Me and Hatchet

Yosemite Valley, CA August 2, 2010

This is me and Hatchet after my two hour ride to Mirror Lake in Yosemite Valley. The ride to the lake was uneventful. Oh by the way...there is no lake. It's more like a meadow now. The man-made lake was removed long ago and the area was allowed to revert back to what it is now - a meadow. The ride back from the meadow was very interesting. I found myself following a mule. My horse (Hatchet) wanted to get in front of the mule. But the mule was having none of it. It would cut off Hatchet's every attempt at passing by. So Hatchet decided to get up close - nose to butt. The mule did not like it one bit. He tried to kick Hatchet everytime he got too close. Hatchet in turn would try to bite the mule's butt to get it to move faster. I would pull Hatchet back everytime I noticed the mule kick. So Hatchet never got kicked. But I had to watch the mule the whole time and reprimand Hatchet every time he got close. Horses are like kids with ADD. You have to constantly correct their behavior. The horseback ride was over all a lot of fun. It cost $60 dollars and if you go please be sure to leave a tip for your guides.