Sandy Elmore – Page 3 – Wild in the Pryors

Wild in the Pryor Horse Tours

November 9, 2012January 14, 2014wildinthepryors

NOTE: Please go to my new post on available dates for the Summer of 2014! Click TRIPS to go there.

After spending a few years camping in the Pryors, and watching how others interact with the horses, I have decided to start my own Tour Company. This will be a tour like at the time, no one is offering. I know all the horses, know how to respect them, know the boundaries and the respect that they deserve and have experience camping on the mountain.

I recently acquired all necessary permits to be able to offer these tours in the Pryor Mountains. My intent is to make each and every tour personalized and custom to everyone that wants to join me. That will include camping if desired.

Wild in the Pryors is permitted by the Bureau of Land Management to conduct small group tours within the Pryor Mountain Wild Horse Range from January to December. Wild in the Pryors is one of a handful of businesses that have the federal permits necessary to guide clients onto this federal property.

Sandy is also licensed to give tours within the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area.

With each tour you will receive several sheets to study before we begin. Included will be a list of horse and camping etiquette. I will also include my current horse list so you can go home and identify all the horses you will see. Each tour will be small and intimate. This is to benefit not only those that come on the tours, but to also keep the disruption of the horses at a minimum.

Waking up to horses, July 2011

So whether you want a photography adventure or simply just spend the day with the horses and someone who knows each ones personally, give Sandy a call or email and she can discuss your expectations and work out a personal tour of the Pryor Horses just for you. It will be a once in a lifetime experience.

Sandy is CPR and First Aid trained.

For more information or to book your tour you can email or call her.

NOTE: Update as of May 22, 2013. Camping Trips are FULL.

DAY TRIPS : Room for two people on August 24, 25 and 26th.

Now taking reservations for 2014.

Camping trips are for a 3 day/2 nights or 4 day/3 nights. All food is included. If arriving by airplane, camping gear can be provided with advanced arrangements.

Day trips include lunch.

Contact Sandy for more information.

email: wildinthepryors@aol.com

Phone: 406-244-0015

Sandy

Waif and Corona's new colt, Norte, April 28, 2013 — Waif and Corona’s new colt, Norte, April 28, 2013

Wild in the Pryor Rules For Your Tour
What to expect and a few rules:

1. Listen to your guide at all times. Do not attempt to go off on your own without checking with your guide. At times your guide may say something fast and stern. This is because of the situation and the need for you to move fast or stop what you are doing. Please respect the directions and don’t take the harshness of her tone personally. This is only for your protection, and the horses well-being. Your guide has your welfare and the horses welfare in her best interest and there may be situations where in order to protect you or the horses she will speak in a stern tone. Your guide has had years of experience with her horses and also with these, so please respect her knowledge and experience.

2. Talk in a quiet and soft voice. If told to be quiet, please do it.

3. Stay with the group and your guide.

4. Do not try to touch the horses.

5. Do not go closer than 50- 100 feet. There may be times when this is not possible, but for the most part, give the horses their needed space.

6. Do not feed the horses.

7. Do not liter. That includes any paper used when going to the bathroom. (Plastic bags will be provided for that, please use them).

8. Do not take food into your tent. This is for your protection. Bears will be attracted to the food.

9. Do not wear or bring: perfume or highly scented creams, deodorant or other. This is also for your protection. Bears are attracted to these things.

It should be noted that being with these horses should not be taken lightly. It is not a good idea to startle a wild horse that you find too close to you, but you do need to stand your ground and you better understand Wild horse behavior. If you startle by too much force and energy if a horse is too close, it can spin and kick out as it retreats, ( they will find their mark). And older horses which suddenly turn in your direction need to be sent away before they complete the thought of coming too close. It is not a good Idea for anyone to mingle with these horses especially during foaling and breeding season, without a guide or previous wild horse understanding and always have a partner to watch your back. But please understand that the wrong signals can actually make the situation even more dangerous. You don’t want to create an aggressive horse by retreating when they approach you. It becomes a game to them but is very serious to people. Stand your ground, Stand Tall, face directly at them and if necessary wave them off. If you haven’t trained Wild Horses. It may be a good idea to Not allow yourself in this situation. PLEASE LISTEN TO YOUR GUIDE. (thank you Maggie from the Oregon Wild ones for this great wording!!)

WildinthePryors_logoColor_small_revised — Logo designed by Amber Bushnell

Some Thoughts and Recognition on the Removal

October 26, 2012wildinthepryors

I found out this week that the BLM Billings office was going to be presented with an award for the job they did in the removal this past summer. This award was presented to Jared Bybee yesterday in Washington DC.

I was happy that Jared and his team were getting some recognition on a job well done. Hopefully other HMA’s will ask him for advise on how to better do their gathers. They can ask him to come and show them, but they cannot keep him, he needs to stay here with the Pryor Horses!

As I said in my April post about this gather, there are some good people in the BLM and we need to make an effort to continue to communicate with them.

Just in case you did not remember how I felt about the removal you can click on SANDY and it will take you to a post I did the beginning of April.

