A Rainy Day With Horses

 

Last month, while I was riding at 4 Winds Equestrian Center, the weather was threatening to rain. So, myself and two other friends, that board at 4 Winds, headed into the Indoor Arena to play with our horses until the storm passed over.

Apache and I watch the rain fall outside.

My friend Linda and her gelding.

My friend Joanna and her mare.

We played with our horses, riding around the arena, practicing obstacles and just having fun, until the sky opened up and really came down hard. We decided to dismount our horses when the sound of the rain on the roof became deafening!!

I shot this video while were in the indoor arena.

 

About 15 minutes after the sky let loose it’s rain, it stopped and Joanna and I decided to head out on a trail ride.

Joanna and her young, beautiful mare with the Manzano Mountains as their backdrop

The rain gave the vegetation a beautiful saturated look. And these plants were such a vibrant, neon green! Interestingly, these same plants turn a bright red during Fall.

The air smelled so fresh, clean and earthy with the scents of damp pinon and sage. The trail was a bit muddy in spots, but we took our time and just enjoyed the peace and quiet of being out by ourselves after a life-giving rain storm.

We were only out riding on the trails for about an hour, but it was a beautiful way to spend a rainy afternoon.

Just Riding in the Rain……

 

And we did some singing in the rain, too!

On Thursday, the friends I had ridden with on Tuesday and Wednesday weren’t able to ride, so I invited my riding buddy, Kendra, over to 4 Winds to ride with my Apache mare and I.

My buddy Colleen was there, but she was too busy taking care of ranch duties and caretaking of horses to be able to ride with Kendra and I. It sure was great to spend some time visiting with her after our ride, though.

The day was sunny and beautiful with a few clouds blowing across the blue sky.

It was fun just exploring and wandering around the trails on our own. The expansive views of the Manzano Mountains begged us to stop and appreciate their beauty.

I had wondered if Apache would mind that I was riding her 3 days in a row (something I’ve never done with her. Two days of riding is the longest number of consecutive days that I’ve ridden her) But as usual, she was relaxed, calm, willing and seemed very happy to be out on the trails with me.

And Kendra and her boy Bailey were enjoying themselves, too.

Views out to the Eastern Plains, towards Estancia.

Apache and I never get tired of enjoying beautiful views of the mountains.

 

Kendra and I both took turns letting our horses lead and follow. 

 

We all enjoyed a relaxing, beautiful trail ride.

We flushed out quite a few rabbits while exploring.

And we laughed a lot and had a great time.

Kendra and I both enjoy taking lots of photos while trail riding, too.

We mostly just moseyed along at a walk, but we did do some trotting, too. I love how much easier I’m able to move Apache into a trot these days, too. I don’t even need my quirt, just a gentle squeeze and a kiss and she will trot for me. 

 

Since we weren’t following established trails, we sometimes found ourselves at a dead end.

And as we rode farther north, the clouds became darker and the scent of rain filled the air.

I had never ridden my mare in the rain before and the last time Kendra had ridden Bailey in a rainstorm, a flash of lightning and clap of thunder unnerved both she and her horse and they galloped back to the barn. But we didn’t want to quit riding, so we continued on.

We soon started feeling raindrops…………..

And very quickly those little raindrops turned into a full-blown rain shower.

Apache really doesn’t like the rain hitting her face and when the rain began falling harder, Kendra and I found a little nook to hunker down into. Apache seemed to appreciate being able to tuck her head into the juniper and pinon trees. Unfortunately none of them were tall enough to get beneath and get any protection from the rain. So we got soaked. (Don’t mind the weird expression. I was actually laughing and having a pretty good time out there.)

Because that little rain squall was totally unexpected…..weather reports were calling for zero percent chance of rain….we didn’t pack our slickers on our saddles. If the rain would have been warmer, it actually would have been wonderful to ride in, but as we got wetter, we did become quite chilled.

I was very proud of my Apache mare because I’ve seen her reactions to getting rained on while at home, and she really does not enjoy the rain when it runs down her face. But she was very calm and patient with me on her back while out in the falling rain.

But she still didn’t enjoy getting rained on……..

We were all very thankful that there was no lightning and the thunder that we did hear was just a low grumble in the distance. Standing in the rain to take photos in a meadow of wildflowers was pretty funny, though. 

We rode for a couple hours in the sunshine and the rain. It was a great day…..but it wasn’t over yet……..

And I remembered to turn on my GPS to record the track map that Kendra and I traveled that day.

4 Winds Equestrian Adventure Trail Ride

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