Saturday, December 31, 2011 - Great 10 mile ride on the Purple Trail

 Set the alarm for 9:00 this morning, just to make sure we got out early enough for a ten mile ride today, and even then we didn’t get out till after 12:00. This time we set out in the "right" direction, following the Purple Trail, taking the long loop to get the full ten miles in. Part of the trail took us along the road, and much of the far southern end of the loop had been recently clear-cut so it was pretty ugly and the trail was sandier because of the equipment traffic chewing up the ground, but that was only for maybe 2 miles. The rest of the trail was very nice, with lots of opportunities to jog, trot and we even took a number of long canters, some of the longest we’ve ever taken. The horses have settled down nicely now that we’ve been able to ride them consistently, something we haven’t been able to do for months because of our busy schedule, so we’re getting back on track with them now. They seem to be enjoying the rides as much as we are. We took one break about 2/3 of the way around the loop for about 20 minutes, then headed back to camp, finishing with a couple of nice long canters again. We rinsed them off at a nice wash rack across from where we are camped, and hung them out to dry on the highline. Another perfect day, a perfect ride in perfect weather, exactly what we came to Florida for! What a great way to end an incredible year! We drank a bottle of wine, and shared a bottle of the sparkly stuff as we watched the ball drop in Times Square, ringing in the New Year doing exactly what we want to be doing. Life is Good!

Friday, December 30, 2011 - First Exploratory Ride at Tidewater

We haven’t been sleeping well in the last few days, so we were grateful to get a good night sleep last night, sleeping well and late this morning. We decided to take a short ride just to get a feel for the place, so we headed out Saddle Pen Road for a bit, which is where we had seen many horses enter the campground from last night when we were setting up. We got turned around a bit, when we realized that this area also only marked the trails on one side, and we were going the wrong way. We ended up cutting across along an unmarked trail, then followed along the old rail line because we knew from the map it would eventually cross a trail, but we didn’t like the gravel much, even though it was mostly covered over with grass. Eventually we ran into the yellow trail, and from there I easily navigated a way back to the campground, albeit in the "opposite" direction than the trail blazes dictated. Well, that’s what exploring is all about! The trails, again are very nice, with good footing in most places, though some have some fairly deep sand, but nothing we and our horses couldn’t handle with aplomb! A nice quiet ride with some lovely jogs and short canters, and the temperature was perfect, just what we’ve been searching for all along! A great day, especially as it is the second anniversary of the day we "ran away from home" on December 30, 2009!

Thursday, December 29, 2011 - Move to Tidewater/Shopping

Saying good-bye to our generous hosts, we headed down the road to the south end of the Goethe State Forest, to the Tidewater Horse Camp. Here we found an area a bit larger than Black Prong, with a pavillion in addition to the bathrooms, and quite a few more spots to camp. Although Thursdays are usually slow, I guess the week between Christmas and New Years is an exception, and the place was packed when we arrived. There were really only two places we could camp, and one was very close to what was obviously the group campfire in the middle, so we opted for a corner on the edge of the campground by the road, which unfortunately was right under a sodium light on a pole, but it was unavoidable. There are water spigots between every other campsite or so, so it was convenient, and plenty of trees ringing the camp for highlines. We got the RV settled in, then Hubby and I took the van with the horses and headed for the nearby town of Dunnellon where we did some shopping, had our ice cream lunch, and finally headed back, completing our setup and getting the horses settled in by 5:00, just in time for dinner for all!

