Today was a beautiful sunny day and we decided to hit the trails at Campbell Valley Park. Our horses Cajun, a 5 year old Quarter Horse, and Lucky, our 20 year old Standardbred, were today's mounts. Whistler, my seasoned 19 year old Appaloosa, got the day off. Yesterday he was a little off in his hind right leg. My best guess is I need my farrier because the frog (part of his hoof for the benefit of my non-horsey readers) has grown longer than the hoof, thus making it a little tender to walk on. My farrier will be out in a couple of days to take care of this. But usually Whistler is my choice for the trail rides.
The parking lot was packed with horse trailers but we found a spot and Kerry expertly maneuvered the rig in. We saddled up and headed out enjoying the ride and each other's company. I knew Campbell Valley Park was hosting its Heritage Days this weekend and we spotted the festivities as we rode along 204th Street near 8th Avenue. We stopped at the fence of the off leash dog park to speak with a woman who was playing with her adorable Weimeraner puppy and then continued on our way, getting closer to the water splash. We were wondering how Cajun and Lucky would take to walking through the creek. Usually neither of them will go unless Whistler leads the way.
All of a sudden Cajun started to spook, jumping and panicking, and it was all I could do to stay on his back and get him under control. He took me by surprise because he's normally a very quiet, unflappable horse. I heard pounding hoofbeats coming behind me. A galloping horse. Very odd. Most riders wouldn't allow their horses to move out that fast in the trails, especially on a day like this when there are so many other park users. Right away I knew there was something wrong - a runaway horse. I turned Cajun and saw the runaway didn't have a rider. Kerry and I used our horses to block the trail. We slowed the horse only momentarily. He/she veered off the trail, got around us, and keep running. And boy was this horse fast! Probably a Thoroughbred. And in full flight, fueled by fear.
After a quick discussion Kerry decided to turn around and look for the rider and I would go after the horse. Like my slowpoke Cajun had any chance of running this horse down. All I could hope for was that something ahead would cause the horse to stop. As I rounded a corner and came into the area that is a large field I saw a couple who were picking blackberries and three horses in a group a little ahead, and one other horse and rider near the water splash trail. The woman picking berries came running toward me and asked if the rider was hurt. I said I didn't know. I could still see the horse but then it disappeared behind some trees. The woman who was on her horse further up the trail said it had gone out the gate and down 4th Avenue.
Now that's scary. A loose horse on the road.
One of the other riders got on her cell phone and called her mother to drive down there and look for the horse. I turned around and cantered back up the trail to find Kerry and see if he needed assistance with a fallen rider. They weren't too far away walking up the trail towards me. The rider was not hurt.
The woman who was picking berries said her van was right there on the road and offered the rider a lift to look for her horse, but the rider declined. She didn't seem all that concerned, thinking her horse was headed for home around 8th Avenue and 224th Street. That is still a fair distance from where we were. She seemed to know the 3 other horse and riders that were nearby as they called each other by names. The young lady told her she'd called her mother who must have been somewhere nearby and was going to try to find the horse. Said the horse was going too fast for any of them to stop.
Kerry and I continued on our ride. He told me he'd offered the fallen rider to double behind him on Lucky but she'd declined. I was surprised that she'd also turned down the offer of that other woman to drive her down the street to look for the horse.
I sure hope that horse is OK. I know for me there is nothing more scary than to have a horse loose on the road.
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