Also here is the link to the list of Awards. Click on Awards to go to that page. I also copied and pasted the paragraph telling about the Pryor Gather award:

“BLM-Montana Pryor Mountain Horse Gather and Adoption Team, recipients of the Director’s Team Accomplishment Award.

This Award recognizes this year’s tremendously successful Pryor Mountain wild horse gather and adoption. Thanks to outstanding public engagement, sound decision making, and cohesive teamwork, this gather and adoption were completed safely and with positive public support.”

It is still painful for me to think about the horses that were removed, those I will not see on the mountain again. But I know where most have gone, and I will continue to see how they are doing.

But I am glad that the Pryor Horses have a team of BLM people who for the most part listen to our concerns and hopes for these horses. I thank them for that.

I believe that if everyone would take the time and effort to effectively communicate with them that the management of these horses may just continue to get better and better.

Sandy

Isodora sun — Polaris, Isadora, Lemhi and Rosarita, July 2011

Mountain Report

October 25, 2012October 25, 2012wildinthepryors

I planned this trip a few weeks ago, hoping the weather would be good. But anyone that has ever been to the Pryors, or any other mountains, knows that things can change fast, especially this time of year. That would be the case for me on this trip.

The afternoon that I arrived, I met Lori at the Center. I wanted to see how Kaibab and Liesl were doing. They are doing wonderfully. I was able to pet both of them. Liesl is a little love bug and really seems to seek out attention.

After spending time with them we headed up the Dryhead. We saw only one horse that afternoon, Fiero. He was by himself. Remember in the last post when Strawberry had been seen with Seattle? You can read that post by clicking LORI.

Today Fiero was alone. We wondered where Cascade and Bakken were. Were they also with Seattle?

After spending some more time looking in the Dryhead, we decided to head up lower Sykes and look for Merlin. He had last been spotted in the Bad Pass Spring area a week ago.

As we were almost out of the range, heading for Sykes, we saw the Greeters far in the distance.

We spent a long time hiking the Bad Pass Spring area. We saw plenty of tracks, but no horses. I had really hoped to see him, but it was not to be. I hope he is okay and we will hear from soon from someone who has spotted him.

It was getting dark fast, so we decided we better head back to Lovell. We were looking forward to the next day when we would be going up the mountain.

The next morning we started out early. We decided at the last second to drive up the Dryhead first. It was a pretty chilly morning. I immediately spotted the Greeters. They were on the other side of the small bay. I had never seen them on that side. We stopped and took a few photos. A Magpie watched us closely while we spent some time with these four.

We continued to drive through the rest of the paved road. Along the way we saw Fiero, still alone. A couple of miles down the road we spotted Cascade and Bakken together with no one else in sight. It will be interesting to see what happens next with this band. It seems to be changing daily.

On our way out I spotted 2 horses off in the distance. We stopped and looked through our binoculars. It was Halo and Fresia. We then spotted Montana lying down not too far from them and several feet away was Hidalgo.

Hidalgo 1 — Hidalgo, Montana, Fresia and Halo, October 22, 2012

I was really looking forward to heading up the mountain one more time before winter set in. The weather forecast was for rain/snow, but it was just cloudy and we were hopeful.

Weather in the mountains can change from one minute to the next. The best thing is to keep a watch on the sky and be prepared for any changes.

We got to the bottom of Burnt Timber Road, unloaded my ATV and started up the road. It was just starting to mist a little rain. Still cloudy, but nothing too threatening.

As we began to head up the road we saw several fresh signs that there were horses around, but did not see anyone. We continued up the road, past the first water guzzler, still no horses. The rain started to come down harder. We stopped to put on our rain gear and kept heading up. Still no horses. Lori and I both thought they must be tucked in the trees staying out of the rain, that continued to come down on us. We stopped for a few minutes and stood under some trees to get out of it. There was a pretty low cloud forming on top of the mountain. I could not tell if it was rain or snow. We talked about turning around, but decided to continue.

A friend of mine who reads this blog sent me a token made of feathers to place on Lakota’s memorial. I really wanted to get up there and be able to place it there before the end of the season.

We were about 2 miles from the top when the rain (which was coming down even harder now), turned to snow. I continued another mile. The snow was sticking and the wind was starting to blow. Even though we were prepared with rain gear, the raining (pouring now) started to make its way to our skin. The temperature was 35 and we were starting to get a chill. We made the tough decision to turn around. It was hard to do that. Not seeing a single horse. But the chances of even seeing them if we reached the top were probably pretty slim. It was heartbreaking.

I think everyone, once in their life should drive down Burnt Timber road in the pouring rain in an ATV! It is a life time experience that will be well remembered….One of the questions that presented itself to us was: do we drive faster to get down and risk sliding on the wet rocks and possibly go off the side, or the second question was: do we go slower and risk getting colder and colder? I choose the second , go slower and get colder. Even in the slow speed the rain was hitting our faces so hard that we were not sure if it was the rain or the red mud flying up that was hitting us. We started to laugh. It seemed Burnt Timber Road had doubled it’s length since I had last gone down it in early September.

