This year the Pony traveled west, this meant Red & my first leg would be with Team Jares (Railroad Pass > Cold Springs Station, NV). This section starts at Railroad Pass on Hwy 722, crosses the flat to Smith Creek Ranch across the Desatoya’s down to Edwards Creek, onto Hwy 50 and into Cold Springs Station. We divide the section up – the first team will cover Railroad Pass to Smith Creek Ranch, Alex will go over the Desatoya’s and the second team will meet Alex and take it to Cold Springs Station. The entire ride team met in April to determine who would ride and planned to have a BBQ/Potluck at our camping spot at the Rodeo Ground in Austin on Monday. We check the weather on Sunday for our campout and realize it is expected to snow and 29F! We regroup and decide to have the meet up in Reno on Monday instead. Great call since it snowed up to 3-10 inches in Austin!
Monday – we watch the National Pony Express website and follow the tracker across NV, trying to estimate when we would need to leave. We head out to our starting point. The convoy consists of Chloe, Carrie and Darren Young and myself hauling Red. Sally & Doug Taylor hauling Tiva and Rainey. Blue bird skies and no clouds in sight! Driving past Lake Lahontan we all comment on how full it is this year! We had a wet winter! We meet photographer Carla Hammonds at the barbwire gate on 50 to go to Edwards Creek and convoy in to the trailer point. The plan was that I would ride in and meet Alex at the cattle guard in the canyon and we would do the Mochila exchange there. We weren’t sure if we could bring a rig in to the meeting point, so Darren went to scout while we got the horses ready. Just a few minutes later, he returns! I look at his feet and realize he had sunk in way over his ankles in mud! He reports that there is no way to bring the rig in farther as there is an truck abandoned in the mud just ahead. We all walk to scout the situation and how we will ride past the truck.
Abandoned stuck truck in Edwards Canyon
Time for me to ride in to the meet Alex – I ask that a couple folks accompany me to the mud bog to make sure we through there OK. Darren helps by removing the branches and debris on the route that I am planning to ride past the truck. Red hesitated at first, surveying the situation; the other side of the mud bog in front of the truck was tricky and not much space between the truck and the rock wall. Red picks his route and I feel his back end sink deep! Red manages to scramble across and get up on the other side of the bog! WHEW! We get past the truck and off we go not knowing what lies ahead! Thankfully nothing as deep as the one we just cleared! Lots of water on the road, some more mud. And lots of bugs!
We are close to reaching the expected exchange point and I see a red shirt and a HAM operator driving his Jeep. Wow – what timing (actually I was probably 2 min ‘late’)! I decide to ride up to the HAM operator to explain the situation ahead and that he would not be able to get his Jeep through and would have to turn around. Alex and I do our exchange – as soon as Red has the Mochila on him, he knows his job and starts galloping along the trail. We alternate between walk and gallop – walking in the eroded / muddy parts to ensure we have good footing for when moving out.We arrive at the stuck truck and I wonder if Red will be willing to go through again after the acrobatics he had to do the first time through. Without hesitation he stepped back in the bog! It felt like this time he sank in even deeper! We managed through and I am so grateful that Red got us through that!
We ride past the rig at Edwards Creek onwards to meet Chloe at the next cattle guard for our handoff. I am greeted by Chloe with her mount Rainey (graciously provided by Sally!) and Darren who is going to run the leg, they will take the Mochila down to HWY 50 to exchange with Sally. Alex brings the rig and stops and picks Red & I up. We head on down the trail! A bunch of cows were in Chloe’s path and they get past them.
Chloe Riding into her handoff
Chloe hands off to Sally who has a leg with Tiva along the ATV track on HWY 50.
We meet the next ride team headed by ride captain Ron Bell at Cold Springs Station. The next team takes off and our team has dinner at the station. On our way back home, we pass the Pony going down HWY 50 somewhere near Middlegate. Home at last around midnight! Happy about the days accomplishment, thrilled how well Red handled the mud bog and ready for the next day as we had another big ride ahead. Part 2 to follow ….
