Missoula on Home~

Dawn~

The final leg seemed the longest of the trip.  I'd slept the night before & enjoyed the very nice room.  I woke an hour before my alarm, took my time & watched the weather report.  Freezing rain near St. Regis had me worried, so by the time I called Butch - I'd stopped at Starbucks for a hot tea & was already on I-90.  Pretty much the only car on the road.  I had some interesting radio stations that I listened to along the way!  The Bear, the Wolf & the Eagle!  I'd listen until I ran out of the range of each station, early in the mornings anyway.

Daylight~

As the day lightened, all it did was to show me how icy in spots the roads were.  I just maintained my speed, kept the wheel straight & didn't make any sudden changes.  I'd wait for the straight stretches to pass any trucks.

Near St. Regis~

By the time I was near St. Regis - the road was down to one clear lane, but with no traffic - I had it to myself :-)

Rest Area~

I made a very short stop here - up on the pass.  No lack of snow in the Tamarack Forest!  Some of the trees look almost dead in winter, dropping their needles.  Coeur d'Alene was the next goal & the WA state line after that.

Coeur d'Alene

Filling up whenever I got down to half a tank worked out well.  That usually took two-hours & by that time I was ready for a short break & stretch.  I pulled off for gas at Liberty Lake & was right back out on the road heading for Ellensburg, when I realized that the tank wasn't totally topped off.  Oh well, if it got too low - there was always Moses Lake.

Central Washington State~

 On such a slate gray day - the monochromatic views were far from inspiring.  I'd started the trip doing about 70 mph.  Once in Montana - with the 80-mph speed limit - the Bronco just seemed to go 80 all on it's own.  That's the speed we did all the way across, so at least we were making time.  I stopped at the Schrag rest area & did a few jumping jacks just to get the blood flowing!

The Columbia~

Views of the Columbia, gave me at least a little of the scenic interest I was using to enjoying!  I didn't get a photo of the lit, blinking sign that greeted drivers climbing the hill on the far side.  It read;  "50+ Elk killed in a year, over the next six-miles."  Believe me - I kept both eyes open through there.
At Ellensburg, I stopped at the truck stop & asked about the pass.  The truckers were worried & wondering about it as much as I was.  It started snowing lightly while I was there & lasted for a few miles out of town.

Leaving Ellensburg~

Now, so close to getting home, I sure didn't want to be stopped on the pass!  Friends let me know that the eastbound lane had been closed due to an accident.  It was noticeable - hardly any traffic coming eastbound.   It started raining about half way up!  Rain!  Hadn't seen any of that since I'd left!  :-)  The worst part, was on the down hill grades - the lanes were narrowed for the construction & had No shoulder!  With snow packed up against the barriers - there was maybe a lane & a half of space.  No fun...

Eastbound Emergency Rigs~

I didn't have much of a chance to get a photo - but What a Mess!  The backed up traffic went on for miles & miles...

Trucks line the shoulder of I-90~

More trucks were off to the side than I'd seen my entire trip...  Just a way further & the wind struck!  Huge gusts blowing the rain right at us in sheets.  I took the Fall City exit & let me tell you - following a car at 35 mph. seemed like a crawl!  I stopped at daughter Courtney's for a minute - to tell her I was back & took the back roads home!

I just have to brag up the Bronco.  Purchased in April of 06, after my other one was totaled, we bought it with 117,000 miles.  It was almost impossible - even then, to find one that was in decent condition.  We've always taken good care of it, maintenance when needed etc.  I drove it on this same trip in July of 2012 - to see my Dad, so this was our second long-distance haul.  Not one single problem the entire way!  The engine just purred & purred!  The harder I worked it - the smoother it ran.  I think the Bronco enjoyed his vacation from pulling the horse trailer & all the short around town trips that constitute the work week :-)  Our total mileage was 2,808 & I was gone nine days.  Of those nine, only three weren't on the road.  I still feel like I'm moving today!   The cold/wet of the great north-wet has already settled back in my bones :-)

P.S.  The one thing that I noticed the most - in every state I traveled through - was the lack of snow.  All the way across - there was maybe 3" of windblown snow, nothing like the Winters of old by the time January rolled around...

