Another road riding adventure

Yesterday evening, I spent time on Google Maps attempting to find a back way into the park that borders some of the properties near the barn.  I found a trail that looked very promising, so I checked the street view.

Snippet of Google Maps view showing the trail, woohoo!

To get to the trail, I would have to ride maybe 3/4 of a mile on the busy 45 mph road near the barn, only one short stretch of which would have skinny shoulders.  Originally, I was going to wait until next week to check it out but the trail ride scheduled for this morning was cancelled, so went today instead.  It looked like the trail into the park was a good 3-4 miles long, so Ruby got to eat from her hay bag while tacking up - it made her morning, lol.  Same as yesterday, I led her down to the first corner then mounted up.  The road maintenance equipment was still parked on the barn road.

I saw several people out in their yards today, all of which seemed to be happy and surprised to see someone out riding.  I was passed by a few polite drivers and two speeding knuckleheads, but Ruby was was unfazed.  We made it to the yard with the black and white dog much sooner than yesterday but I was very happy to see that the gate was closed this morning.  B&W's side kick is an ancient yellow Lab, who is LOUD and made the first dog much bolder but we made it by that property with Ruby barely acknowledging their antics.  Next up was an old Arabian in a pasture that wanted to visit, but again, Ruby had better things to do.  We made it all the way down to the main road without incident, where I hopped off to determine our next steps.  I let Ruby graze beside me while I gazed down the road...and reconsidered.

I tried to see how I could get us safely to the place where the shoulders widen out again but I couldn't find a good way to make it happen.  My original plan was to dismount, wait for a break in the traffic, and jog her on the shoulder to the 'safe zone', starting at the next street over.  The connection that I didn't make before standing there is that the traffic was coming towards us around a small curve.  The speed limit here is 45 but right before the curve, the road slims down from four lanes to two.  A LOT of people speed up to pass before the road narrows and are still speeding when they come around the curve.  There's no way for them to see (assuming they would care) a horse and person right beside the road before the curve.  I let Ruby graze while I thought, and looked, and thought again but let's face it - I don't want either of us to ever become hood ornaments, so we turned around.

On the left (the part I was thinking of jogging) you can see the thin strip of grass that is the shoulder. It dips down into a 3-4 foot deep ditch.  The farthest car has just come around the curve I mentioned.  This picture was taken near noon and this area is much more shaded in the morning when I was riding.  I may be able to travel down the shoulder on the right though, hmm.

A few minutes after we turned back, a guy brought his little girl out to pet the pony.  The poor child was very excited to meet Ruby until she realized just how big she was, lol (big being relative, Ruby's only 14.2).  We parted ways and I decided to let Ruby graze for a minute when the shoulder widened out again.  I was sitting there, watching for cars and dogs when I saw movement.  The black and white dog was out, and maybe 60-70 feet away on the other side of the road.  Ruby continued to graze while I figured out what to do.  I'd just determined that it was not safe for us to ride down the main road, so this was our only known path home.  I knew that yesterday he was fairly non-confrontational but he was much more bold with his buddy.  I didn't see any sign of the Lab so I decided to dismount and lead Ruby past the property.  It was about this time that the dog saw us and started slowing trotting our way.  He kept looking over his shoulder for back up and the Lab started barking. With relief, I saw that the gate was still closed and the Lab was still in the yard.  B&W gave us a wide berth, occasionally barking at us as he trotted by.  He went to stand by his yard and watched, but didn't make any move to follow us.  About this time, someone came out of his house to yell at the barking dogs so I told her that one of her dogs was out.  She said, 'Oh, that's not my dog.  He just hangs around here - he was dropped off by someone.'  But she did come and get him off the street.  Thinking back, this may be the same dog I saw at another property weeks ago.  Anyway, I hope she decides to give the guy an official home, that or take him to the shelter where he won't die a painful death on the side of the road.  Ruby was glad to be heading home - a little too glad and was trying to break into a trot, silly mare.  When she did, I'd turn her around and make her trot the other way for a bit, then we'd turn around and try again.

The most blind of the blind curves, and the one closest to the barn. This is the good side, with wide shoulders, heading back to the barn. Immediately after this turn, the shoulders become deep ditches.  The only place to get off the road safely are the two driveways on the right (can't see in pic).  I apologize for the blinding quality of my photographs - iPhone cameras suck and I'm no picture-editing genius. 

We didn't see any more dogs or cars, but Ruby had one more mini-antic up her sleeve. As we got closer to the barn, she tried to trot to the barnyard gate without me asking, so she was forced to trot all the way to the end of the street and had to walk quietly back.   This is the worst of her acting up - I'll take it gladly!

'Where is my cookie, human?!'

Last on the agenda for this morning was measuring for boots.  Ruby is sometimes slightly ouchy when riding on pavement, so I'd at least like to get a used pair for her fronts.  Unfortunately, the only measuring tape I could find was marked in inches only, so that was a bust.  Besides that, to get a truly accurate measure, I'll probably need another set of hands as well.  I hope to accomplish this tomorrow.