We made it down safely. We loaded up and headed to Lori’s nice wooded warmed home to dry out, disappointed that we had not seen a single horse.

Matt was up on Saturday, so I am really hoping he gives us a report soon. If he does, I will reblog it here.

I have heard from several people that Damsel may be missing. I am not giving up hope on her. Perhaps she had her foal and was picked up by one of the bachelors in the process. The horses are so spread out now (it is the season for that) that this could be the case. Hopefully someone can see her and let us know.

I had a small time frame for this trip. I had a meeting in Billings on Tuesday and I also was scheduled to pick up two Crow Reservation rescue dogs from Rez Dog Rescue in Billings that evening. In another post I will tell you about my meeting in Billings.

As often and as much as I go to the Pryors, a trip like this was bound to happen at some point. Hopefully, like getting a flat tire, I will be good for a while now and good weather and lots of horses will be in my future!

I did not see many horses, but I enjoyed my time with Lori and her husband Jimmy. They are both wonderful people. Lori and I had plenty of time to talk horses, so that became the highlight of this trip.

I probably will not be back for several months now. Winter is starting to come and the horses will be hard to find. I will spend those months working with Kiowa and Kootenai. I will be sure to post an update on them.

Stay safe wild ones and stay strong. I will see you again soon.

Sandy

2013 Wild in the Pryors Calendar

October 9, 2012November 23, 2012wildinthepryors

I am going to be publishing a calendar this year. Below are the photos I will be using. If you would like to purchase one, please let me know as soon as possible. The price will be $23.00 including shipping within the USA.

email: wildinthepryors@aol.com

Sandy

Starman

September 25, 2012September 25, 2012wildinthepryors

I have been wanting to do a post on Starman for a long time now. But with the new foals, all of my trips and the removal updates, I have not had a chance. Now that things have slowed down a bit I thought it would be a good time to do it.

I think this is especially important because Starman is not on the range right now. He is on the “wrong” side of the giant fence. He is on the Custer National Forest side.

The last time I saw him on the range side of the fence was in June. Since then the openings in the fence have been repaired and he was the only horse left on the other side. The last I saw him was on my way out on my trip the beginning of July. I have seen his “stud piles” each time I head up the road on my way to the range, so I knew he was still there. When I saw him in July, he looked really great. Starman has been happy being a loner since he lost his band in 2011. I am sure he enjoyed his vacation away from conflict of other horses, he probably enjoyed eating all the untouched forage, but it is time for him to be back on the range.

I am hoping to be able to report soon that the BLM has safely moved him back to the range. I am not sure if Starman will be able to survive a winter on the “wrong” side of the fence. At the age of 23 he deserves to live out the rest of his life on the range.

Starman: July 2012 1 — Starman outside the range, July 10, 2012

Starman was born on the Pryor Mountain Range in 1989 to the mare “Loner Mare” and the stallion “Head Light”. I don’t know his whole story, but I believe he was named by the Reverend Floyd Schwieger.

Starman also has a very faint freeze brand on his neck (you can see it in some of the photos I posted). I would like to know the story behind that and how it came that he was released after apparently being removed.

Even without knowing his whole story, Starman is very special to me. He has crossed paths with me many times over the last few years. He is also the grandfather of my horse, Kiowa, who I just adopted.

Starman has three daughters on the range, all three are with his former mare, Rosarita. His daughters are: Half Moon, born in 2007. Half Moon is the mother of Kiowa. She also is the mother of Missoula. She is currently in Teton’s band. Before that she was with Lakota.

Half Moon 1 — Half Moon, May 20, 2012 (Kiowa’s mother)

Another one of Starman’s daughters still on the range is the beautiful Feldspar. Feldspar was born in 2005 and is currently in White Cloud’s band.

The third daughter is Isadora. Isadora was born in 2008 and is currently in Blue Moon’s band.

Isadora__September_2010 — Isadora, September 2010

I first came to know Starman in September 2010. My husband Bill and I were heading down the road, towards the range,on the Custer Forest side (this was before the permanent fence was complete). We saw Starman and his mare Rosarita and their daughter Isadora walking down the road towards us. I stopped the truck and we watched them walk by us. I instantly really liked this stallion. He seemed so wise. I found myself drawn to him and every trip after that I looked for him. Bill also became fond of Starman. Starman was the first wild horse that Bill ever saw.

Starman_9-10_1 — Starman, September 2010

Starman__9-10_2 — Starman and his mare Rosarita, September 2010.

I saw Starman again, a few weeks later in October 2010. This was one of the first days that the new fence was complete.

Starman, 10-10:1 — Starman, October 2010

Starman 10-10:2 — Starman and Rosarita, October 2010

The next time I would see Starman would be the following July. By then he had lost his little band and would be alone. I never got the sense from Starman that he missed being a band stallion. He seemed to enjoy being alone and that is how I would see him most of the time over the next year.

Starman:7-11 — Starman, July 2011 You can see his freeze brand in this shot.

I only saw Starman that one time in the summer of 2011. I hoped he was okay.

