one happy pony

Really, this pic and the title says it all.

I made the Pony Girl's day yesterday went we finally got to go out on trail again. She was absolutely thrilled to be out again, and there's nothing quite like the view between my favorite pony ears in the whole world.

clear trail and happy ears

A group of five of us from the barn went out and rode up at Usery Mountain Park. It was the first trail outing for barn "baby" Ava, and Mimi is the perfect babysitter horse for accompanying the greenies out on trail. As fussy as she can be about her (very large) personal space bubble, when it comes to guiding the youngsters and keeping track of the herd, she is amazingly tolerant and attentive. So, so proud of my girl. 

And she was so happy, getting to be out in front and leading the whole ride. We didn't go too far -- maybe a touch over 4 miles -- but it was more than enough for 5 horses, three of who are young, one who is in her prime but very out of shape, and one who physically older and crunchier than she'd like to mentally admit. 

leading the wagon train of:
Ava - bay warmblood; Silver - white grey Arab;
 Legend - dapple grey Thoroughbred; Gypsy - black paint

It was a great mental workout, too. Usery is a very busy park, especially on weekends, so there's all kinds of exposure to things like mountain bikers, hikers, strollers, dogs, kids on playground swings right next to the trail, benches plopped randomly along the trail for "rest" points...plus the natural obstacles of cactus, dead logs, dead cactus, lizards, and exploding quail.

And apparently the snakes are out, although we didn't see any.

Superstition Mountains in the distance

The cactus and wildflowers were in full bloom, since we've had a decent amount of winter/early spring rain.

bright pink hedgehog cactus

As fun as it is to ride other people's horses, there is nothing like my own pony. Especially one who is trustworthy enough to allow me to drop the reins and spend half the ride taking pictures.

transitioned over to the orange/black theme
(that's Renegade orange, not Halloween, thank you)

She also taste-tested the new Purina ElectroEase electrolytes I got and deemed them delicious, to the point where she grabbed at the syringe for more, and wasn't put off from continuing to eat her hay after dosing.

She also discovered the perk of the barn owner's trailer: the mangers make a perfect head rest. She climbed in the trailer, placed her muzzle in the manger, and snoozed for the drive back to the barn.

And a good time was had by all horses and riders involved.