Wednesday, December 28, 2011 - Group Ride to Willards Restaurant

 Today our hosts had arranged a group ride to a nearby restaurant called Willards. Well, restaurant might be a bit of a generous description. It was more of a biker bar, with a pool table and other assorted bar games. The three mile ride took us to a large backyard with a couple of highlines strung on some trees, so high up that I stayed on Apollo to hook him up before dismounting. The ride included Gregg and Julie and another couple we had met with them at Otter Creek in September, and were joined by another couple who drove there. The service was a bit slow, but the food was pretty good (burger and sweet potato fries). The ride was way off the beaten track for the most part, along trails so unmarked we would never have been able to find the place on our own. Hubby and I stayed at the back of the back, partly because the pace the others were keeping was a bit quicker than we usually do, so we had to trot to keep up occasionally. After awhile, my horse was starting to get a bit irritated by trotting a short distance, then having to slow down again, without ever getting a chance to really stretch his legs. Eventually we all trotted a few times, which helped, but then he wanted to canter, and didn’t have room for that either. He "rodeo-ed" on my once, when he suddenly leaps in the air like a bronco with all four feet off the ground just to make his opinion known (as one of our group called it), but then he settled down again for the rest of the ride. Hubby and I have come to the conclusion that we like to ride on our own for the most part, and group rides are something we’ll do only on occasions like this one, not something we’d seek out for ourselves. We’ve come across lots of people who seek out clubs and group rides, but that’s just not for us, at least not for now. That’s not to take away from the day, though, it was a nice change and we enjoyed it. Always like to do something new once in a while to keep things fresh! Headed back, taking some new trails just to keep it more interesting, until we finally make it back to the Black Prong Trailhead and back home.

Tuesday, December 27, 2011 - Buggy Ride

Rather than ride today, our hostess Julie invited me to take a buggy ride with her. At the time I thought it would be a nice leisurely "stroll" through the neighborhood, but it turned out to be something entirely different. I learned that there are buggy competitions, and Julie is at the top of the game. The buggy is a one-seater, and the passenger is actually ballast to help counter-balance the buggy when speeding around sharp turns, which is the object of the competition, i.e. avoiding obstacles on the course. So my job was to stand on a platform on the back of the buggy and hold on for dear life for two hours! Not quite what I had in mind, but it was certainly different! She took me through a small section of the neighborhood, filling me in on all the details of the neighbors, before heading out past the same equestrian center Hubby and I had passed earlier, then onto another one where we went through a few obstacles, then finally out into the forest to trot and lope out there for awhile. It never ceases to amaze me what people come up with to compete in! Anyway, it was new and different, and it made for an interesting day!

Monday, December 26, 2011 - Long Orange Trail

  Decided the horses and we were fit enough for a longer ride today, so we tackled the long loop of the Orange Trail, which was about 10 miles. It began on a long stretch of the hard-packed road, which was dirt/sand and some gravel, then, after almost missing an unmarked turn, we found our way to the orange markers and never had any further navigation problems. It was mostly a truly lovely trail, wide enough to ride side by side most of the way. Lots of pine trees and some oaks, as well as scrub palms throughout. One section took us to an older growth part of the forest which was truly nice, lots of hanging moss, but most was pretty much well-managed forest. Some of the trails had obviously been part of the race, others were a bit less used, giving us a chance to see what the trails would usually be like. We had a great time, though, and the horses seemed to enjoy themselves as much as we did for the full ten miles, with lots of cantering and trotting along the way!

Sunday, December 25, 2011 - Christmas Dinner with New Friends

Slept late again, thankfully, and had a rather relaxing day today. Hubby and I aren’t much for holidays (we view every day as a gift!), so it was pretty low-key. The folks we met the other night, Judy and Ken, were having a dinner party and invited us along, so we headed over there about 6:00. Had a wonderful dinner and chatted with a number of interesting people, though the main thrust of this group is competition, which Hubby and I have little interest in. We’re truly out for the pleasure of it, and competing is just too much like work! A nice evening overall though, and we were thankful to our hosts for making it an extra special Christmas.

Saturday, December 24, 2011 - Short Ride with Billy

Had a better night sleep than I’ve had in a long time, but still tired deep down, hoping to make a dent in that soon. We decided to take a short ride today, but our little dog Billy slipped out the door and refused to come back in, so we decided to let him tag along (careful what you wish for Billy). We followed some unmarked trails that weren’t actually part of the forest, because we didn’t want to cross the rather busy road to get to the trailhead with Billy. We passed a gorgeous equestrian center and the backs of a few houses, but were in wooded areas most of the time. Didn’t take long for Billy to tire out, and once he did, we headed across the road to the trailhead just to see what the campground was like. The Black Prong Campground is the farthest north of the horse campgrounds in Goethe, and where we would have stayed if our friends hadn’t invited us to stay with them instead. Other than being right next to a busy road, it’s a rather nice little campground. Several small sites are there, plus a large clearing where a bigger rig could go. There are a couple of central water spigots, and very nice tiled bathrooms with running cold water, so it would have been a good place to stay. Picked up a map at the kiosk, then decided to take the short blue loop just to check out the trails. We had learned that the trails were not in perfect shape for two reasons. One, they’ve been having a terrible drought for months, so there’s no water on the trails and the sand had grown quite soft, and two, they had just had an endurance race through the forest with over 120 horses, and they had really chewed up the trail. The result was some areas of pretty deep sand on some long stretches of trail, some of which we encountered on the short blue loop. Nothing impassable, just slowed us down a bit. A nice area, though, and we’re looking forward to doing more exploring. One more thing we learned was that the trails are only marked going in one direction! You either have to follow the trail in the direction they want, or you have to constantly be turning your head around looking for markers, at least until you get to know the trails. We’ve only encountered this phenomenon once before, and it’s beyond understanding, but c’est la vie! We’ll just have to get to know the trails!

