Happy Dog and Asia is a Champ

Sparky rolling with glee at the dog park a few days ago. This was after she'd splashed in the creek and gotten good and wet. Sparky doesn't much care for the other dogs that she meets there, but she loves the creek and the grass.

Asia at the swimming hole on the Ocmulgee yesterday. The girls took their horses swimming, but Elaine and I thought it still too cold to do the same. Because we were going to be there for a while, I took off her bridle. She stood patiently while horses came and went around us and the girls splashed on their ponies in the river.

Asia tied to my trailer yesterday during our lunch stop. We were at New Horse Camp on Smith Mill Road in Jasper County. This mare is such an excellent trail horse. We were out for about five hours total, with a lunch break in between. The trails were quite muddy in spots, so it was hard to get a sustained trot in as I was afraid of bowing tendons, but we got in a few and even short canters here and there. She was lead horse mostly since I know the trails the best of those who went, but Asia knows them even better. We ended up eating lunch back at the trailers because I let her choose at one split and she took us right back. It was a great shortcut.

I bought Asia from folks who lived close to this trail system and they rode her there a lot. The first time I rode her was at New Horse Camp and fell in love with her then. She'll lead, she'll follow, she rates and she watches where she's going. She also goes where I ask her when going up and down steep sections full of mud and roots that are undercut. I feel so confident on her, that she's not going to do something stupid and get us both hurt.

I realize that I've probably just jinxed myself, but it's true: Asia ROCKS on trail.

(Sorry for the poor picture quality, but these were all taken with my cell phone. I forgot to take my wee Sony.)