Back In The Saddle - Philmont, NM

 We were barely back in the States when Zeke and Abe were whisked away by the scouts to Cavalcade.

I was a little nervous that Zeke would feel like the odd man out since he had not seen his scout buddies in three years.

But he slid right back in like he had not been gone.

Grant, George, Andrew, Micah, Gabe, Zeke, Kenzo, Alexander and Xavier

Philmont Cavalcade is an eight-day expedition where boy scout troops ride horses through the rugged mountain wilderness, supposedly like the famous trappers who first explored the Wild West. They each got their own horse for the week and took care of it. Zeke rode Red Roof and Abe's was called ***.

I wanted to be a parent on this trip because I love horses and nature and it sounded so fun! However, once I thought about having to poop in a hole in the woods, I was turned off. Then when I learned that there we no showers and no deodorant allowed due to bear attacks, I changed my mind for real. (For the record, Zeke would not have allowed me to go, anyway. Also for the record, they didn't have to poop in a hole in the woods.💩) The bear thing was worrisome, but the thought of being with a group of teenage boys who hadn't showered for 8 days and didn't wear deodorant...no thank you. The official website explains that a bear gnawed a scout's armpits because it smelled the deodorant and thought it would taste yummy. That's why no deodorant nor cologne is allowed on the mountain. Honestly, I was a low-key worried my boys would be eaten by bears when they were gone.😬

Each rider was responsible for taking care of their horse at the end of the day.

There were three pack horses with the group. Tents, bear bags, and other stuff went in there.

One day the activity was forest fuels reduction. They cut down low brush; in case of a forest fire that would reduce the chance of it spreading as quickly. 

Food was distributed at camp sites along the trail. Extra packaged food was carried in the bear bags. It was imperative that all cooked food was eaten. Once again, those bears can smell stuff from far away and are not shy about coming to find it. The bear bags were hung high in trees a good distance from the tents. Seems to me if the bears smelled food but they could't get to it (I guess these bears are not the tree-climbing type?) that they would say, "Well darn. The food is too high to reach so I guess I'll go eat one of those boys in the tent over there." Apparently that doesn't happen though, and the bears just leave.

Throughout the week the group rode 44 miles through the wilderness. They rode about 6 miles a day, usually around 4 hours on the horses. Doesn't that look soul-refreshing?

The boys dismounted the horses and hiked up to the top of Baldy Mountain one day. At 12,441 feet, it is the highest peak on Philmont. Gold mines sprinkled what was called Baldy Mining District during the gold rush.

Zeke forgot his hiking boots at base camp, so he hiked in his cowboy boots.

Red Roof has seem some trauma in his past. He had issues being tied and saddled at the same time. At one point Zeke went to mount his steed after a break and the horse was nowhere to be found! He told one of the leaders that he lost his horse; thankfully the other leader chimed in and said she moved Red Roof because he was having issues. One other time the horse was freaking out when Zeke was saddling him and they had to cut his reins from the fence so he didn't hurt himself. But other than that little issue Red Roof was a great horse.

Twelve gauge shotgun shooting was part of the adventure, along with horse riding challenges like at the rodeo.

George, Xavier, and Grant are Zeke's best scout buds.

A beautiful ending to their 12-day adventure.

Troop 9

Upon returning home they were all smiles.

[July 14-23]