My next close encounter with him would be in May 2012. Again, Bill was with me. We had driven up Sykes Ridge road that day. We were just passing Penn’s Cabin when I looked off towards Mystic Pond. There in the distance I could see a lone horse trotting down towards the pond. I instantly recognized that blaze. It was Starman! I had heard from several other people that he looked pretty thin. He did look thin, but he seemed to feel pretty good. He was trotting and this was the day that he would show Santa Fe that he still had plenty of spunk left. You can read that post by clicking HERE. He and Santa Fe spent some time sparing over Santa Fe’s mare Judith.

Starman and SF:may 2012:5 — Starman and Santa Fe, May 2012

Both Bill and I were impressed with his spirit. He seemed to enjoy baiting Santa Fe into sparing with him. He sure did not seem like 23 years old to me!

I saw Starman again in June. I was told that he was going back and forth between the range side of the fence and the forest side. My friend Linda and I would see him on both sides of the fence this trip. He seemed to easily slip back and forth in one of the damaged openings in the fence. I knew that they were planning on repairing the fence in the next few days and I was relieved when I saw him by my campsite one of my last mornings that trip. We would see him again on our last night heading back towards the fence. I hoped he would stay on the range side.

I noticed this time that he was missing part of his left ear. I wondered when that had happened. As I looked back at photos for this post, I saw that he had all his ear in 2010 and was missing it in 2011. Maybe he had lost it in a fight trying to keep his band.

Starman June2012 — Starman heading back on the range from the Custer Forest side, June 2012

Starman: June 2012:2 — Starman, June 2012 Visting us at our campsite.

Starman: June 2012:1 — Starman, June 2012

I would see Starman a couple weeks later, the beginning of July. Stuck on the wrong side of the fence.

Starman:July 2012:2 — Starman on the wrong side, July 2012

It is time for Starman to come back to the range. I would like to suggest that they use a bait trapping method, similar to the removal this summer. I am sure by putting some goodies out and maybe even some water, that it won’t take Starman long to go in the trap. I would love to get a call from Jared, Jim or Ryan telling me that they have been successful in accomplishing this! You guys have my phone number! Thanks so much!

I will keep you updated on any news of Starman that I may receive!

If you would like to contact the BLM and ask them about Starman, click on BLM and it will take you to all the contact information.

Sandy

Merlin Update

September 25, 2012wildinthepryors

Lori and I have been worried about Merlin for about a week now. We both received reports that he was injured and that there were several bachelors trying to get his band. If you want to read about that click on Dryhead and it will take you to Lori’s report. She last saw him with the Greeters.

Here is Lori’s report from yesterday:

I went out to the Dryhead hoping to find Merlin.

I did not find Merlin, but his harem is now with Hidalgo. Let’s hope that Merlin is laying low somewhere and healing from his injury.

The last time he was injured, which was not too long ago, Corona and Waif took care of his harem for a little while, then Merlin eased himself back into his harem. Also, Hidalgo has not been the one fighting with Merlin. It was Medicine Bow, and Chief Joseph I believe; at least that is what I have been hearing from others visiting the range.

I also saw Hidatsa and Johnston on Mustang Flats. Off in the distance was Hawk and Issaquah.

On my way back I saw Jemez, Medicine Bow, Johan and Chief Joseph. They were not near Hidalgo and “harem” at all..so I really don’t know when this came about, but it has been since I was last out there last week.

I searched for Merlin a bit stopping all of the time and looking through my binoculars, but no Merlin.

I heard that someone saw Seattle, Sacajawea and Kemmerer today, and also Fiero, Strawberry and Bakken.

that is good news as I have not seen them for quite some time.

Lori

Hidalgo with Merlin’s band, September 24, 2012. Photo by Lori Graham

Montana, September 24, 2012. Photo by Lori Graham

Montana, Fresia and Halo, September 24, 2012. Photo by Lori Graham

Thank you so much Lori for keeping us up to date on Merlin and spending the time to try and find him!

I have tried to stay calm, hoping for the best. Merlin is only 15 after all and should have many more years ahead of him.

I have a special feeling for Merlin. He is the father of my filly, Valerosa, who I adopted in 2009. Every time I go up the Dryhead I hoped to see him. I have seen him off in the distance with his band several times, but never up close until last May.

Bill and I felt very lucky to spend some time with this amazing stallion then. It was raining that day, but we covered our cameras and watched them. Merlin was every bit the stallion I imaged him to be. He was a good band stallion, watching closely over little Montana, and keeping his mares together.

I am holding on to hope that it will be a repeat of last spring when he was injured. He went off by himself for a while to heal and then returned to claim his band. Please Merlin, let’s see that happen again.

Merlin, Fresia and MT — Merlin, Fresia and Montana, May 2012

Sandy

Mountain Update From My Last Trip

September 15, 2012September 15, 2012wildinthepryors

I decided I had better finish my update before too much time passed. Sorry for the delay. I have been a bit busy here at home! My new “kids” Kootenani and Kiowa have been taking up a lot of my time. I have been enjoying every second of my time with them. It is hard for me to tear myself away from them. But they are both napping in the sun this morning, so I decided I would work on this post.

