Friday, January 15, 2010 - Day Two of riding in Osceola National Forest

Set out by 11:oo this morning, with dreams of following the 16-mile Yellow Trail. We had found the trailhead yesterday, where it begins at the edge of a Forest Road, and we delighted with the canopy of scrub pines and low palms, in an area that had obviously been "prescription-burned" a year or two earlier. Hubby had spoken to one of the rangers, who said they always burn right after the big game hunting season, and they burn about a quarter of the forest, (which is about 266,ooo+ acres), so they cycle through it every four years. Keep that schedule in mind if you decide to come here to ride! Anyway, the Yellow Trail is considered one of the more challenging trails in the forest, and we soon found out why. Forest became swamp, and parts of the trail began to be underwater. Water is not a problem for our horses, but I have to admit, when one section looked like my boots and saddle were going under, my horse and I both hesitated. Rather than risk going swimming or having water over the tops of my boots, we turned around, then struggled to find a way around. There was no cut trail alternative, and it truly was a bog near the trail, so we went just far enough into the woods to make it palatable (with persuasion) for the horses. Once we were past that point, the rest of the trail was much drier (and this IS the dry season here!).

All along the trail, the markings were good, but there was one missing when we crossed a road, and got lost again. A lot of the road numbers seemed to have changed since the maps were printed, so the going got a little dicey. No real water on the trail, except for rather stagnant swamp water, so watch out for that. Eventually, after another wrong turn (Hubby's fault), we ended up on a road that led us straight back to camp, which, since we'd been out for five hours, was precisely the direction we wanted to head. We found it interesting that there were no signs of other horses in the forest, AT ALL. A great secret, if you ask me! Supposed to rain tomorrow, horses will probably appreciate a day off, and think Hubby (yes, and me) needs the recovery time. Cocktail hour beckons!