Friday, December 23, 2011 - Moved the Friends House near Goethe State Forest

 Headed south looking for warmer climes, arriving at Gregg and Julie’s house around 3:00. We met them at Sugar Hill in New York during the summer, and met up with them again at Otter Creek over Labor Day weekend. We parked in their pasture, and let the horses run around in the pasture next door. They have a great location, right next to the Goethe State Forest, and the entire neighborhood is horse-oriented. Had a very enjoyable cocktail hour (which lasted 3 hours), meeting another couple, Judy and Ken, before turning in for the night.

Thursday, December 22, 2011 - Trail Ride at Hidden River

Finally managed to get a trail ride in here. Trails were mostly narrow hiking trails, which we liked, but there was only a mile or two, so we had to repeat a few loops, going around backwards and generally just riding for time rather than destination. We finally did find a really nice loop that was a bit longer, and that filled up the 90 minute or so ride nicely. Spent a little time getting ready for our departure, actually can’t wait to leave here. There is a negativity about the environment that’s hard to describe or define, just a feeling that there are bad spirits around. Looking forward to our next stop.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011 - Workday

Spent the day working on my information database, managed to finish it by 5:00, and got out a Christmas e-card to everyone just in time. Forecast is for a warmer day tomorrow, we’re hoping to get a ride in (our first here) before we head out on Friday.

Tuesday, December 20, 2011 - Meeting in Jacksonville

Drove downtown today to meet with a client this morning, then did some shopping in the afternoon, including returning an outfit that had different size pants than jacket to Burlington, but it was an incredible struggle to get that done. Apparently because I’m five days beyond the return date, they wanted to only give me about half what I spent back. After 30 minutes of discussion, they finally managed to work something out with the regional office to get the refund in a couple of weeks. We’ll see. Meantime, headed back to Hidden River for a couple more days. Weather’s been too cold to do much of anything but work inside, so at least I’ve been getting caught up.

Friday, December 16, 2011 - Move to Hidden River

Slept in late, then headed out after noon, stopping at Wal-mart, then finally arrived at Hidden River, which isn’t technically a horse camp, just a specialty campground that happens to have room for horses. The horses had a nice little pasture to graze around in, and we parked where we could see them clearly. Not a very interesting or well-maintained campground, lots of repairs in plain view, which makes it hard for us to relax. Pool wasn’t heated, too cold to use. The hot tub wasn’t working properly, so we couldn’t use it. The large pasture had a broken fence and the solar electric power source wasn’t working, so we could only put the horses in the small paddock, and the list went on. Very few people came and went while we were there, not surprisingly. Plus, the cost was much higher than we usually pay. All in all, the only good things about the place is that the horses will be safe when we go to our meeting in Jacksonville next week, there’s a good cell phone signal, and there’s an open wi-fi signal I’m able to use. At least I’ll be able to get caught up on some work over the next few days.

Thursday, December 15, 2011 - Fly back to Jacksonville, FL

Despite my apparent exhaustion, I just could not get to sleep! I had drank a lot of cold tea during the evening, and I didn’t pay attention to the caffeine level in it, so I’m thinking that’s what might have caused it. Literally tossed and turned so long I thought I would still be awake when the alarm went off. Last time I remember seeing the clock it was almost 3:00, and finally fell asleep until the alarm went off on schedule at 4:45 am. Snooze-alarmed only once, too much to do. Leapt out of bed into the shower, with Hubby following shortly, finished packing, poured a cup of coffee to go, and headed out to the airport with a stop at the gas station. In the car rental lot by 6:30. As always the Orange County TSA had to confiscate something from us (this time is was a plastic lettuce knife), which they always seem to do no matter how carefully we pack, grabbed a croissant at the restaurant to tide us over to our First Class meal on the plane : -). Terrible service there at the airport restaurant. Wheels up a bit late because people just couldn’t find a place for their carry-ons, and off we go!