On Saturday, September 1, Amber and I drove down Burnt Timber to meet my good friend Lori at Britton Springs. I also got to meet another new friend there that day, Brianna.

I have decided not to share any of the photos of the horses in the pens. I think we have all seen enough of those, and it is actually a bit painful for me to look at them, knowing I will probably not see most of these horses again. Time to move on.

Just as Amber and I started down Burnt Timber Road we saw a few bachelors. Two Boots, Santa Fe, Garay and Jasper. We stopped and watched them for a few minutes. They all looked really good.

We continued down the road. Amber had never been down Burnt Timber Road, so it was fun to see (and hear) her reaction to it.

A few years ago, Amber was a mountain bike racer. Both cross-country and downhill. So Burnt Timber Road really brought those memories back for her and I could tell that she wished she was on the back of a mountain bike instead of an ATV. I have also raced before, so I could relate to her view of the road.

We saw no more horses the rest of the way down. I did not expect too, they are all on top right now. The forage along the way looked better than on top in a lot of places.

We stopped at the bottom water guzzler and walked back to it. I wanted to see if there was water in it. I was pleasantly surprised to find it full (at least the drinking tank was) Even in this dry summer, it seems there was enough rain to fill this one. What a great addition to the range these water guzzlers are.

We left Britton Springs and headed towards Sykes Ridge Road. I was giving Amber a tour of the range. One that not very many people have done. It is a necessary tour that I wish more people could witness. Seeing the vast range from all sides and in between is important in order to understand the land that these horses really live on.

We started up Sykes Ridge Road. We were about 2 miles up when Amber pointed out a black horse to our left. I did not see him, my eyes were on the road (an important assignment for Sykes). We stopped. I could not believe our luck! It was Inniq!

When I was here last month, I made a post that said that I had seen every horse on the range. Well, at that time I had thought that Inniq was missing. I had not heard anything about him for a very long time. I learned just before I came that he was still alive. So, NOW, I have seen every horse on the range.

He was alone today. Think of your image of a wild horse, and Inniq is that. He is the son of Sitting Bull and Cecelia.

Inniq was not happy that we were looking at him. He was pretty far away, we had to look through the binoculars to get a good look at his markings and make sure who he was. He turned and ran before I could get a photo of him. We watched where he went and decided our best chance to get another look would be to continue down the road and hike up a hill. It was a good decision, because we saw him again and I was able to snap a few photos before he turned and left again.

Inniq3 — Inniq stopped to have one more look at us. September 1, 2012

I never get used to this road. This is my third trip up here. I consider Sykes Ridge Road to be a good aerobic workout, my heart beats very fast the whole way up! 🙂 Since the last time I was up this road, I learned one of the corners is called “Dead Biologist’s Corner”. I won’t say anymore about that….

I made the mistake of telling Amber that one of the first narrow roads we went down was the scariest for me. She thought I meant that nothing else would be scary. So when she said out loud “Oh wow…” I quickly asked her (after we got up the “oh wow”) that if she could please keep her comments to herself that it would be very helpful for me.

We saw no horses (again, I did not expect too) after we saw Inniq. We stopped about 15 miles up the road and Amber took these shots. Can anyone figure out where we are above the Dryhead? On the first photo you can see the road to the left.

Sykes 3 — View from Sykes Ridge Road, September 1, 2012

There were some storm clouds starting to form behind us. The wind was picking up and I became even more nervous. The last thing I wanted to do was get caught in a storm on Sykes Ridge Road. We continued up the road a bit faster.

I stopped to let Amber take a few shots of “Castle Rock” and to drink some water. I knew that now we were getting close to the top (probably only about 5 or so more miles).

Sykes 6 — Castle Rock, September 1, 2012

We were both relieved when we arrived on top. The storm never caught up to us. There were however several groups of people on top now. Our quiet time was over.

As we drove past Penn’s Cabin, I could see several horses ahead. We drove back to our campsite and watched them all parade past us.

Several of you have asked what type and size camera and lens I use. I thought I would post this photo for you to see.

I was happy to see Tecumseh. His wounds have healed and he was walking better than the last time I saw him. He seems to have worked out a deal with Gringo. He appears (at least that day) to be acting as a satellite bachelor and is allowed to be in the herd. He was actually in the lead, with Gringo bringing up the rear. Gringo also looked good. He has put on some well needed weight.

Over the next several hours we saw horses going past us in both directions. It was a wonderful site to witness.

That day, Jasmine was back with White Cloud’s band. Poor Damsel was huge. To date, I have not heard if she has had her foal.

cloud:jasmine — Part of White Cloud’s Band, September 1, 2012

cloud2 — The rest of White Cloud’s band.

Garay and Jasper were together this afternoon, unlike when we saw them in the morning with Two Boots and Santa Fe. The bachelors all seem to change groups often. Since March, I have seen them in several different combinations.

The next band that we saw was Grijala. I was so hoping Quelle Colour would foal and that it would be Lakota’s, but I am thinking she may not be pregnant after all.

Grijala’s band of “Special K’s” has gotten smaller because of the removal. He now only has Kohl and Kindra along with Quelle Colour.

