Happy Trails

So today I got to embark on an expedition to Red Canyon National Park. This is one of the adventure weekends for the college kids, so they plan different trips they can go on and I was able to go as well. As all of you know horseback riding is something that I think runs in my veins, but I have never ridden in the mountains before. The views were gorgeous!
And I had quite the trusty steed Comanche to help navigate the way. The goal was to ride up to the top (the red cliffs in the pictures) but the ascent was too steep, so we ended tied the horses up and went up a bit on foot. Yes I was mountain/rock climbing in cowboy boots! Probably not the safest or most comfortable but well worth the effort. Here are some pictures of me on top and of the view. There was one more level you could climb up to the very top and 3 of the kids went halfway. The wind was pretty intense as evidenced by my hair in one of the pictures. I just sat on the edge and hung out for a bit (quite literally as shown with the boots :)
Another cool thing that you'll notice in the pictures is that on the mountains on the right side are all covered in snow while those on the left are just dirt. The day was perfect and I even got some rosy cheeks from the sun :) The terrain was a bit rough though and I must admit that my bum is a bit sore...The range right in the middle of this picture was one of my favorites...this is the view on the way back. The mountains were snow capped and had different layers of colored rock. The top layer was a dark peach and the bottom layer more red. It was absolutely beautiful.

This rattler crossed our path on the way home...it was one of three we saw during the ride :/ Luckily the horses did not get close enough to freak out!

Our watering hole, a.k.a. a big huge tire with a pump installed in the middle...