On another beautiful New Mexico Fall day, my friend Yvonne and I decided to enjoy a ride at Juan Tomas Open Space. Yvonne drove over to my house and we put her mare, Etta Bay, into my trailer with Apache and I drove us over to the trail head.
Yvonne and I and our Trail Selfie!
Apache and I leading the way.
Yvonne is always happy and enjoying being out in nature riding her horse.
I've been riding, hiking and mountain biking the Oak Flats/Juan Tomas trails for over 6 years and know them like I know my own backyard.
So, imagine my surprise while we are riding the familiar loop trail, when we stop for a moment to visit and let our horses munch some grass, and I look down and spy a trail that I had never seen before.
In fact, it didn't really even look like a trail. It looked more like a small, shallow arroyo. Yvonne and I both looked at each other and said, "Let's explore and see where this goes."
We were up for a grand adventure!
And after a short distance, the little arroyo flattened out and looked more like an actual trail!
Oh yeah, baby! I was excited!
The new trail that we had discovered, is not on any maps, and it is obviously not used frequently, if at all. The branches and vegetation are overgrown and much of the trail itself is covered in a bed of thick pine needles and would be easy to lose in a couple places if you're not paying attention.
But this trail is absolutely gorgeous!!!
Yvonne and I stopped in a trail clearing and she took a photo of me wearing my Gary Johnson for President shirt. This was an election year after all! And election day was only a week away!
We continued down the trail, enjoying the new sights and different perspective while wondering where this trail would lead us.
At a 'T' in the trail, we chose the fork that took us in a northwesterly direction down a steep section and then through a beautiful ponderosa meadow.
The trail was virtually invisible in places, but we could easily find it just by looking farther ahead.
Yvonne feeling zen-like on this beautiful new trail!
We crossed a small arroyo and could actually see the main loop trail in the distance, and I knew exactly where we were!
Yvonne and I were thrilled to have discovered a brand new trail in the Open Space! This greatly expands the loop options in this area. Now we have longer and shorter loops to choose from just by using this new trail!
We dismounted and spent some time marking this new trail with branches and rocks so we could easily find it again, as it is hidden and virtually invisible from the main trail.
Afterwards, we were so pleased with ourselves, and feeling so happy, that we decided to lay down and enjoy a rest beneath the ponderosa trees.
Yvonne, enjoying a Zen-moment.
We laid there enjoying the peace and quiet while listening to the breezes blowing through the ponderosas, while they swayed above us, framed by a beautiful blue sky.
It truly was a Zen experience and one I will always treasure. Yvonne and
I decided that we'll try to make time during trail rides to experience
more Zen-moments like this in the future as well.
There are some wild places where the peace, quiet and introspective
nature (and Zen) can be destroyed in an instant by the noise and appearance of a
mountain bike whizzing by.
As a horseback rider I have had mostly positive experiences with mountain bikers and hikers. But on this day we encountered two female mountain bikers that sped right between our horses, without stopping or slowing down. As they sped past, we told them to please slow down and not ride so fast, and definitely not ride between our horses. But all they did was roll their eyes and laugh at us. They even told us that if horses couldn't handle bikes zipping by them, then horses didn't belong on the trail. They laughed at us again when I reminded them that mountain bikes are supposed to yield to horses and hikers!
Thankfully, our horses weren't bothered by their bikes at all,and were only a little startled, just as we riders were. But many horses do not do well with bikes speeding towards them or separating them from another horse on the trail. They are herd animals after all.
These two Bicycle Bitches were terrible mountain biker representatives, as most do not act like these two women at all. Most mountain bikers will stop as soon as they see a horse on the trail, and will ask what the rider would like them to do.
Mountain bikers are always supposed to step off the trail and make room for horses to pass them, but as a horseback rider, I find it easier sometimes to be the one that steps off the trail. This way, the horse can stand far enough away from the bike so it feels safe, and can watch the bike as it moves past them and away.
Anyway, these nasty Bicycle Bitches never once apologized for their poor behavior and even though they tried to ruin our trail riding Zen, we didn't let them.
Thankfully this has been my only bad experience with rude and uneducated mountain bikers in over 7 years of horseback riding.
This is a photo I took of the Bicycle Bitches after Yvonne and I sat down for lunch further down the trail. These two women rode past us and tried to make excuses for their terrible behavior and never once apologized. They laughed when I told them I was taking their photo. They rolled their eyes, shook their heads and smirked every time we told them that mountain bikers are always supposed to yield to hikers and horseback riders.
Apparently they must have thought that we were making up rules. I sure hope that they finally educate themselves before heading back out on the trails again. No one should have to deal with these Bicycle Bitches!
As a horseback rider I have had mostly positive experiences with mountain bikers and hikers. But on this day we encountered two female mountain bikers that sped right between our horses, without stopping or slowing down. As they sped past, we told them to please slow down and not ride so fast, and definitely not ride between our horses. But all they did was roll their eyes and laugh at us. They even told us that if horses couldn't handle bikes zipping by them, then horses didn't belong on the trail. They laughed at us again when I reminded them that mountain bikes are supposed to yield to horses and hikers!
Thankfully, our horses weren't bothered by their bikes at all,and were only a little startled, just as we riders were. But many horses do not do well with bikes speeding towards them or separating them from another horse on the trail. They are herd animals after all.
These two Bicycle Bitches were terrible mountain biker representatives, as most do not act like these two women at all. Most mountain bikers will stop as soon as they see a horse on the trail, and will ask what the rider would like them to do.
Mountain bikers are always supposed to step off the trail and make room for horses to pass them, but as a horseback rider, I find it easier sometimes to be the one that steps off the trail. This way, the horse can stand far enough away from the bike so it feels safe, and can watch the bike as it moves past them and away.
Anyway, these nasty Bicycle Bitches never once apologized for their poor behavior and even though they tried to ruin our trail riding Zen, we didn't let them.
Thankfully this has been my only bad experience with rude and uneducated mountain bikers in over 7 years of horseback riding.
This is a photo I took of the Bicycle Bitches after Yvonne and I sat down for lunch further down the trail. These two women rode past us and tried to make excuses for their terrible behavior and never once apologized. They laughed when I told them I was taking their photo. They rolled their eyes, shook their heads and smirked every time we told them that mountain bikers are always supposed to yield to hikers and horseback riders.
Apparently they must have thought that we were making up rules. I sure hope that they finally educate themselves before heading back out on the trails again. No one should have to deal with these Bicycle Bitches!
Like I said before, these two nasties tried to ruin our trail riding Zen, but we didn't let them.
After lunch, we continued our ride, this time riding the brand new trail that we had discovered, again! This new trail makes a fun loop route!
When we arrived at the 'T' in the trail, I suggested to Yvonne that we explore the trail that went in a southwesterly direction.
That trail took us through a beautiful little canyon and then broke off onto another, almost invisible trail that traveled straight up, with a few zig-zags, and then out of the canyon.
I led the way.
Both of our horses needed to lunge and leap to get enough momentum up the steep canyon walls, but it wasn't scary at all. It was quite exciting!
When we came out on top, we discovered where this new trail connected with the main trail that would take us back to the parking area. I dismounted and spent a few minutes marking and lining the faded, forgotten trail with branches and rocks so we could hopefully find it again.
Because I definitely want to ride this newly discovered trail, again!
Life is Good!!!
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