Wednesday, December 14, 2011 - Recovery Day (Sort of)

Despite my exhaustion, I still woke up every two hours, and this time, couldn’t get back to sleep for a long time, once for over two hours. Thank goodness Hubby doesn’t have this problem, he just keeps happily snoring along moments after his head hits the pillow! I’m usually a good sleeper, but lately, not so much. I need to get out in the woods for awhile, where it’s quiet and I don’t have anything to think about except when’s the next time we’re going riding! Walked across the street to Coco’s Bakery and Restaurant and had a very disappointing brunch. Hubby’s blueberry waffle was okay, but my El Paso Benedict had many shortcomings. The eggs were too hard (probably from sitting under the heat lamp too long), the bacon cold, the muffin soggy, and the side of fruit (melons) was totally tasteless. I complained and they took it off the bill, but it will be the last time we eat there, sadly, since it’s so conveniently located to several hotels where we hold workshops. Walked over to Target to pick up a few things before heading back to the hotel. Got back into bed, where Hubby napped again, but my mind was too active so I spent time working on a chart of potential Costa Rican riding vacations which we are considering. Finally tried to sleep around 5:00, but only managed to rest a bit. Instead of getting up and going out as we had originally planned, we called down for room service, and mostly packed out bags while we waited for it. Lights out at just after 9:00, feeling really exhausted, and hoping for a good night’s sleep! Alarm set for 4:45 am.

Tuesday, December 13, 2011 - Work Day

Still woke up every two hours, and once couldn’t get back to sleep for over an hour. Don’t know what’s causing it, maybe the alcohol. Anyway, up bright and early again, rejoined our group for another busy but very productive day. Really excellent progress on the whole. Looks like it might open a few doors to other jobs, as well, several people indicated a need for other associates to either attend one of these workshops, or to have us come in to work with their group by itself. Either way works for us! Though we ran almost a half hour long, people still hung around to talk to us, even after the class was finished! Just can’t get enough, I guess : -). Went to happy hour again, this time we had margaritas, and were joined by two students from the class for a bit. Finally had to head off to the room, exhaustion setting in after being "on" for so long. Lights out by 10:00.

Monday, December 12, 2011 - Work Day

Arrived in the meeting room by 7:00 am. Most of what we had discussed had been done, with a few minor details remaining, so everything worked out. Students started to arrive by 8:00, and we got started just about on time. A good group, somewhat subdued and serious at first, warming up a bit by afternoon. Very attentive, and they all seem to be absorbing everything thoroughly. Went to happy hour for a change, this hotel’s cantina had a Monday Martini and Meatball special, so we decided to splurge again and had a couple of Cosmo’s and appetizer size meatball plates for dinner. Off to bed, hoping to get a better night sleep!

Sunday, December 11, 2011 - Recovery/Shopping Day

Didn’t get out of bed until after 10:00, but I was awake every two hours for some reason, so I didn’t feel as rested as I had hoped. We went out to Denny’s for breakfast, then to Staples to pick up a table top easel pad. The salesman at the store insisted he didn’t have anything like that, right up until we found one sitting right on his shelf, then he got rather huffy for some reason, like it was my fault he didn’t know. Weird. Headed back to the hotel. Checked out the meeting room we were going to be working in, and discovered a complete mess, everything was in the wrong place, so we had to try to rearrange as much as we could, but there wasn’t anyone from the banquet office in on Sunday, so much of it we simply had to leave instructions. Not an easy task, since the vast majority of people working at this hotel don’t speak English. Anyway, we did the best we could before heading back up to the room. Late in the afternoon, Hubby decided to steam our suits, and we discovered that one of the suits I had brought, which I hadn’t worn yet, had a different size pant than jacket, and didn’t fit properly! That necessitated another outing to a Burlington Coat Factory, which was right up the road. Not much of a selection compared to some other stores we’ve been in, but I managed to find a green jacket w/black pants that looked good. Not that I needed another pair of black pants, especially since I’ve been trying to avoid black these day (shades of my fat-hiding past), but it did the trick. Finally got back to the hotel, and got to bed early since we have an early start.

