“The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry,” poet Robert Burns wrote, and thus it was when my hopes to simplify the lives of my mother and myself by moving to a smaller home in Sequim went askew.
It was spring when I wrote of mixed emotions over selling our beloved home of 20 years.
It was once the perfect residence for our multi-generational family.
But, alas, the young babes that once toddled about and rode bicycles, dirt-bikes and horses over the hills and around the pastures have grown and moved away now, leaving the two of us wandering the halls of our separate homes on the property all alone.
So, our plan to downsize to a smaller home in Sequim — with enough property for the horses and dogs of course — made good sense.
So sell we did, or so we thought, until the buyers changed their plans.
That prompted us to change our minds and to stay put for now, because, hey, it’s a pain in the butt to pack up and move from a home chock full of memories and memorabilia.
In the meantime, we’ll just keep enjoying it here, and I get to keep riding my trails in the Cassidy Creek Department of Natural Resources land.
To celebrate staying, I invited one of my favorite veterinarians and good friend Linda Allen out on the trail.
After unloading her horse Amber from the trailer, she realized she’d forgotten a saddle.
Ever the good sport, she jumped atop her horse (well, jumping might be an exaggeration now that we’re both in our 50s, although she is proficient at tae kwon do) and rode our two-hour jaunty trail ride through the woods bareback.
In spite of a bit of hilly, rough terrain in spots, I didn’t hear one complaint pass her lips about how difficult it was to keep her blue-jeaned backside planted on Amber’s smooth, sweaty and hairy backside.
At least not until the very end, and then it was only a little whimper when she slid to the ground about how sore her back end was.
Thankfully, a little wine took care of her whine.
State Results for 4-H Senior Performance riders who competed earlier this month at the Western Washington State Fair in Puyallup:
■ Emily Gear: Showmanship, blue; huntseat, blue; stockseat, blue; disc rail, blue/return; bareback, blue; saddleseat, blue
■ Ciara Gentry: Showmanship, blue; stockseat, blue; bareback, red
■ Emily Menshew: Showmanship, red; huntseat, red; stockseat, blue; bareback, red; trail, red
■ Paige Swordmaker: Showmanship, red; huntseat, blue; stockseat, blue; disc rail, blue; bareback, blue; trail, red
■ Cassidy Hodgin: Showmanship, blue; huntseat, blue; stockseat, blue; disc rail, red; bareback, red; trail, blue
■ Kelly Anders: Showmanship, red; huntseat, red; stockseat, blue; disc rail, blue; bareback, blue/return; trail, red
■ Kristine Hanson: Showmanship, red
■ Dressage Showmanship: Haylie Newton, blue; Emily Gear, red
■ Dressage Seat Equitation: Haylie Newton, blue; Emily Gear, blue
■ Dressage Test: Emily Gear, red; Haylie Newton, red
■ Huntseat Equitation: Emily Gear, blue and return to championship class; Haylie Newton, blue and return to championship class
Miller Time
Today 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Backcountry Horsemen’s Peninsula and Buckhorn Chapters are celebrating the completion of the new connector trail from the new Miller Peninsula State Park parking lot 1.3 miles up Diamond Point Road. Peninsula Chapter is providing burgers and Polish dogs. Bring a side dish to share and your own drinks. Bring friends, family, and dogs on leashes.
Hike, bike or ride the trails and enjoy the day at the Miller Peninsula State Park and it’s new spacious parking lot.
Input needed
Calling all horsemen. Share your input about the Department of Natural Resource’s new draft Recreational Trails Policy, at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BR6KTP2, which will guide DNR in trail management and development in collaboration with volunteers and interested stakeholders. Visit http://www.dnr.wa.gov/TrailsPolicy for more information or call 360-902-1600.
Robin Hill
Attention Robin Hill Farm Park equestrians: It’s been noted that a few riders are getting a bit sloppy when it comes to using the parking lot and trails at the park.
Keep in mind there are non-horse lovers who look to find reasons why horses should not be allowed in the park.
So it’s with good reason I implore all who use it to stay on the horse designated trails, and the correct side of those that are both for pedestrians and horses.
Pedestrians also may use the softer horse trails, but equestrians may not use the pedestrian trails – and for logical reasons.
Horses do tend to tear up the harder packed surfaced people trails and can leave other notable traces too.
Lately there’s been more evidence of horses using the clearly marked pedestrian trails, and this could become a safety issue, too.
So, if you ride there please stay on the horse trails, and make sure to clean everything up (shavings, manure, etc) after your horse before leaving the parking lot.
By keeping it clean, and following the rules, we hope to quash complaints by those who don’t think horses should be allowed to use the farm’s trails – which is a crazy thought in itself.
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Karen Griffiths’ column, Peninsula Horseplay, appears every other Sunday.
If you have a horse event, clinic or seminar you would like listed, please email Griffiths at kbg@olympus.net at least two weeks in advance. You can also write Griffiths at PDN, P.O. Box 1330, Port Angeles, WA 98362.
