It was June who taught us about the the order of horses.  She was the “Queen” I guess, but she was never allowed to go first on a trail ride.  Apparently, she took that role too seriously and would blaze the trail as she knew it.  Her riders would miss out on the beauty of the day as she would be on her own mission, to get back to the snack shack.

June is one of the oldest horses, so the other horses look to her as their lead; their matriarch.  One of the wranglers, at Cave Creek Trail Rides told us a story of her nudging the gate open one night, and all the other horses simply followed her.  Funny now, but at the time the panicked wranglers had no horses left and didn’t know where they were.  Not to worry, snacks brought them all home with June in the lead.

Apparently an evening stroll was on her agenda.

So, we learn, the trail rides with teams of horses are organized in an order that they know and understand.  No one crosses the lead horse, and no one falls behind.   Well, except June.  She still finds a tasty shrub to snack on when it feels right to her, and backs up the line, because she can.

I guess Mama knows best.

Wind Kisses, Donna

 

The photo was one of those “wow” moments in Bryce National Park.  Our quiet hike was interrupted by a clip clop and we were privy to the riders on the way down the canyon.  June is a horse at Cave Creek Trail Rides in Arizona.  

Weekly Photo Challenge: Order