"Packing the Hoback" Dave Paulley Editions
06 July 2008 2:30 PM, north of Tres Lagunas, New Mexico:
I have been following the travels of Colonel Rocky Woolman (United States Army, Retired) and his saddle pal, Larry on their Long Rider quest to navigate the Continental Divide Trail from the Mexican border to Canada - an endeavor tougher than most folks can imagine. To give you an idea of the rigors involved, the distance a modern automobile traveller covers in an hour will take a horseman three days to cover if conditions are good. It requires finding water for man and stock, graze for the horses, locating campsites in all manner of weather that are safe for man and beast, and often travelling alongside the highway hoping to avoid being run down by some idiot in a machine.
Rocky's blog noted they would be leaving Pie Town, New Mexico today and travelling north towards Grants where they are to meet their support team to rest and refit horses and riders for a couple of days. I did a quick map study and figured where their location would be by mid-afternnon travelling at horse speed . I drove the fifty miles towards where I knew I might intersect them and within about one half mile of my estimate I heard the jingle of a horse bell and coming over a small rise were Rocky and Larry and their four horses.
Rocky recently retired and saw service in Iraq. I thanked him for his service and I was very surprised to learn that he had also served in Viet Nam as a Huey pilot and had been in I Corps stationed in Danang. I had spent my time in I Corps as a Recon Team Leader with Project Delta, 5th Special Forces Group, so we both knew many of the same places and certainly were familiar with the horrors of the Ashau Valley and other interesting and exciting places in that beautiful but tragic land. It was great to meet a fellow veteran and a Long Rider to boot.
We stood in the middle of the dirt road and talked about horses, equipment, the country and trail conditions for almost two hours. They still had a few miles to go for water and a campsite so we bid each other God's speed. It was great to see two men mounted on horseback, each trailing a pack horse heading north towards the Malpais under a monsoon New Mexico sky. They are keeping alive a tradition and a way of life that has almost disappeared. It is such a pleasure to see real men on real horses travelling through this magnificent land just as those that have passed this way before did for at least five hundred years. Beats holy hell out of the "Green" backpackers with their walking staffs, peace symbols and vaguely unfocused eyes or the weenies on bicycles in spandex that scare the daylights out of my horses.
To follow their progress, go to: http://woolman.us/
Like a dummy, I neglected to take my camera. Understandable though because I was not an officer, but a mere enlisted swine and bear considerable watching. But, there are a lot of photos on Rocky's website. I sure hope to see them again someday.
Like a dummy, I neglected to take my camera. Understandable though because I was not an officer, but a mere enlisted swine and bear considerable watching. But, there are a lot of photos on Rocky's website. I sure hope to see them again someday.
Far Rider
See to your weapons and stand to your horses
See to your weapons and stand to your horses
1 comment:
J,
your writing style is exquisite and missed.
I wish you much happiness. If is not often that people can make their own way in their life unconditionally as you have done.
Post a Comment