Red surprised me by jumping the snow bank off the road onto the trail - dumping me into the 3 feet of snow in the process. Oh, well - it's a soft landing! Of course, then I had to find something to stand on to remount - always a challenge but Red is patient with me. He didn't think much of being asked to trudge through the deep snow and watched Kelso with disgust as he ran effortlessly across the top of the snow crust in pursuit of the many rabbits and other small creatures we saw evidence of. For Red & me it was crunch, lurch, stop, crunch, lurch, stop all the way - and munch whatever tops of dried weeds & shrubs poked up through the snow whenever possible. He turned & nosed my Mukluk-enclosed toes on more than one occasion, as if to say, "why are you riding me in this deep snow?"
The access road to the gravel pit is plowed and once we jumped the snowbank onto the road (I dismounted ahead of time for this one!), we had clear sailing and even did a little slow jog for a bit. The bald eagles & crows were feasting on roadkill deer dragged into the pit by the county for "disposal," and were slightly affronted at the disturbance. One more dismount for snowbank climbing around the entrance gate, and we were home.
You'll notice Red sporting a handsome set of Rhythm Beads (http://www.rhythmbeads.com/), made by a lady in Bemidji, MN. We love our beads for winter rides - they're our "jingle bells"! Also, it is so quiet in the winter that it helps us be less afraid of the sounds of our own passing (yes, my silly Red boy can get weirded out by the noise his own hooves make!) as well as help warn the local wildlife that we're here. Grouse like to burst out of the snow & scare us, and we jump deer occasionally as well. Plus the beads are just fun!
I can't wait for whatever riding adventures 2010 will bring!
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