Ride with the Hackamore~

I was weather watching!  The morning brought sideways rain & some wind - but by late morning, blue sky was peaking out from the cloud cover!  Leaving the cookie baking in a hurry - I headed for the barn.  Farah came racing up from the bottom of the pasture - hitting the brakes at the barn door.  I saddled her up & put the hackamore on.  The first thing I noticed was how calm she was, walking right beside me as we headed down toward Pats.

Farah in the hackamore - sun dropping to the west at 2 p.m.

Once we were past Pat's gate, it seemed crazy to see the sun so low in the now blue sky!  We headed up to the trails, knowing that we'd have to double around a lot to get in any kind of ride. I mounted up & asked for her head both directions - it took her a minute, she wanted to back or turn - but finally figured out it was a familiar cue.

The Tree~

Heading south - we took the trail that goes to the development - the downed tree looked just as large as it did the day we were coming from the other direction & couldn't get by.  Turning back, we went west.  She broke to a trot, dropped her head below the vertical & shook it each direction - as she likes to do.  I used one rein, got her head back up & put her back in a walk.

From an ice flow, to a creek~

The ice had melted, the ground was totally saturated - Farah sinking in 3" with every step.  Slosh, slosh, so warm for December!

Past the Wetland

The trail going by the bottom of the wetland was flooded, water flowing over on the Beaver's skid path, then going into the creek.  We took a left, down the old trail that would have taken us back over to the development - but it's been closed with brush for a long while.  No Salmon in the creek.

Water flowing from the Wetland~

Again we turned back & Farah wanted to trot - I let her - but it was just so sloppy that it wasn't fun for either of us.  I stayed as light as I could on the reins, asking & never pulling.  She seemed comfortable, not looking for every blade of grass - as much as she usually does in the bit.

Roof~

Where once a forest stood, I can now see through to the roof of one of the new houses :-(  So sad & the reason so many trees have blown down.  Again we turned back.

The drainage detention pond~

Finally, we took the trail that goes the closest to our road, the gosh awful detention pond was totally full of water.  It is between us & the beautiful huge wetland.  Just disgusting - that the County planners seem to think that these are the solution to handing this natural water system.  Riding past Pat's pasture, her herd took off at a gallop!  This put Farah on high alert!  She puffed herself up & let out her trademark HUFF!  I dismounted - not wanting to mess around on paving.  I asked her to back two steps, then lower her head - she complied & relaxed.

View east, from the top of our road~

We went on up our road to where I've been gated off.  The forest between Farah's ears is the west end of our property.  I've mentioned before that we have no neighbors, just adjoining landowners...

Our destroyed fence~

A new reason?  See above - the adjoining landowner to the south - has a driveway just across the road from this spot.  Our fence had been caught on something - & pulled almost down, breaking off two of our 4x4 posts at the ground.  I can only hope that it did some damage to the vehicle that hit & caught on it!

Truly Bummed...

Glider at Frog Hollow

At the back of this photo, you can see our fence, a building & a large scaffold.  The "adjoining landowner" to the west of us, cut down a 40 wide by 190 ft. long swath of the woods that had been fenced with this property since the 40's, a year after we moved here.  He did it while we were distracted by a death in the family.  By the time we saw a huge plum of smoke in the air above the woods & walked up to see - it was too late to do anything.  We had a new fence to build. 
  
This is the same person who owns the pit-bulls that attacked me in May.  Yesterday morning on my walk, I found that he had raked up all the leaves that fell on his side of our fence & thrown them over to our side in piles, which completely buried my ferns & small bushes that I've planted.  Last year he did the same..  I'd bagged it all & hauled it to our compost piles then, but this time was just too much.  To say I was furious is an understatement.  I drove up there & found him walking down from his barn.  I informed him that I had called the Sheriff & that it was illegal to toss his yard debris over the fence.

He put the scaffolding up shortly after the "leaf" discussion last year - to cut down the trees that now overhang his shop, but it's been there all season.  This afternoon I walked up to find him setting up more scaffolding & now cutting all the branches that remain off our Cedars.  Mumbling that if I'd been "nice" to him yesterday he wouldn't do it, but now it would "All go."   What to do?  Build a 12 ft. tall fence?  Maybe install ecology blocks 20 ft. high?  Sickening...
I also asked for his Homeowner's Insurance information & if/when I get that -- will contact them to request payment on the hospital bills I owe from my injuries in May.  His response was that he'd have to "get back" to me with on that.   Sent the request by certified mail today!