Early in the month of December 2013 we had some record breaking temperatures here in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. We had a week where the temperature never rose above freezing. So what did we do? Go riding of course!

Stitch was wearing his Easyboot Gloves and of course his warm winter coat. I bundled myself up with many layers; silk long johns, long sleeve shirts, a hoodie, toe warmers, winter gloves (I never ride with gloves), and my chaps. (its hunting season, thus the orange vest, wished it was fur lined.) It was difficult to move much but as long as I could get on and off my horse, and stayed reasonably warm, it didn’t matter. Plus, as an added bonus, we had sunshine!

Lynn, a really good friend of mine was also game for some cold weather riding. She was on her Quarter Horse mare, Dandy. She started her out booted with the Easyboot Glove but decided to take them off and use natural traction, the healthy bare hoof. We explored some new riding territory and took to some roads. Normally we would encounter little streams and puddles of water, instead we were dodging ice and being careful. We stayed on areas that had a heavier layer of gravel, to get more traction.

Frozen leaves and long shadows. It was cold, but beautiful.

Stopping for a moment to check the GPS. Stitch took some time to bask in the sun rays and rest a foot. We hit quite a few dead ends that day but just turned around and kept on exploring until we were back in familiar territory. It was a fun day with a good friend and our beautiful horses. “But baby its cold…..outside”…..but not too cold to ride!

Amy Allen, PHCP Mentor & AHA member
Amy Allen Horsemanship