I had not seen Hightail and Seneca since before Admiral and Kapitan (Climbs High) died. (click here to read about their deaths) I have been up the Dryhead 4 times since then. Once was only 2 days after Admiral and Kapitan died.
These horses were some of the first horses I saw when I traveled up the Dryhead for the first time. So I was really happy to finally see them again on the morning of April 16th. I had heard and seen photos of the additions to this band, but I had never seen Jesse James ( Admiral and Seneca’s 2009 son) and Hickok (Starbucks and Guinevere’s 2007 son).
It was early, around 7:30 am, when we saw this band, just as we passed unto the range. We stopped to take some photos. Seneca, Hightail and Jesse James were in the high sage and willow trees by the creek, so it was hard to get any good photos of them. Hickok was up the hill a little ways from them. The light was also very flat because of the thick cloud cover. Jesse James and Seneca watched us closely. We stayed for a few minutes and then drove up the road.
On our way back out of the range we saw them again. Jesse James and Hightail were lying down with Hickok and Seneca close by.
Then Hickok came over and decided he wanted Hightail’s spot to roll in, so he got her up and took her place.
We stayed there for a while watching these four. It was good to see them.
No nice athmosphere in these photos!
🙂
Beautiful pics, Sandy and I always love seeing their hoofs, perfect, compliments of nature.
Thank you Jeannie!
Yes, love the hoofs! What a nice family.
HI Sandy! I made it home from my visit to see my family in Florida.
Great postings and happy to see that you had a very good trip here in the Pryors.
I admire your post on the “gather” and am happy that you can take a step back and see that it has to happen for the good of the herd, as we DO NOT WANT A HELICOPTER GATHER NEXT YEAR!! Thank you for that!
I went out to the range yesterday and saw, Jesse James, Hickok, Seneca and Hightail.
Also saw Jalisco and Johnston together near but before the overlook area.
Then I saw Blizzard alone, but not for long as the two young bachelors Issaquah and Hawk came to investigate and see what Blizzard was up to. Then all three of them meandered down the road. It was a good day for me and I am so happy to be back home and spend some time with these wild mustangs!
When are you planning your next trip?
great pictures and your writing is interesting. OH…what songs were you singing while going up Sykes??HA, HA! Just curious!
I hope we can meet up again when you get back down this way!
Thanks for the pictures!!! See you soon!
Thanks Lori! I sent you an email. I will see you soon. 🙂
Sandy, thanks for these great photos of the Greeters! The story of this family group is so special. Hickock is really turning into a nice looking stallion and I wonder how long he will tolerate Jesse James, even though they have been together so long. And I appreciate seeing photos of Hightail and Seneca together. They look so much alike, but now I see Seneca also has markings on her nose, which I never noticed before. Duh.
Thanks Joy. It seems like every time I see these horses I notice something new. 🙂
@Joy, you must not have seen the 8X10 of Seneca and Jesse James looking straight at me that I had in my presentation that you attended, or maybe you just don’t remember it. It’s really nice of them and one of my favorites from my last trip. I had quite a few there, so I can understand how you might not remember. I often laugh to (and AT) myself about how little I knew on my first visit to the Range and the horses.
This family truly is a unique story, and in my estimation, Jesse James is a unique individual, from what I have witnessed of him in the limited time I’ve spent out there. When he was but a baby in ’09, he made an impression on me because as his family of Admiral, his mother Seneca, Ghost Dancer and (I think) Halo of the Sun, made their way up and over one of those gravelly hills near the entrance to the Range, Jesse James stopped on the top of the hill where he could watch the ones in the lead, but also wait for the last one, Halo of the Sun, to catch up. When she finally caught up to him, he continued on his way after the others, too. Then the story of how he came back to his mother, and brought his buddy, Hickok, whom he had been roaming the ridge with as foot loose and fancy free bachelors, shortly after the death of Admiral and Kapitan, really convinced me that he is one special little horse. These horses and the ties that bind them, are nothing short of amazing.
Oh, and I’m aware that I still know “very little” in comparison to more frequent visitors to the Range like Alex and Sandy. I just love to hear (or read) other peoples’ observations and figure others may enjoy mine, too.
I appreciate your stories Linda. Thank you for sharing them!
Every time I go to the range I learn something new about the horses. This last time was a real test for me, I was seeing several horses I had never seen before! So trying to figure out who they were was a challenge! What made it even more challenging was not realizing that all of the horses I saw way up Skyes were Dryhead horses. 🙂 But now I know them! 🙂
And another thing I just have to say about this family group is that I’m really glad Hightail and Seneca seem to be getting along well now, because there seemed to be some animosity between them when I saw them in Sept. They never stood together or were nose to nose, but did lay ears back at one another at times. Maybe spending the long, cold winter together has helped them develop a more of a friendship. : ) Thanks so much again for sharing your experience!