You can fool the fans - but not the players.... John Cage

Hunewill Guest Ranch

I just returned from a couple of lovely days in the Bridgeport Valley and had to share a couple of photos from the Hunewill Guest Ranch. We were fortunate enough to have our board meeting out at the ranch and I could have happily stayed for days.

The ranch is a special blend of old and new - old buildings, new technology (wireless access in the reading room), cows and horses, big sky, big grassy meadows, big mountains.

Four Hunewill families live and run the ranch; providing hearty food, twice daily rides, cookouts and talent shows, cattle drives, and no shortage of hospitality. We enjoyed homemade peach and raspberry cobbler, meaty cheesy lasagne, fresh baby greens (no iceberg!) salad, homemade garlic bread and iced tea outside under the aspens during our lunch break. And... there were peonies in bloom!

Blooming a good two months after my one single peony bloomed.

Sorry, this one is a little blown out but I took it with my phone... yes, my photos have taken a turn for the worse (but only temporarily).

Hunewill Ranch has been a working cattle ranch since 1880 (or so - I might be off a year or two), and a guest ranch since 1931. If you are looking for a good western vacation you couldn't ask for a better place to spend a week. I don't work for the Hunewills but you can tell them I sent you! I'd like to go back!

Now, mosey on.... I'm finished with this post....

Rhea's one year anniversary

Rhea and the other fillies have been with us just about a year now and I marvel at the horse she is beginning to be. I find her so beautiful. But I know that it is time to start exposing her to more and more - ponying her around on rides, driving her, putting a saddle on her, getting her ready for Luis to take her in August and put the first 30 days on her. She's still the smallest of the three fillies but she has grown more than I thought she would and she is quick and fast.

Here's one of the first photos I saw of her, sent by Carolyn Duferrena.

Little, scared, just barely a year old.

Who could not fall for this little face?

Irv and I drove like hell for two days up and back from northern Nevada to get these girls. We had the pleasure of meeting the Duferrenas and seeing some (for me) new country up north. I could live in Nevada, no problem.

The girls were not sure of things.

"We're not in Kansas anymore"

Once here she wasn't sure she wanted anything to do with us.

Smokin' thought having them was a bad idea and made that perfectly clear.

Then I broke my hip and they got the summer off in the mountains. Rhea relaxed and grew accustomed to me crutching around her.

She got a lot friendlier. Maybe cause we only did nice things with her, like grooming and feeding and graining. We put Rhea on senior feed cause she was so scrawny for so long... she really blossomed after that.

Back in the valley she made new friends over the winter,

and became ever more inquisitive and much less fearful.

She romped with the other girls in the arena and has stayed the least dominant of the three although she is definitely not meek.

No, she's not meek at all.

horseplay

I love turning the fillies out together and the other day Rhea was wound up tighter than a top. She was snorting and starting at every little leaf that blew by. Luckily no one was using the arena and we turned the girls out to get their yayas and bucks OUT of their systems.

Unfortunately none of the racing around photos turned out very clear - I don't think I have my camera set correctly for action shots and I don't have the lens for shooting across the arena. But after the initial run, they settle into playing with each other.

Their language is so physical but subtle at the same time - and if you want to appreciate it you just have to sit down and watch patiently. There's a fair amount of standing time involved in horseplay.

Some horses love to grab things like halters and lunge whips and orange cones and whip them around at the others.

Rhea giving her big friend a friendly bite while giving me the eye.

Resting her head on the little paint's back. Sigh.

Check the face on the gray. Mischievous!

Then there's always the safe (for the dog) encounter through the rails. Watching horses play is a great way to while away an hour or so and put off cleaning the pens!