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OUR RIDERS ARE SO CREATIVE!

admin — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 17:39:23 +0000

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A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS!

admin — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 01:34:58 +0000

One can only imagine what Titian is Thinking!

Sit A Spell and Enjoy The View

admin — Sat, 29 May 2010 01:12:02 +0000

We are always looking for new trails to take our guest on their next adventure, and with a little work this could be a wonderful place to have lunch.

Kelly and I decide to rest a while and just enjoy the peace of the river and mountains

River Dinner Guests

admin — Fri, 21 May 2010 04:40:49 +0000

Most people when invited to someones home for dinner…drive there in their cars.
Not our Friends….they come from up river (Index) by raft and kayak…and of course their request for dinner was that it be cooked in the Dutch Ovens!
So a couple of hours before our dinner guest were scheduled to arrive. We browned the hamburger in hot Dutch Ovens,chopped up the onions,cabbage, celery & carrots and added them to the browned hamburger.

Then we added tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce & bouillion.

We put the lids on the Dutch Ovens, piled on the coals and let it cook until our guest arrived. The one on top is Brownies!!!

They arrived right on time……

Add some good old cornbread baked in a cast iron skillet.

And we have some very Happy Friends……who all just happen to be White Water River Guides at Outdoor Adventure Center in Index.

“Big Ben” Gets a Lecture

admin — Sat, 24 Apr 2010 19:06:03 +0000

Our guests sometimes have such a funny sense of humor.
Kevin decided to explain to Ben that if he ran him into another tree, like he did the last ride….there could be a price to pay.
Of course he was just joking.

Another “WHAT WERE WE THINKING MOMENT”

admin — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 04:28:53 +0000

Aaron from Icicle Outfitters and Dalton got this idea one day that when Aaron was close to the Dutch Oven Factory he should pick up 2 really large ovens.
Their logic was: Since they were teaching “Dutch Oven Cooking” and teaching at “Horse and Mule Packing Schools” that having a couple of large ovens would be the “cat’s meow”.
So Aaron swung buy the factory and picked up their “pre-ordered” large 22″ Dutch Ovens. The first clue should have been when they brought them to the truck on a Fork Lift!!! All 150 pounds per oven…now we all know that’s 300 pounds total weight. The first thing Aaron does is call Dalton…..”What have we done?? You are not going to believe the size of these things!. That was the first phone call of many during the week. All starting with “what have we done? You are not going to believe the size of these things.
When Aaron got home he came to the ranch with the ovens.
Now Dalton is singing the same song as Aaron…what have we done?? I can’t believe the size of these things!!!
Now…Their cowboy wisdom kicks in…Well we own them, guess we had better build a fire and season them.

Aaron with the fire going strong.

Aaron Oiling the Dutch Oven

The Seasoned Dutch Oven

The Proud Owners of some Very Large Dutch Ovens

Claude & Cylde Go For A Test Drive

admin — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 03:11:43 +0000

When you have a team of Belgiums and a covered wagon and you want to take them for their first drive…who do you find CRAZY enough to go along?
Your Neighbors of Course!
(Just don’t tell them this is the first time you have had people in the back of the wagon.) Somethings are best left unsaid.

First we gathered up all the willing neighbors.

Then we hitched up the Team.

Notice the only neighbor in the wagon is “Tuki” the Yorkie Explorer, He is always game for any adventure.

In the end everyone had a great time and we are ready to start with Covered Wagon Rides this Spring and Summer.

For those of you that have never driven a team of horses…this is the view from the drivers seat.

The Covered Wagon Saga

admin — Sat, 20 Mar 2010 06:40:39 +0000

Sunday we went to pick up the covered wagon in Levenworth. Most people get in their trucks with trailer attached and go pick up what they are going to pick up…..Not so, if you associate with cowboys….
We borrowed a large trailer from Hidden River Ranch to pick up the covered wagon. Saturday afternoon we have 2 stranded cowboys from eastern Washington standing in our kitchen wanting us to trailer their broken down pickup truck to eastern Washington. They heard through the grapevine that we were heading that way. Mind you, as with any good cowboy, they never have any money, since they spent their last $400 to have their pickup towed from Stevens Pass to Monroe. Now they came over here to pick up a $300 check. See how the math works.They are now $100 in the hole, a broken down pickup truck and no way to get back to eastern Washington.
So after a lengthy discussion on how many horses they are going to ride for us in exchange for their transportation across the pass…..we struck a deal.
Next day, we loaded up the truck, 2 dogs and 2 cowboys and headed to Leavenworth. The guys were very entertaining with their stories of working with rodeo stock and branding cattle.