Something was up with Blue Moon and his band. Amethyst was running ahead of the rest of her band. Snorting, with her tail up. Blue Moon was trying to get her under control. I have rarely seen any of these horses act like this and I wondered what the cause of it was.

BM 3 — Blue Moon stops to check on the rest of his band.

Amethyst’s actions caused Grijala to decide to move his small band out of there.

Not far behind I saw Horizon running after Blue Moon’s band. I wondered if he was trying to take someone or ones in Blue Moon’s band. Juniper and Fiesta were not far behind.

We would not see them again, so I do not know the answer.

Next to come by was Two Boots and Santa Fe.

Not too far behind in the parade of horses was Dukes Band, Teton’s Band and Mescalero’s Band.

M and T — Missoula and Teton, September 1, 2012

Custer’s band and Jackson’s band came by us a short time later.

Off in the distance I saw Doc and his band. I was really happy to see them. I had not seen them yet.

I felt eyes on me and turned to the right. I could just make out two sets of eyes looking at me just below a little dip in the land. It did not take me long to figure out it was the Toppers! I would know those eyes anywhere! It seemed they paused for a shorter time before they continued towards us. I am being to think they are getting to know me.

Toppers1 — Topper 1 and Topper too, September 1, 2012

We also saw Morning Star and his beautiful band.

Morning Star 1 — Morning Star’s band, September 1, 2012

Galaxy is Amber’s favorite stallion on the range. So we were both really happy to see them again before dark.

galaxy 2 — Galaxy and his band, September 1, 2012

I had not seen Cappuccino yet. I had not seen this band since they lost 3 members. Lilly, Kodiak and Kootenai. Finally they came by us. They all looked good, but I missed the other members. I miss all the faces that I will not see again, but for some reason I really noticed the missing member’s of this band.

As the sky darkened, we watched the horses peacefully grazing in the distance. I never get tired of that view. The peace, the beauty.

This would most likely be my last camping trip of the year. The temperatures are beginning to fall and snow could be coming soon. The mountains certainly need the moisture. I am planning on coming again in a while to check on everyone before winter sets in.

Sandy

Moon 2 — Moon over the Pryors, September 1, 2012

Kiowa and Kootenai

September 11, 2012September 11, 2012wildinthepryors

I thought I would do a short post this morning and share some photos with you of Kootenai and Kiowa in their new home.

They rode home in the trailer really well. I separated them for the ride, just to be on the safe side. But they seem to be so close already, I think it would have been fine if they had ridden together.

Kiowa was in the back and so when we opened the door for her to come out, she just stood there. She is a lot more timid than Kootenai. We let her stand there for a while, but after about 5 minutes I gently reached in and touched her back. She still did not move, so I just started petting her back. After about another 30 seconds she left the trailer. We opened the divider and Kootenai hurried to get out after her. Their legs were a bit wobbly from the ride, but they quickly recovered and started eating and drinking.

I feel really lucky that I was able to get both of Lakota’s offspring. Kootenai is the son of Lakota and Hertiage and Kiowa is the daughter of Lakota and Half Moon (Missoula’s mom). I never really noticed how much Kootenai is starting to look like Lakota, but I can defiantly see it now that he is home with me. He is only 2 and I am sure as he matures it will be even more apparent. What a gift to have part of Lakota here with me.

Kootenai has already touched my hand with his nose several times and even let me touch his forehead and pick up his bangs. This of course was all on his terms. I put their hay on the ground and then sat there just outside their fence with my hand resting on the fence for them to smell. Kiowa is pretty shy, but she watches her brother and came within about 4 inches to sniff it late yesterday afternoon.

I think that with all the days I spend on the range camping (it will be well over 30 days this year) and seeing these beautiful horses that they must recognize me. I hope that gives them some extra comfort, being with someone they know.

I am really glad that they have each other. I think it makes it easier on them. They started playing a little late yesterday evening and now as I look out the window at them they are taking a nap in the morning sun together. Kootenai is laying down and Kiowa is standing beside him.

I first saw these two in August of 2010. At the time I did not know the horses very well, so I did not realize it was Lakota and his band that I saw until I looked through the photos a few weeks ago.

The next time I saw them was in October of 2010.

Kiowa_Koda_3_2010 — Half Moon, Kiowa, Kootenai and Heritage, June 24, 2010. Photo by Deb Little.

Kootenai, August 2010 — Kootenai, August, 2010

Heritage: Jackson 5 — Heritage, Kootenai’s mother, August 30, 2012

I feel really lucky to have been able to watch these two grow on the range. I wish they could have stayed to live out their lives free like both their father Lakota ( 1992-July 2012) and mothers Half Moon and Heritage, but it was not to be.

K and K — Kootenai and Kiowa, September 10, 2012

Kootenai2 — Kootenai, September 10, 2012

But if they cannot be free, I am happy and blessed that they can be with me. I will be sure to post updates on them often.

