Day 2, Let's Go Camping!!....or "Here's where the wheels starting falling off...."

After having been reminded REPEATEDLY before bed the previous night that, no, tomorrow was NOT 'endurance hours' (get up early, get saddled up and get moving), we slowly and leisurely got moving in the morning.  

Oh, we still got up early.  But we sat around the campfire, they drank coffee (horror of horrors, I don't like coffee), we slowly ate breakfast, chit chatted, let the dogs romp and play and basically.

Now, I had re-rigged my saddle the previous evening as well.  I'd removed the latigos and put on center fire English converters that Trail Blazers Tack had made for me (in purple, natch).  I also removed the fenders and put on biothane webbers (also purple [natch]).  My stirrups are western, but Janet included a keeper that holds them fairly securely.  So, I figured I'd give it a whirl and if I didn't like them, or the stirrups slid to much, I'd put the fenders back on.  No big deal.

I borrowed B's Total Saddle Fit girth and the cover again (bless friends who loan and give away tack to try out!) and put it on Tilly.

Now, the English converters didn't have enough holes, but it seemed tight enough, so, we all slowly got saddled up and for the first time, I got to go experience the Angelina forest at Lake Sam Rayburn.

Our motley crew leaving camp.

Yes, two big butts; hers and mine! 

Heading out of camp down one of the roads.

And after a semi-short seeming ride, THE LAKE!!!

Tilly was a VERY good girl about putting her feet in the water.

B and Little Momma on Gatlin and AJ respectively.

Now, at some point during the ride, someone looked over and said "There is like an INCH between Tilly and your girth!!"  Yeah, not tight enough.  And I already had it on the last holes.  Not a problem, I'll just stay balanced, right?  I mean, she's wearing a breastcollar, so the saddle won't slide off her butt, and if I get off the great big behemoth, I might not be able to get back on.  Best to stay where we're at.

Tilly ears.

Yes, it really is that wooded!!

Tilly has some issues with other horses.  Like whipping around and trying to bite their faces off, so she had to stay away from the group many times.  That's just entirely UNACCEPTABLE behavior!!  So, I parked her at the back of the group and that's where she had to stay.  We need to do more group rides, but I wasn't in the mood to dink with a naughty horse with such a loose girth.

She was happy to go, but a little sweaty.  Not labored.

We all kind of tooled around, played in the water, went back in the woods.  We wound around until we came back out by the water, and, it was deceptively wet, so the horses started sinking.  All I could picture was pulled tendons and lamness issues, so we all quickly attempted to find a way out of the bog.

Straight UP over a log and a hill was our route out.  Everyone asked if I was okay going with my girth, and I was like "Yes, let's get out of here before our horses get hurt.  I'll grab mane and go.  But let's get out of here."

So, we did just that.  Tilly was a champ about it.  Saddle stayed put, didn't slip, didn't move. 

We opted to head back to camp, break for lunch and then go back out later.

Well, that was the plan.

We're sitting at our camp, tack off, when we notice that B's mom's horse is laying down in his pen.  Now, he could have been napping.  And we thought so for a while.  But we got him up after a little bit.  Then he opted to lay down again.

No.  Not okay.  We scrambled to find a nearby vet, and I told B and LM to use my rig since I was still hooked up to the truck and have the smallest trailer and for them to get going.  AJ loaded right up and off they went.

H and I hung out, chit chatted and napped while we waited for news.

Finally they got back.  Yes, mild colic.  He got tubed and oiled and sent home with a syringe of banamine.  So, LM said she was going to stay back at camp, clean pens, but we should all go tack up and go ride that evening. 

So, that's what we started doing.

As my saddle and gear was over near by B's trailer, I took Tilly over there, tied her off and started tacking up.

And no one knows EXACTLY what happened, but as I went to put my saddle up on her, she blew up.  Rearing straight up and she came down hard and hit the trailer.  Just lost her damn mind.

When it was all said and done, she had split her lip.

*sigh*

LM called the vet and said we were racing in with another one.  Now, at this point, it was about 4 pm.  At 5 pm, the clinic is closed except for emergencies, which is a $150 fee to start before anything else.

To say that B drove like a madwoman to get us there is an understatement.  I didn't want to get lost, and I was feeling rattled. 

But, B did it.  Got us there with 5 minutes to spare!!

As I didn't know what her vaccination status was, we went ahead and did our tetanus, as well as the others (minus rabies).  She got 7 stitches in her lip and then we were sent on our way home with a very drunk horse.  And a $400 vet bill.  *sigh*

I would have taken pictures, but, I was a little traumatized at the moment (I mean, let's be real!  Strider, hurt his left rear under my watch.  Socks, jacked up his heels at Armadillo under my watch.  And now Joe's horse, hurt under my watch!!!!).

We got her back in the trailer and headed back to camp. 

She was a little sweaty, so I opted to toss a light sheet on her as the evenings were cool, and then all of us headed over to L and G's trailer for a delicious dinner and casual chit chat.  B and LM headed in to town for more ice after dinner.

We stayed up late talking around L and G's fire as it burned down.  From good horses to bad ones, gaits and bits and saddles to "Nutscaping" (do NOT look that up at work...actually, you can skip it entirely...it's potentially offensive if you're not into weirdness) to religion...just the type of conversations that happen organically when you're with friends who you have no filter with.