Saturday, December 10, 2011 - Fly to Anaheim, CA

Had a lousy night sleep for some reason, and woke up incredibly tired. Left the farm about 10:00, with lots of time for a nice brunch at IHOP and an easy run to the airport from there. We had accumulated a lot of frequent flyer miles, so we decided that since this was a cross-country flight, we’d splurge and go First Class. What a treat! Not only did we have the expected bigger and more comfortable seats with lots more legroom, we were served two excellent meals, starting with hot nuts, unlimited liquor (okay, just this once!), appetizers (shrimp cocktail at dinner), salad, entrees, and even dessert (cookie on one flight, and, would you believe, ICE CREAM on the other!) What an indulgence. Had more calories on this one day that we usually have over three! But what the hey, we don’t get to go first class every time (though I may start looking into how to upgrade more often...: -). You only live once! Arrived on time, picked up our little chartreuse Ford Fiesta, and headed to the airport. So exhausted we didn’t even stop to shop on our way. We certainly didn’t need an evening meal! In bed early, have to catch up before our workshop on Monday!

Friday, December 9, 2011 - Travel Day to Jacksonville, FL

Managed to get out pretty early. The ranger had told us about a manhole cover over a sewer that RV-ers were allowed to use as a dump, so we were able to get that done before we left camp (though handling the manhole cover was no easy task). On the road before 9:00. First stop breakfast, then fuel and propane, then clear sailing to our next stop, a stable in Callahan, FL just west of Jacksonville. No trouble getting over through the Ag stop at the border, the young man didn’t even come out to compare our horses to their passports! Arrived around 3:00, a bit ahead of schedule, but that allowed us to get everyone well situated. The horses are in big stalls with runs, the dogs will stay in the RV and the staff will look after them when we leave next week. Hubby got the satellite dish up, we plugged into electric in the workshop, and we’re home free! Well, not free, this place is a bit more than usual, but it will do the job nicely. Did a little preliminary packing, then settled in for the evening.

Thursday, December 8, 2011 - Preparation Day

Slept late, and tried to take it as easy as possible in preparation for our long drive tomorrow, but we did get almost everything packed up early today. Finished up the laundry, had a nice shower before going to bed, set the alarm for an early start.

Wednesday, December 7, 2011 - Another Ride at Millcreek Park

Got another load of laundry in, and did a few jobs in the morning before we headed out for another ride on these terrific trails. We started out going in reverse from the previous day, heading north on the Governor’s (Yellow) trail, carrying on past the cutoff and working our way through some lovely narrow, forest trails. Blazes were a bit more intermittent and the trail wasn’t marked as well as the Palmetto Trail, but just when I had my doubts, another yellow marker would usually pop up. This was a really windy trail, and Apollo really had to concentrate, which kept his active brain busy, and thus out of any trouble. We almost missed one intersection when we reached an area of private property, but eventually discovered the trail went directly across a road. A couple of guys were on the private property doing some dog training, looked like hounds learning how to follow bait that was being pulled around by an ATV. Fortunately the occasional gunshot was far enough away not to startle the horses too much, and we got by that area without incident. Then we were on sandy roads for a bit, and we got a few nice trots and canters in. We didn’t take the Governor’s trail the entire way, as we got started too late in the day, so we took a few roads back to the Palmetto Trail and headed back towards camp. More opportunities to trot and canter, and the horses behaved themselves splendidly, so we got back to camo without incident, and having finally worked the horses back to riding mode. Too bad they’re going to get a whole week or more off after this! Can’t wait until we can get back to riding 2-3 times a week consistently. Should be able to do that after this next job, our last of the year! Yeah! Managed to get another load of laundry in before the evening was out. Settled in for the evening, well satisfied with our ride today.