Sandy

Mountain Update, Day Two. September 5, 2012

September 5, 2012wildinthepryors

I know I said that I was only going to post one post before I left for the adoption. I have a million things I probably should be doing. But I could not stop looking at my photos that I took and decided I might as well let everyone else see them too! So here you go.

The morning of day two of our trip was a pretty quiet morning. There were not many horses out. Teton’s band walked by us in the early morning. They were joined by Mescalero and his band. We saw these two bands together the rest of our trip. They would graze together and then when one group decided to move on, the other did as well.

Missoula really seemed to like this band and hung around them fairly close. They seemed to like him too. I thought Polaris looked better than I had seen her for a long time. She has put on some weight and looks good.

Teton 1 — Warbonnet and Phoenix, August 31, 2012

Rosarita:Teton — Rosarita, August 31, 2012

Mesc:Teton — Mescalero and Polaris, August 31, 2012

Not far behind were Topper, Topper Too and Chino. The Toppers seemed to pause a tiny bit longer this time. Were they starting to get used to me? Probably not.

After watching them head towards the pond, I decided to go check on Lakota. The memorial was still intact and I added another Red Tail Hawk feather that I had found.

Amber and I saw Blue Moon and Custer’s band not too far away, napping. Instead of going down to see them we decided to head for the pond and see who we might see there.

When we arrived at the pond, there were other people there, so we decided we would rather go back and see Blue Moon and Custer. So, we saw Blue Moon on a Blue Moon, it seemed fitting!

We hiked closer to them. Here were two more bands together. Custer and Blue Moon are full brothers. I had never seen these two bands together before. I always said that they were such opposites. Custer is a devoted band stallion and very caring towards his family. Blue Moon on the other hand seems to be the exact opposite. He is the “carefree” band stallion, leaving his band often to go goof off with whatever bachelors that might be near. However, this year I felt that maybe finely Blue Moon was starting to grow up and perhaps that is why his older brother Custer choose to be near him.

We watched them for a while. Then both bands decided it was time to head towards the pond.

BM 1 — Blue Moon’s Band, August 31, 2012

Custer 1 — Custer’s Band, August 31, 2012

amber — Blue Moon Band with Custer’s in the background, August 31, 2012

Custer2 — Custer watching Blue Moon leaving.

We watched Custer follow Blue Moon until they were out of sight in the trees. I wanted to see what Mystic Pond looked like, so we continued down the road to see it. I knew it would probably be dried up, and I was right.

Amber and I spent a few hours hiking around. Most of the horses seemed to be in the trees. It was a pretty warm day. We hiked back to Krueger Pond. The people were still there, I wondered if they were planning on staying there all day. I hated the thought of them interfering with the horses drinking so long. We decided to hike to the other pond across the road. We saw White Cloud’s band in the trees on our way there. I wished I had taken a photo of the pond, but neither Amber or I did. It was really only a big mud puddle now. We sat above it for a while, but nothing came to drink from it. After stopping to take a couple photos of Mica and Feldspar, we headed back towards our camp.

The quiet morning continued into a quiet afternoon. We did not see the other people all day. We had most of the mountain to ourselves. They must have stayed at the pond. We decided to stay away from the pond, to give the horses more space to drink from their only water source. It did not seem right to make it any more crowded.

It was early evening before we saw more horses. It was Teton’s band and Mescalero’s band, still together, heading towards us. Little Missoula was really interacting with Mescalero and Mescalero was being very patient with him. Teton did not seem to mind the interaction and kept grazing. Half Moon was not concerned either.

Mesc:pm3 — Missoula and Mescalero, August 31, 2012

Coronado Band was next to come by. This time they were without Baja and his band.

Dove2 — Dove and her filly, August 31, 2012

Coronado 2 — Coronado’s Band, August 31, 2012

It was starting to rain and almost dark when I saw Garcia, Greta and Millicent. Little Millicent was pretty far behind them and it seemed they did not care. I was worried about her. As Garcia and Greta headed into the trees, I wondered if Millicent would find them. About an hour later in the dark we heard a very long shrill whinny. It sound like a foal. I got out of the truck to look and less than a minute later I saw Garcia, Greta and Millicent, walking together. This time Garcia was staying where he should have been an hour before, behind Millicent making sure she kept up. I was sure that they had been separated. Hopefully Garcia has learned his lesson and will be more attentive.

Garcia:pm1 — Greta and Garcia, August 31, 2012

The wind and rain started to come down harder. I hoped that it would really pour. It did rain for a couple of hours, sometimes hard, but not enough to form mud puddles.

The next day our plan was to go down Burnt Timber, visit the horses at Britton Springs and then head back up Sykes.

I will share that day with you soon.

Sandy

Mountain Update, September 4th, 2012

September 4, 2012September 4, 2012wildinthepryors

I just got home yesterday from a wonderful trip to the Pryors with my daughter Amber. I wanted to get a post out while I unpack and repack. I will be leaving on Thursday to go to the adoption.

We had beautiful weather and had the mountain completely to ourselves for about 24 hours. I love when it ends up being that way. We were able to watch the horses in their most natural state. Without all of the disruptions of other people. I think they know me, so after a few looks, I feel they go back to doing what they would have been doing if I was not there.

