

Cheesin' so hard! 

Terra and I were originally planning a Sunday ride at HSB. Unfortunately, Terra threw our her back. She still wanted to ride, but warned me that she might have to go slow and keep it short. This sounded like perfect baby horse conditions so I asked if she would mind if I brought the kid along. Then Taylor expressed interest in joining us, which I was delighted about. Terra agreed to go get Taylor and we decided to meet around 12:30. 

I actually don't think I've had Chip in the trailer since I took him to Deer Path Park, but I wasn't too worried. He definitely gets the concept and I don't believe in drilling just for the sake of repetition. I was tickled pink when he self loaded right into the trailer and set to work on the hay in the manger. 

The ride over was uneventful and a bit further than Deer Path. Chip seems very happy in the trailer, and he did ride home alone from Dodie's at just four months old, but I'm still trying to work up to longer hauls slowly. 

We arrived at the park a few minutes before our friends, and Chip seemed quite chipper when I opened the side door to check on him.

"Hello!"

We unloaded and I tied the horses together on the same side of the trailer. 

He is starting to get more adult proportions, but he's still so tiny. 

Our friends arrived a few minutes later and I got Lucy tacked up. Chip quickly discovered that there were cookies in the saddle bags and was hard at work trying to get them out of the pockets and into his mouth. I will be in a lot of trouble if he figures out zippers. 

Chip was very excited to meet the other horses, and showed no fear. He took an immediate liking to his Uncle Roger and was doing a little tiny stallion neck in greeting. He is the least clacky baby I've ever met and it cracks me up. (Nadirah was slightly less warm in her welcome, but it's good for Chip to learn boundaries.)

This was Taylor's first time meeting Chip too.

Soon we were mounted and on our way down the trail. We agreed to start in the fields where there would be a lot of room and the footing would be easy. Taylor was bravely heading out bareback for our jaunt. 

Chip wants to lead.

Heading towards the north side of the park.

We took a brief detour on our way to the fields. I wanted Chip to see his first bridge. We decided to head over the bridge and back. Taylor and Terra got the cameras ready for Baby's First Bridge Crossing. It was a total non event. He did give the railing the hairy eyeball, but didn't even hesitate before following Lucy across. What a good, brave baby!

Down at the creek, we met up with a couple who were hiking. They were excited to see horses, and especially the baby. They asked if Lucy was his mom (or if he went with one of the other horses we were riding). I asked if they had encountered anyone else (particularly dog walkers). They said they hadn't seen another soul, which was perfect.

The couple also asked if they could take our picture and I said yes, but only if they sent it to us!

The matching outfits were not on purpose.

After the creek crossing, I asked Taylor and Terra if they would be ok if I let Chip loose. I love to let him explore on his own terms, and Lucy definitely appreciates not having him in her bubble as much. Plus this would be a good way for him to figure out the dynamics of a group ride at a young age. (This is something I didn't get to do with Booger until she was much older, and it has definitely backfired in some ways.)

I don't think anybody was opposed to having the yearling romping along at liberty, so I set the menace free.

The moment he realized he was free! The tail ❤

We spent a good long while out in the fields that afternoon, and I think we were all equally amused by the addition of the yearling to our ride. Chip was also having the time of his life. He quickly decided that he adores Roger, and Roger was being very sweet and gentle with him (though at times he looked like was wondering if this was a funny cow that needed to be herded). Nadi was a little skeptical of the loose youngster running around us, but she seemed to settle as the ride went by and was very tolerant of young horse bouncing and bebopping. 

Chip spent time leading, following, and being in the middle. He practiced his grab-and-go technique, and was never far from the other horses. I periodically practiced calling him to me and rewarding him with snacks when he came over, but I mostly have the opposite problem. I can't get him to bugger off most of the time. 

The adult horses mostly moseyed, but Chip alternated between walking along and trotting ahead. Sometimes he paused to snack or explore and then cantered to catch up. Nothing seemed to scare him at all and he didn't hesitate at the variety of footing. He is already better about following behind the group than Booger will probably ever be.

Sampling the salad bar.

Buddying up to Roger.

Sidequest.

Snacking on the run.

Baby's first cornfield.

Brave boy leading the way.

I love this photo so much!

After our initial lap around the fields, we decided to continue on for another round. We headed in the general direction of the dog park. 

At a certain point, both Taylor and I wanted to canter, but we didn't want to ditch Nadirah. We decided to take turns. Taylor went first, and I was hoping Chip would go with Roger for a run. What happened next was adorable! Chip clearly wanted to go with the fast, fun horse, but he knows he's with me/Lucy. As Roger drew away, Chip picked up a trot, but then seemed to have a conundrum. He slowed back to a walk and looked over his shoulder for me, letting Roger go. It was very cute, and I promised him I'd take him for a leg stretcher next.

