My daughter and I, set out for the Steens Mt Guest Ranch from Bend.
Once, there we met Tim and his wife, Susan, their dog and mama cat. We also, met, Mary, the 90 year old owner and friend. What a sweet character. I could have stayed there all day listening to her stories. Although we had no cell phone service we were able to use their house phone or email if we needed it. It was nice to “unplug” for a few days.
 

Monday­

We saddled up “Nueve” for me and “Little Britches” for Teresa. We rode out to work on a rock wall and rock “crib” (fence end). Once that was done, Tim created a gate from a Juniper branch that Susan and I had cut off. The weather was hot and between that and the high elevation, I got whoosy and needed to take it easy. Teresa, on the other hand was a trooper and kept going and going.
 

After that, we rode over to the Kiger Canyon, while checking fences and eventually made our way back to the house. Got a Pina Colada smoothie (non­alcohic, of course), which was very refreshing. We also snacked on grapes and muffins. Yumm! As no time is ever wasted on this ranch, Tim also worked on shoeing one of the horses before we headed out the next day. We ate delicious stew with fresh bread for dinner.

Tuesday­

Got up at 6 am. After an early breakfast of pancakes and eggs, we headed up Kiger Canyon. We saw sage hens, coyotes, an eagle, and many quail. On the way to our overnight “cow camp”, we stopped at an old cabin made of tin from the early 1900’s and had lunch. So cool and creative! From there we we herded the cows that we found along the way and eventually we made it to the cow camp and started prepping for dinner. You sure do work up an appetite out here! After eating we sat around the fire and told super funny stories­­­Tim is a HOOT!

Wednesday

­After rounding up the cow herd, we went up and down canyons again and eventually headed down a dirt road. Teresa was smart and used a bandana over her face before the dust got too bad, but we all ended up with dark brown faces! We stopped for a snack/lunch and dropped the herd off the the pasture they needed to be at, then headed slowly back to the house. We “logged” approximately 8 hours in the saddle that day. Back at the house, we wobbled off the horses, got them unsaddled and stumbled into the house for more smoothies. ­Yumm! We got showered and relaxed just in time for taco chip bowls for dinner­­­hearty and tasty! Teresa played her mandolin and showed off her handmade boots while we chatted. Tim estimated that in the three days we were there we rode about 33 miles on horseback—not too bad for us “City slickers” who have never rode more that an hour or two max!

Thursday Morning­

We said a sad farewell to our great new friends! Thank you, Susan and Tim, for a memorable adventure. Can’t wait until next year with my husband, too!