We arrived early on Thursday. I am concerned with how dry the range looked. The forage at the top of hill by Krueger Pond was eaten down very short. The dust was thick. There was still plenty of water in the Pond. Mystic Pond is completely dried up. The other small pond is just a large mud puddle, so Krueger is the main water source for them now.

It rained one night while we were there. Not enough to make mud puddles, but enough to knock the dust back. The range needs more.

As we drove into the Range from the Sage Creek side, we saw some horses. It was White Cloud and some of his band heading down to the water. I was eager to see if Damsel had her foal. Last year she foaled on September 14, so I thought it may be a bit early. She was still very pregnant. Hopefully this year she will have a healthy foal. Last year the foal was born blind and deformed and only survived a few days.

Damsel is the daughter of White Cloud. For whatever reason, she remains with him. His other daughter, Jasmine, has been trying to leave. She was with Jackson’s band (again) when I saw her later on our first day. Brumby actually seemed to be accepting her now. At least her ears were not pinned back! Then a day later Jasmine was back with White Cloud. I hope she can make a permanent break soon.

Mica was really getting big. After a few minutes with them, we left to go set up our camp. I knew I would see them again.

WC1 — White Cloud’s band (no Jasmine), August 30, 2012

WC2 — White Cloud’s band, August 30, 2012

We continued down the road to our camp site. On the right I saw Coronado’s Band and Baja’s band. It was interesting this time to see so many of the bands close by each other, actually forming a big group of 2. They would graze together and follow each other to the water. It was all very peaceful.

I was happy to see Dove and her foal, a beautiful filly. She seemed healthy. We watched her nurse and then run around and play.

Baja and Washakie’s filly Meadowlark, was beautiful. We spent a while watching these two bands together before they moved on.

baja and corno — Baja’s band and Coronado’s band together, August 30, 2012

Baja, Wash and Med — Baja, Washakie and Meadowlark, August 30, 2012

Meadowlark 3 — Washakie, Meadowlark and Baja, August 30, 2012

After setting up our camp, Amber and I decided to head back down to the pond and see who was there. On our way we saw Teton and his band.

teton 3:missoula — Missoula, August 30, 2012

We heard thundering hoofs and turned to see Galaxy and his band galloping down the hill. I am always in awe when I see this beautiful stallion. He seems to be such a good band stallion already. Well, he is Lakota’s son after all.

We watched them go into the woods. I knew they were heading for the pond.

When we got there we saw that Galaxy had beaten us there and was wet from the water. Coronado and Baja and their bands were there too.

Duke and his band were above us.

We stood on top of the hill above the pond, next to some trees. I like to watch from up here. I feel if I am down right next to the pond, I would interfere with the natural behavior of the horses. This is the only water source for these horses now. I like to be as unobtrusive as possible.

Dukes band — Duke’s band, August 30, 2012

The next band to come was Bolders. Baja and Bolder had a little discussion, but otherwise it was pretty quiet for a few minutes. Amber and I were concerned with their interaction, only because little Meadowlark was so close by. It ended in just a few seconds though.

bolder band:pond — Bolder and his band, August 30, 2012

bolder and baja 2 — Baja and Bolder, August 30, 2012

Bolder’s band did not stay long and started to head up the hill towards us.

We heard someone in the trees above the pond and saw 3 bachelors walk out. Irial, Goldrush’s son London, and Jupiter. Jupiter had a wound on his right hip.

We watched these boys walk down to the pond and splash and drink. For whatever reason Bacardi decided she was very interested in them. Maybe she saw the wound on Jupiter and wanted to get a closer look. Baja ended that rather quickly.

Jupiter:wound — Jupiter’s wound, August 30, 2012

Irial and London:water — Irial and London

Bacardi and boys — Barcardi following the boys.

All of the bands cleared out and we went back to our camp.

Heading towards us was Horizon, Fiesta and Juniper. I call them the Odd Couple. They have been this way for several months now. For a few weeks, Joviana and her colt were with them.

Juniper is one of three buckskins on the mountain.

Odd Couple 1 — Fiesta, Juniper and Horizon, August 30, 2012

A little while later, Jackson and his band came by us. The 3 foals had really grown since I saw them last. Jasmine was with them tonight.

Jackson 1 — Moenkopi with Jasmine and her brothers Malestrom and Moorcroft, August 30, 2012

Jackson 6 — Galena, Hertiage and Firestorm, August 30, 2012

Jackson 4 — Moorcroft, Moenkopi and Maelstrom

I have said before, that if I am patient enough, all the bands seem to find me and go right past my camp. It certainly seemed to be true this trip. Amber and I would see every band walk by us several times in the days that we were there.

Just before dark we saw Knight, Inali and Hernando. Darkness came faster than the last time I was here. It was very dark now at 8:30. Amber and I watched the sunset and the almost full moon rise. This full moon is called a Blue Moon because it is the second full month in the month. I feel lucky that I was able to spend both of them here on top of the Pryors.

I will make more posts about this trip once I get back from the adoption.

Sandy

Tag: Sandy Elmore

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