A Trail Ride Near Poncha Pass

Friday, August 2, 2013 – This morning we drove  to Poncha Pass, just south of our campground, for a trail ride with Granite Mountain Outfitters. We arrived about 8:30 am and had a bit of a safety briefing before we saddled up and headed out, with two very capable looking young girls as trail guides.

The day was beautiful! Blue sky, cool air…..perfect for enjoying the Colorado outdoors!

In addition to Fred and I on this trail ride, there was a sweet family with two young teens, a boy and a girl. These folks were from New York and had never ridden before (except the daughter, who had been out once). They had whitewater rafted, mountain biked, and hiked, but were nervous about horse riding.  I tried to reassure the mom….I had just slightly more experience than she had!  

You can see in this picture…the guide riding first, then the family of four, with the dad just in front of me…….and a tag–a-long…..the outfitter’s dog who really seemed to love going out for a walk.

Behind me was Fred, and bringing up the rear, was our very young looking (maybe about 14 yr old) guide.

The ride went through privately owned land, and so we had the trail to ourselves. That is me in the green jacket and tan hat, riding in front of Fred, who took this pic.

We rode through a beautiful aspen grove….The black marks on the trees, we were told, were from elk who like to nibble at the bark.

We headed up the hill……

And out trough the trees…..

Where you could get a glimpse of the mountain peaks…..

As we topped the hill, we all gathered up to admire the view…..

Wide open spaces………You could see FOREVER! 

We all took a number of pictures…..

Then posed to have our pictures taken…..

And paused, just a bit, to take in the awesomeness of it all….

Before heading back down the mountain. All of us lost in our own thoughts, as we soaked up every bit of this glorious landscape.

The trail ride was just about 2 hours….over much too soon. Though, our rear ends (and knees) appreciated the break.

After saying ‘goodbye’ to the horses, we drove into Salida for a bite of lunch, then back to our camper to rest and regroup. We decided to take the afternoon and evening at our camper, knowing that we would be back on the road tomorrow.