We caught up to Roger and I left Terra with Taylor while I took Lucy back down the trail we'd just come up. Chip followed me like a good egg. Then we turned around and cantered back to the group. Chip was celebrating and throwing his head around and just being generally silly. We all got a good giggle out of that one.

After that, it was back down the center of the field, which is when I spotted a Scoot Boot pastern strap in the grass! Angela had lost her boot here earlier in the month. We paused to take a look. Sure enough, Terra and Taylor spotted it in the grass. Success!

Chip suspects the world is bigger than he thought.

Family portrait time!

Lucy is not sure how she feels about The Pest.

Good friends will come trail riding with you. Great friends will humor you while you set your baby horse loose in the world.

By this point, Chip was pretty itchy. As I mentioned above, this was his first time working hard enough to break a sweat (just barely). He was also experiencing green heads for the first time. He found a pretty clever solution to his woes, which was to do a drive by on Lucy and basically rub his body down hers like a cat. At first, Lucy was not amused, but I think she eventually realized that this was scratching her itchy spots too, so she allowed it. Ridiculous.

This butt is great for scratching.

Soon we were making our way back to the woods and into the creek.

"You guys comin'?"

We spent a while letting the horses just hang out and cool off in the shade. Chip splashed right in and wandered down stream. He even took a good, long drink. Gooooood future trail pony.

We were definitely ready to start winding down, but we opted to take the longer way around to get back to the trailers. This meant another trip across the bridge. This time, he traipsed right across without the lead rope. Perfect!

No fear.

After that, we had a little bit of a hill climb, which included some rocks. This was different from what Chip has seen before, but he handled it like a pro. He slowed down, picked his footing carefully, and didn't seem to have any complaints. 

He'll be ready for OD in no time! (Just kidding.)

After that, we came to the long, skinny foot bridge. While it is designed with horses in mind, I don't normally ride across it because there's a perfectly good go around. This time, I decided to ride across the bridge while Terra and Taylor rode through the ditch on the right. I was curious to see which way Chip would pick, and I was delighted when he chose the scary bridge!

Seriously, he's so brave!

When Chip realized he could go down in the ditch, I was cracking up. He was doing circles... over the bridge, through the ditch, over the bridge... Hilarious.

We finished following the orange loop back to the park driveway and then the trailers. With about half a mile to go, I called Chip over to me and put him back on the lead rope. 

Then, after a perfectly pleasant experience, one guy just had to go ruin it. We were back at the trailers and I had both horses tied. I turned my back for half a second and a mountain biker came flying up the driveway in his Subaru. He was going so fast I never even saw him until it was too late. Chip panicked, hit the end of the lead rope, and fell down. He was uninjured, but it was not a good experience. 

The guy did stop after the baby fell down and asked, "Oh, wow, was that my fault?"
I did have it in me to be nice, so I snarked, "Yeah, little bit, bro..."
"Oh... sorry..."

Dude. Slow the fuck down. The speed limit is 15mph in the park. What if there was a child next to the driveway. Grrrrr....

Luckily, Chip was no worse for the wear and Lucy was very careful not to step on him while he scrambled back to his feet. I'm glad I had him tied long so he didn't set back or break his neck. 

With that misadventure behind us, we had one more first to handle: Baby's First Power Washing. The park has running water, which is awesome. The water pressure is intense. I personally love it, but it can be a lot for a horse to take in. I thought Chip would be nervous about the powerful water flow, but as soon as he realized it was bath time, he jumped right in. I think he was thrilled to not be itchy any more. When I brought Lucy down, he actually kept pushing her out of the way to get another turn. I was laughing all over again. I am having way too much fun with this chap. 

Nice and clean.

After that, we took all the horses for a hand graze and walk. The adults all took turns rolling. Chip wasn't sure what that was all about, but he looked intrigued. I'm sure he'll figure that out when he's older. 

Chip hopped in the trailer to go home just as eagerly as he had to come on the adventure. When we got to the barn, he was happily eating hay and in no hurry to unload. 

Over all, it was a very successful day, which I think everyone enjoyed. I am itching to do it again! 

We ended up doing a little over seven miles, which was the longest adventure Chip has been on to date. (Again, we walked pretty much the whole thing, and it's nothing more than he would have done if he was living in a wild herd.) If you think the kid was tired after we got home, you don't know The Pest. He immediately trotted across the field and tackled Lilly, then went off to play a game of chase with Booger. 

I appear to have another energizer bunny on my hands... pray for me.