Day 43 - Westward Bound!

As Ryan likes to say, "We are finally going in the right direction!" Yes, after passing our halfway point in Jarbidge we are on a westward course across northern Nevada to make our way back to Reno!

Our ride to Jarbidge was some of the toughest terrain so far, but absolutely spectacular! We rode 20 miles through the Jarbidge Wilderness on a tiny pack trail. We didn't see a single other person and felt like we had the place all to ourselves... with the exception of all the elk we saw! Sage is an elk magnet. We have seen so many on this trip. They are magnificent (and a little scary). We rode through the tiny town of Jarbidge which was quite exciting for the residents. (One lady told me it's been a long time since someone rode a horse through town!) And then we endured even more challenging riding, climbing several mountain peaks. It was tough going but worth it for the incredible views we received.

The past couple days stormy weather caught up to us again. Today we rode in the rain almost the entire day, but luckily I had all my waterproof layers. Sage was grumpy about it but he pulled through.

Some of you may have heard that we had a little accident last week. Sage got tangled up in some downed barbed wire. It was very scary. He suffered some punctures and lacerations, but it was an absolute miracle that the wounds were superficial. He's healed up now, but boy was I worried.

Lastly, I have to give a huge shoutout to the world's greatest trimmer - Cindy Nielson from Reno. She drove nearly 12 hours to meet us in Jarbidge so she could trim Sage's hooves. I am so grateful!

We're trucking along - about to drop down into the Owyhee Desert. I'm looking forward to seeing that country (and hopefully some wild horses). Otherwise, all is well. Everyone is doing fine and morale is high! Thanks for all your support!

A tired Sage after conquering the wilderness.

We're on top of the world!

Looking back on where we spotted some elk in the wilderness area.

It definitely feels and looks like fall in northeastern Nevada!

Amazing view after amazing view!

World's best trimmer!