Saddles... Long...

Somewhere in Eastern, WA :-)

I've been trying to convince myself for a while now that my saddle was working, would work, should work, could work, might work better - if - if - I could find the right combination of pad/shims,etc. that would give me an even sweat pattern.  Things started out fine, first on Khari - then on Farah - (See post)  but now that Farah has worn it for over 18-mo. it's just obvious that it's not working.   Yes - she's now fit & her shape has changed.  But - there are so many issues...  The sheering of the hair over her loins, her wanting to buck with me - prior to adding the pad with shims.  The improved the behavior - but didn't eliminate it.  When I added an additional shim to the front - some of the waves on her withers went away - but then, I could feel too much pressure under the front of the saddle.   Amazingly enough -  when her back is checked - it never appears that she is sore.

There's my fit too - I've always said it was just fine, because when you spend a lot of money on a saddle you want it to be "fine"!  The twist has always felt too wide, but over time - my muscles stretched & I post so much that it felt "normal" to me.  When Sandra rode in it - she too commented that it was pretty wide, but a nice seat.  It certainly has the security & close contact that I like.

Never a fan of off-the-rack saddles or ralide trees - having the opportunity to order a custom saddle with hand-carved wood tree had a huge appeal for me.  Riding in a custom saddle made by a quality saddle maker is an experience that everyone should try - at least once.  But - again - it's an investment.

Hind sight being 20/20 - if I were to do it again - I would only order from someone geographically close enough that I could get my horse to them for a fitting.  No forms, no molds, not just photos...  a fitting.  I would show some restraint & wait to order one - until after the horse had a couple years of riding on them.

That said - after Justin & Tony checked out my saddles' fit - fresh eyes...  I decided enough was enough, did some research & made a call to Everett Olson of Olson's Saddle Shop, near Ellensburg.  My thinking - a craftsman close enough to visit & if he made saddles there - in ranching country - he was probably really good at his craft.  The good news?  Mr. Olson agreed to look at my saddle & Farah - to see what was going on & what might be done.  (Something I really appreciated, since I had contacted the maker of my saddle & he was not interested in making any changes to the saddle.)  (I'd tried to sell it between Khari & Farah - but had no luck.)

Almost over the Top!

We loaded Farah - were on the road early & on our way to Ellensburg!  The pass report was for clear & wet roads.  From partial sun at home, to rain on the pass, to partly cloudy on the far side - it was a stunningly beautiful trip - like driving through a "Winter" scene on a postcard.   We found our way - down a couple country roads & to the sign that starts this post!

You meet people only now & then - that when you shake hands - it feels like you've been friends forever.  It was that way with Everett, Carolyn & us :-)  That - with the fun of walking into a saddle shop rich with the smell of leather & full of beautiful saddles - made for a great time & interesting, informative day.

Farah with Everett's tree - you can see the blister on her side from the rigging on mine...

What was instantly apparent to me, was that about any tree or saddle we tried fit better than mine!

Farah wearing Carolyn's saddle~

When I tried this saddle, the first thing I noticed, was that my legs were so much more comfortable - actually falling from my hips - rather than stretched further apart.  When Carolyn - (my size) tried my saddle - she commented on how wide the twist was...

To my good fortune, Mr. Olson has agreed to tear my saddle apart - remove the current tree, that has numerous issues that make it unusable for me or my horse.  The swell & gullet combination was wrong - allowing the front to drop - (Putting more pressure on Farah's withers as I added shims.)  The bars of the tree are - too flat - again - causing the saddle to sit lower in front & not make any contact in the back & very little contact along the bars...  (Cause of the loin rubbing & sore spot from the rigging.)  Very heavy in front & on her shoulders...  From what I understand, the bar angle is something that each individual saddle maker decides on - dependent on the other measurements for the tree.

By the time we loaded Farah to head home, we were both feeling very positive both over our good fortune in meeting Everett & Carolyn & hopeful that I'm finally on the right track in soon finally riding in that "perfect" saddle!  :-)   Time dependent - because I'm not fond of my temporary saddle - I've asked Everett to take some photos of what my saddle looks like during this process.  In the meantime...  it's back to the 91 Big Horn - that at least isn't too wide or too narrow!