Today was Day 4 at the R Lazy S Ranch. (No affiliation)
I have so many photos! But, unfortunately, not a strong internet connection. So I am bummed that I cannot show you as many photos as I’d like…
You see today, I felt very quiet and melancholic. I wasn’t sure why… but I think it had something to do with Mother Nature. I wanted to commune with her, hold hands with her. I wanted to catch her attention and have her whisper to me, gently. She was all around me, yet I hadn’t been infused by her…
I needed to be quiet to hear.
Mother Nature was all around, I wanted to immerse myself.
OUR RIDE
But first, we rode.
Hubby is matched with an incredible horse made exactly for him (or so it seems). Her name is ‘Rose’ – a huge red roan with total attitude and lots of GO! They are perfect together.
I, on the other hand, requested Dove… who I love. She is as sweet as can be and her trot is fabulous. However, she isn’t into loping much. So, Hubby and I have been on separate rides.
Riding separately was OK for a while, but today I wanted to be with Hubby so I asked to switch horses. I asked for a horse who had a nice lope. Well, the wranglers wanted to give me ‘Thorn’ – Rose’s best friend – but he had been ridden last week and he needed a rest. So, instead, they gave me ‘Luna’.
Luna is a small (yay!) dark brown mare with several brands (she’s been there, done that) and floppy ears. They literally flop sideways. Probably an old injury. She’s a bit older… calm and serene. And as promised, Luna’s lope (canter) was perfectly divine.
And lucky for Hubby and I, the owners’ son, Will, took just the two of us on an incredible ride – all over the Grand Teton National Park – through woods, creeks, streams, meadows to die for, glorious paths and heavenly trails. Having grown up here, Will knew the best places to ride – and the best places to lope.
G-L-O-R-I-O-U-S.
The only issue was that Luna is quite a bit slower than Hubby’s and the Wrangler’s horse, so I was always waaaay back there… but that was OK. My girl was tractable, honest, dependable and had a fabulously comfortable, albeit a bit slower than everyone else, canter.
Hubby on Rose. He was taking my photo as I took his. Note Luna’s droopy ears. This photo shows her ears at full attention. They do not stand upright.
On a wonderful ride with Hubby and Will.
Hubby and Rose. Hubby is taking off his glove so he can take a photo. JUST LOOK at this scenery!
Look at this wonderful meadow… Everywhere you looked, it was breathtaking. 2-D photos don’t do it justice.
MY TIME SEEKING MOTHER NATURE…
Although I loved riding with Hubby and Will, something inside of me wanted to seek out Mother Nature. I needed some alone time…
If I had had the knowledge and fortitude, I would have loved to have set up a ‘blind’ somewhere on the ranch to sit quietly and watch for wild animals.
Instead, when all of the other guests were around the campfire after an incredible dinner eating homemade s’more’s and listening to adults tell ghost stories while the kids were swinging into the pond via a rope … I snuck off with my camera.
I knew I was smack dab in the middle of Mother Nature’s living room (here at the base of the Tetons); all I had to do was sit back and relax, and she’d show herself soon enough…
So that is exactly what I did.
Below is my photojournal…
The sun was starting to set so I made my way up to the barn area and met this lovely boy who was quite happy to come over and visit with me.
I turned my camera to the right and took this shot of the meadow in front of the Ranch.
I walked towards this tall stand of Aspens and stumbled upon this doe! Do you see her?
She was afraid of me and went bounding out of the trees. I just barely caught this shot of her. She settled right there in the front lawn!
While I was inside of the Aspen grove, these seeds stuck to my shirt.
This is on the front lawn… the doe was behind it. I loved walking around the ranch when everyone else was at the cookout. It was so quiet and wonderful!
The sun was setting lower… so pretty.
I saw this HUGE owl fly overhead and land on the fence. Can you see it? He is turned away from me. Wow! I had never seen an owl in person before!
Mo, the mini donk, saw the owl, too. The owl was very close and Mo was a bit concerned.
I continued to walk around as the sun set. Absolutely glorious. The sky was turning orange. Really beautiful!
A MOOSE!! Right next to our cabin! It looks like daytime but it was really almost dark when I returned to the cabin – only to see this beautiful girl about 30 feet from my porch! Thank you, Mother Nature, thank you!
And then I finished the night with Chippy. He is our resident chipmunk… Chippy has a nest in the exterior rafters. We hear him constantly. He moves his things around and runs across the roof. I love having him near.
Hubby had come back by this point – and our Chippy had just gone to bed. Hubby insisted on annoying poor Chippy by taking this flash photo of him in his nest. After this, Chippy berated Hubby loudly and threw a piece of nest down onto Hubby’s arm. Ha! Serves Hubby right!
- And last but not least, just as the sun was almost totally set, Mother Nature visited again! It was almost completely dark when this doe appeared in front of our cabin. Lovely.
THANK YOU, MOTHER NATURE… I NEEDED THAT.
I’m good with just walk trot with Dovey if she is available to me when I arrive on the 16th. Don’t think I’m ready or expert enough for a canter. Not sure why I never noticed her ears but I think we were behind her. So that is just fine. I remember Luna, she had a lady last year as her rider and I believe she just took walks and jogs. How very special that you got that singular ride with Will. Being born and raised there, what a great insight into everything about the Tetons. Thank you for the photos, especially the owl. We could hear them, but we never saw them as close as you managed. Enjoy the rest of the week. Oh, I wondered what is on the donkey. Is it the Aspen seeds like on your shirt. I hope they aren’t bugs or ticks.
I was smiling by the time I finished your post. The scenery there is just magnificent, and I loved little Chippy (we don’t have chipmunks in Florida, more’s the pity). Thank you for sharing the beauty and peace of your time with Mother Nature.