Yippee-ki-yay, mothertruckers!
Be you a mother, a trucker or anyone in between, you can find much needed peace and tranquility along with a hefty side of Mama Nature's goodness to rejuvenate the senses and leave with a deep admiration and respect for a truly beautiful and majestic creature. After all, a horse is a horse, of course, of course!
Covid times have been a dang trip, I think we all can agree. So when my honey and I were debating on what to safely do to celebrate our together-versary, South Lake Tahoe immediately came to mind. With some Yelp-researching and a few phone calls, I was able to gather some useful tips and info on what we could do, both to enjoy the great outdoors away from crowds as much as possible and recharge the proverbial batteries. Zephyr Cove Stables is a venue I had been to many years ago and since the experience was so beautiful and positive then, I didn't second-guess paying them another visit, this time with my love. He and I had never been horse-back riding together before, so I figured this would leave us with a positive and beautiful experience to share together and keep in the memory bank as something new and fun.
I called ahead and was able to get the 'Rona deets and spoke with Louise, who was super helpful, answered all my questions and addressed my worries and concerns (this was also our very first trip away anywhere since before March of 2020, and as a hospital employee, I was not taking any chances), so I was grateful Louise was understanding, and had a patient and positive attitude during the call. I learned that in order to keep things as safe as possible, their tour groups were a max of 6 people, so this was reassuring for me. I was able to reserve an early morning 1.5hr slot for my dude and I and we were definitely looking forward to our day!
We arrived about 15min early to the venue in order to fill out the waivers, as instructed and were greeted by a gentleman (didn't catch his name) who didn't introduce himself and to be honest, seemed a bit put about by having to leave the horses he was attending to at the moment to come provide our waivers. He was decent, but still, not the greatest first impression to have. Bygones. All was signed and paid for and we were ushered over to a great, bubbly gal named Karlie who was able to assist us with getting situated on our horses for the day. She was very kind and made us feel very welcomed and after some short conversation on what to expect for the day as well as basic horseback riding instruction and commands, we met our guide for the day, Jeff! Guess what - it turned out that we were the only folks who signed up for that particular time slot - so, we had ourselves a PRIVATE tour for the day! I tried to pop my collar a bit and make it look as if I planned for this, specifically, to try to impress my honey, but it just so happened we lucked the heck out.
I cannot speak highly enough about Jeff! He was pretty quiet when we first started out, but he made sure before anything that we were seated correctly and comfortably in order to best enjoy the trek ahead. I was paired with a lovely, experienced mare named "Becky", who I was forewarned, could tend to act "mare-ish", which according to Jeff could consist of being stubborn at times and also, could potentially include a nip or two if she got too close to another horse. Girl got 'tude! Love it! She was actually the sweetest girl ever. My honey's match for the tour was Montana, a gorgeous boy who was originally a wild horse once upon a time, such a lovely beast he was. Jeff immediately felt no hesitation in opening up as I talked his ear off just a bit to break the ice and get to know him by asking him about his background and how long he'd been riding. Turns out this guy was a real-bonafide cowboy who grew up on the ranches owned by his grandfather, who was featured once upon a time in Guinness Book of World Records as owning the most acreage as well as horses! Jeff literally grew up on horses, even performed at many rodeos. His stories were so lively and exciting to listen to and the deeply-rooted sense of love and admiration for horses was felt instantly. He was so kind-hearted, humble and fun and the passion he felt for these beautiful animals was clearly apparent in his demeanor and mannerisms. He even took us past a spot where he told us a story about how he found 3 bears just around a bend some time back and what a scary and caught-off-guard moment it was! Luckily, the bears had zero interest in him and went scampering away off into the heavily wooded area. Crazy, right?! It was truly a joy to have lucked out with such a caring and knowledgeable guide.
The scenery absolutely, positively cannot be beat. Our horses' had skillful footing, the crystal clear blue Lake Tahoe in the background was magical, the mountains and trees food for the soul. The crisp morning air awakened the senses and we had a PERFECT DAY!
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