When we arrived in Levenworth, George was there to greet us. George runs the carriage company in Levenworth and who we bought the team and Wagon from.

After the customary greetings, the boys then had to decide how to get their truck off the trailer.

Now, we had to get the covered wagon on the trailer. Good “old fashion” pushing should work.

Now that it is up there, we needed to figure out how to tie it down for the return trip through the pass.

Oh, by the way….we had better measure the height…13′ …we are SAFE, most of the bridges are 14+ feet. Good call on your part George!

And just in case you all want to see what a young cowboy looks like….Here’s Kelly.

What Were We Thinking!!!

admin — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:27:41 +0000

One morning we woke up and got this brainstorm….let’s look for a team of horses and a wagon. We can do Wine Rides, Parades & Hay wagon rides, the list started to become endless.
My only criteria was that they had to be Belgiums, because their personalities are so mellow and calm.
The first person Dalton calls on our quest for a team is our good friend Aaron over at Icicle Outfitters. Aaron is Dalton’s teaching buddy for the Horse and Mule Packing Schools.

He is also an expert at finding horses for people. So if you are looking for a horse Aaron or his sister LuAnne are the people you want to call.

Aaron in his normal attire

In a few weeks Aaron called one night and told us about a team that “Stevie Wonder” could drive….sounds like my kind of horses, Claude & Clyde a pair of Belgiums that Icicle Outffiters were using on their sleigh rides in Levenworth. So Christmas Day we packed up and went to drive the pair. A little dashing through the snow in a open sleigh…..and the deal was sealed. This was the team for us and they just happen to come with a covered wagon. When Claude & Clyde finished their sleigh pulling job….they were scheduled to come to Stillwater, and last Sunday Dalton and our neighbor Rick went to Levenworth to pick up the boys.

When Dalton lead them off the trailer, all 1800 lbs…that’s each…not together… I looked at the size of those feet and went “Holy Mackerel”…man are those feet big. It’s a little like when you buy a piece of furniture and you say “ It didn’t look THAT BIG in the store.”. and then you get it home…and you go “What was I thinking????

After a day of getting used to the place. Dalton took Claude & Clyde out for their picture debut. What’s Not to Love about these guys? So come spring, we’ll be taking this show on the road…stay tuned…..this week we are going to get the Covered Wagon from George over in Levenworth.

Bella Ragazza comes to Stillwater

admin — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 17:51:30 +0000

Bella Ragazza : Beautiful Girl, Pretty Girl or Cute Chick

That’s the name Wrangler Ani came up with for the new addition to the ranch. With those big brown eyes and dark mane she looks like Sofia Loren, minus the big glasses.

After a week of settling in, Bella went to Ani’s round pen for evaluation.

Bella meets her new friend Rain

Casanova Rain noticed her right away.

She was a gem. The plastic bag “sacking out” was a little alarming at first but she soon settled down and just looked at it with much curiosity. Or she was looking at the human waving this stick and bag around wondering what would posses a person to do such a silly thing.

The big noisy tarp came next…No Problem with that. A few sniffs and onward she walked.

Next the saddle. No Problem with that either.

Crossing the wooden bridge….took a couple of tries. It is easier to walk around things than over them. Funny, the same thing happens in the house.

After a couple spins around the pasture, Bella’s evaluation was complete.

She passed with flying colors. Bella is quick to learn, well mannered and a great addition to the trail string. It will be a while before our guests will be able to rider her. She still has to go through “Leadership school” and “Back of the class school”

All of the evaulation was proffessionally monitored by “Indy”- Wrangler Ani’s mare and given the “Indy Stamp of Approval”