Horse riders

Location: Las Cienegas National Conservation Area, Arizona

Last night I woke up at 2 o'clock and couldn't go right back to sleep. I felt the morning hours go by one by one but I had short dreams. Lots of them that I could remember in the morning which is unusual. Wonder what that means?

When I finally looked at the clock, it was exactly 8 o'clock. Yuma wanted to go outside already, so I threw a robe on and out the door we went. Already 57 degrees going to mid 70s again. More prairie dog mounds but still no sightings.

Yuma can be lazy in the morning.

Sitting outside this morning looking at the Santa Rita Mountains to my west. Sun and shade. I've mistakenly called them the Santa Rosa Mountains, but that was wrong. Had a big breakfast of bacon and eggs and a glass of milk. Last night I weighed 143 pounds so things are looking much better now. Seven more pounds and I'll be happy.

Sometime early in the morning another truck pulling a horse trailer showed up next door and around 9 o'clock they were starting to get ready for a ride.

Out of their corrals and being examined.

Yuma watching intently!

Time to saddle up.

Exercise before mounting the horses.

By 10 o'clock they were on their horses and heading out for a ride through the grasslands with their dog running along with them.

Their camp and ours.

Yuma running through the grass with his tail straight up. Only way I know where he is. Maybe he has an eye up there. :))

Around 1:30 they started coming home but not all together.

Drinking water at Cienegas Creek.

Yuma and I decided to ride up to the Empire Ranch Headquarters to see if it was open. That's when we ran into our horse friends drinking from the creek. You'll have to wait till tomorrow night to find out about the ranch.

Around 6 o'clock, Yuma and me were going to take an evening walk to watch the sunset, but as soon as I opened the door, Yuma was gone. I don't know how he saw them so fast but he did.

There were two Prong Horned Sheep in the trees about 400 feet away. They watched him come at them for a second and then they headed out.