Equine Fashion

Isn't Mischief stylin' wearing his Wizard Poley? Note the two layers of fleece in the saddle seat. This is for rider comfort, but Mischief thinks it looks pretty cool, too.

This is the saddle, a hornless Aussie style. If you've ever jumped your horse over a log on the trail and landed a bit forward, I'm sure you'll understand why we go hornless... By sending the manufacturer a withers tracing, you can get a saddle custom fitted to any horse.

My stirrups have a wide, padded platform for the foot to rest on, which eases the shock of long distance trotting. I buy them with a cage attached. The cage prevents a foot from slipping through the stirrup in an accident. A hung foot and a spooked horse don't go together well. The tiger striped thingies over the leathers are to keep my legs from chafing.
A neoprene cinch and breast strap adorn my lovely Arab. The breast strap is useful to keep the saddle in reasonable position while going up steep hills. Going downhill, we tighten the cinch and rely on our horses' high withers to keep the saddle from getting too far forward.
Mischief sports a western headstall, English reins, and a Kimberwich bit. He also wears a halter and lead rope on the trail. This comes in handy if I have to get off and lead him when the going gets rough.
No steel shoes for my boy. After years of horseshoes, then boots, we finally realized that both horses will do fine barefoot, even on rocky terrain, if their hooves are properly trimmed. If the trail is extremely rocky, we use front boots only. I'll write a separate post on natural hoof care sometime.

As for additional gear, I bring this pommel bag. (The pommel is the front of the saddle.) Small side pouches are just right for camera and GPS. The larger compartments are for water bottles, snacks, sunscreen, insect repellent, extra batteries, and gloves. I clip the pommel bag securely onto the saddle so it doesn't flap around at trot or gallop.

I may also bring along this cantle bag (The cantle is the back of the saddle.) loaded with a light gortex jacket, rain pants, and a down vest if it's cold. In the mountains, I tie an Aussie oilskin duster onto the front of the saddle. The weather can turn icy in no time at 12,000 feet. For a long ride, I bring a pair of eyeglasses. As I learned the hard way, see Moonlight Ride, prescription sunglasses aren't much use when a ride unexpectedly lasts until after dark!
Steve prefers standard saddle western saddle bags, but otherwise he loads Boss with most of the same things Mischief carries.

Daisy just carries her own pretty self.

We bring enough gear to be comfortable all day, no matter the weather conditions. (An overnight trip requires more, of course, but I'll post on that another day.)

So, ready to go? Mount up. Let's take a ride.