The Wagonteamster Channel has it’s first video production - Journey To the Valley Of the Wild Horses

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11/11/12 & 11/12/12

11/11/12, Big River, CA - The lads and I got a well deserved day off this day. With only a little wagon maintenance to do, I spent nearly as much time as the horses kicking back.  My host Ken, put me up at his father’s place on the river.  Sadly, his father passed away earlier in the week.  I can’t say enough good things about Ken, his wife Pam and their wonderful hospitality.

After a long, hard pull across the Mojave Desert, the lads were more than ready for some relaxation. With extra chow, a comfortable place to lay and a great view of the river, they really enjoyed their downtime.

Kicking back in electric fence paddock.

I also spent most of the day in a relaxed pose.  After a morning walk down the river front, I managed to work my way through half of a large novel.  In the afternoon, I greased the wagon and fixed a few odds and ends that needed repair.

A Colorado River beach, with mesquite, papyrus and palms crowding the high water mark.

11/12/12, N. of Parker, AZ (Coord. N. 34 deg, 11.086 min; W. 114 deg, 13.898 min)

I got off to a slow start this morning, as my host Ken ran me down to the feed store for some grain. I also had an opportunity to do some laundry, so I didn’t get underway until after 10 am.

A mile and a half down the road, I turned the team across the bridge over the Colorado River and passed a significant milestone. After 4 years of driving horses around this great country, I have now rolled the wagon through 25 of the 50 states.  Before anybody asks - I don’t have a goal of driving through all of the states; it has just worked out that way. As of now, 25 states have been in my path while the team pulled their way through this great land.

Before I left the place on the river, my host was kind enough to present me with an American flag that was owned by his father, a WWII veteran.  It just happened to fit perfectly on the side of the wagon where I don’t tie the horses. So, it was only befitting that the flag should be proudly displayed as I crossed into my 25th state.

In the 1980’s, I lived in Arizona for 7 years, but spent virtually no time in the Colorado River Valley

My first order of business when I got to town was to do some shopping. After a long desert crossing, the wagon larder was getting depleted and needed to be replenished. While at the store, I had a lot visitors.  While some kids where petting the horses and sitting on them, a passerby asked me, “You only do good things, don’t you?”

I replied, “No, but I try to”. Thinking about this, I thought, ‘The horses and wagon makes it easy to do good things.’  Upon further reflection, I thought - The main message passed on by all the world’s religions could be summed up by two words - “Be Good”.

Here are a few of the many happy faces I saw today!

After the grocery store, I made a quick trip to Walmart, where I picked up a few other things.  Like my previous stop, a lot of people stopped by to chat and see the lads.

Since I’m not in a particular hurry, I tried a few back roads out of town. I’m currently heading up to Lake Havasu (just for the fun of it).    I tried to use my GPS to pick a route that allowed me to leave US 95 and travel along the river. I found it less than adequate for the task.  The GPS showed an unbroken road that traveled for 7 miles along the river.  By the time I faced my second dead end and potential detour, I decided to call it quits for the day. Fortunately, I was in a good camping spot. My camp for the night is well above the water and doesn’t have any grazing; but it’s fairly remote and has a fantastic view of the river.

The wagon, sporting it’s new flag, at my camp above the river. This shot is a little deceiving, as I’m actually 50 higher than the level of the river.

Hard ground requires a little extra work to set up the electric playpen. Most of the posts had to be pounded into the ground.

The lads, soaking in their evening scenery.

The sun setting across a peaceful scene.

With the exception of hay, the wagon is fully provisioned. A neighbor of my host Ken had two bales for me, but generally, hay is in short supply in Parker. I’m hoping to pick up some more near Lake Havasu, as I currently only have enough for about 2 1/2 more days.

Tomorrow, I continue my trek north (after detouring back south a bit to get back on the main highway).