Tuesday, December 6, 2011 - Laundry, Shopping and Blog Catchup

Another deep night of sleep, followed by a day of doing laundry and catching up on my blog as well as other final paperwork. Sent Hubby of to the Post Office and grocery store, and naturally he got lost (our Verizon GPS pretty worthless out here), so the half hour trip turned into a two-plus hour journey. I spent most of the day trying to work on my computer, but since the cell phone signal is so weak here, it takes forever to get anything downloaded on my aircard, so I’m doing mostly local stuff. Did a bunch of loads of laundry, though, even got out my clothesline and hung some things up outside. There’s a slight breeze and lots of sun, so even though it’s a bit cool, it’s doing the job. Quiet around the park, though, no one here but us, just the way we like it!   Hubby finally got back, and we eventually settled down for the evening.

Monday, December 5, 2011 - Work, then Ride Day at Mill Creek Park

Been sleeping until 9 or 9:30 since we’ve been here, and it’s been the deepest sleep that we’ve had in weeks, feels great! Got caught up on some work, then finally decided it was time to go riding. The weather was beautiful, and it seems like so long since we’ve been out! Of course, last time Hubby took a little fall, and I was still sore from the previous ride when I fell that we were both a bit tender going out, but we worked the horses through their paces slowly, walking a long way before doing a long jog. There was one time that Apollo started to act up a bit, but I managed to stay on, then I jogged him until he was tired, than finally found a nice spot to break him into a canter that wasn’t accompanied by a rodeo leap first, exactly as I had hoped. We rode for just about two hours, just what we needed to literally "get back in the saddle again." The trails were mostly sand, mostly pretty soft with a few areas more firmly packed. The first trail we went on, the Palmetto Trail, started out along a utility line, then had a nice wooded stretch, but it soon opened up into a mostly clearcut area, so it wasn’t very pretty, but it was well marked and easy to follow with all the other horse sign. Eventually it got back to mixed pine woods. We went as far as the first staging area, then took the blue connector trail (which wasn’t very well marked) back to the yellow Governors trail (which was). A perfect ride for the task at hand!

Sunday, December 4, 2011 - Rest/Work Day

Another day of computer work, but our day of rest was shattered by a problem with an electrical circuit. We had some sort of ground fault that kept tripping the electric circuit from the supply post. It took us over two hours to finally get it working again, by then the football game Hubby had wanted to watch was over. I’ve been busy doing laundry (water and electricity, can’t miss the opportunity!), and we eventually turned to watching movies and relaxing the rest of the day. Meanwhile, the campground all but emptied out by the end of the day, with the exception of one other rig way down the hill.

Saturday, December 3, 2011 - Rest/Catchup Day

Slept late, didn’t even hear it when Jamie left. Spent the day getting caught up on the usual post-training camp chores, as well as some other computer work that needed doing. Hoping to have at least one or two days of total rest before we head off to Anaheim for yet another training camp soon. We can hope! We had several neighbors move in nearby, and a rousing bonfire went on till quite late, but we weren’t bothered. It was a great night for it!

Friday, December 2, 2011 - Travel Day to Mill Creek Park in SC

Got out early, stopping several times, for fuel and propane, then breakfast, and finally shopping for a week’s supply of groceries. Arrived at the horse camp in Mill Creek Park around 3:00. What a place! Now THIS is a horse camp where we could stay a long time! Over 120 campsites, all with water and electric, the entire campground has posts for highlines at pretty much every campsite, there’s a bathhouse with hot and cold water, there are several buildings of covered stalls if you prefer not to highline, and there are enough other trees around to highline as well. Several campers also put up portable corrals. This is a REAL horse camp! Can’t wait to see what the trails are like, but that’s not going to happen until we take a few days off and recover from the intensity of the last few weeks. Met Steve, the guy who looks after the place, and our neighbor Jamie, who is here for a night with her grandchildren. A few other campers arrived after us, but it’s still pretty quiet here. Just what the doctor ordered!

Thursday, December 1, 2011 - Travel Day Back to Sky’s the Limit Farm

Had another bagel breakfast at a cafe across the street from the hotel before heading down the highway back to the boarding place in Lumberton. Arrived just after 4:00, tired but satisfied. Horses greeted us with their usual nickering and whinnying, and we worked for a while getting things ready to go tomorrow. Said our good-byes to our gracious hostess Peggy, as she will be gone when we leave tomorrow. Looking forward to heading south again!