Global Warming my ASS!

Snow Canyon State Park wasn't named for the white stuff. It was named after Lorenzo and Erastus Snow, two prominent Mormon pioneers who settled in Utah's Dixie. Snow in Dixie is a pretty rare phenomenon, and we got a bunch the past couple of weeks. Of course, Christmas was white for the entire state, and half the country this year. Brother Mike and I broke trail in the crusted snow across the Red Mountain Trail to the Snow Canyon overlook today. The mules got a workout--it was tough.


Cold, another scarce visitor, came to Dixie too. It is unusually brisk for a place that boasts an average high of 54 degrees for its two coldest months, December and January. Even November and February see 60-64 degrees for an average high. In this cold, Rusty, my Jackass, got a bit ill and went off his feed for a day earlier this week. If he could talk, I know what he'd say about Global Warming...

(UPDATE: 1/19/2009) Has anyone noticed the sharp contrast in the "news" about global warming lately? Apparently, we may actually be entering a new Ice Age! (click here)

Compare that to this article reported the same day claiming Obama only has 4 years to save the Earth from global warming. Are we being set up for a self fulfilling prophecy? Hmmmnnn...

(UPDATE: 2/5/2009) Click on this interesting article about Al Gore's Venus comparison--junk science at its finest. Of course, no one questions Gore on his conflict of interest in his Global Warming Hysteria--making our lawmakers complicit in the hoax.

Compare that to this news from Buffalo this morning, Or this OP ED compilation of interesting trends.

Mules in the Mist

With a climate like Las Vegas, snow in St George is pretty rare. We have this saying, "You might go to bed with snow, but you'll never have lunch with her." It used to be so warm here that snow wouldn't last more than a few minutes, on the rare occasions that it reached the ground. We got some five days ago, and its still on the ground. It is the most snow in 30 years, and with global-warming induced cooling, it hasn't melted yet, which is an even bigger record. I wish they would do something about this global-warming which seems to be plunging the world into a new ice-age. We have a real freeze on, and I'm tired of shoveling snow, which is what I moved here to avoid.

So yesterday, I took the kids on the upper Snow Canyon trail to show them where they got the idea for Winter Wonder Fantasy Land. How can you not believe in Santa after seeing this?! It felt a little like Heaven as we rode up into the clouds--brilliant white everywhere, interrupted by the beauty of Mules in the Mist.

Jerimiah Johnson's Snow Canyon

Several years have past since I watched Robert Redford's classic "Jeremiah Johnson." Released in 1972, I always considered it a favorite for its gritty portrayal of mountain man life and for its cinematography depicting Mt Timpanogos. We all enjoy watching movies that happen in places we recognize, and seeing the back side of Timp in the movies excited my cool-factor. I spent a lot of time exploring, skiing, and even did a little work on Robert Redford's pool on Timp's East side during the first half of my life. Timpanogos has an Alpine beauty second to none.


Only part of Jeremiah Johnson was filmed behind Mount Timpanogos. They filmed most of the rest of it in Snow Canyon State Park, around Zion National Park, near Hop Valley, and around Ivins reservior in what is now the Kayenta development. I hadn't watched the movie since moving the Utah's Dixie 11 years ago, until last night.

Brother Mike and I took a couple of our kids riding through Snow Canyon on Saturday with the Back Country Horsemen. While there, Larry Dunn reminded me of the famous scene where Jeremiah Johnson stumbles upon Del Gue (played by Stephan Gierasch) who is buried up to his chin in sand. The dialogue follows:

Jeremiah Johnson: Are you all right? Del Gue: Sure, sure, I got a fine horse under me! [sneezes] Del Gue: Got one of them feathers in my nose. Jeremiah Johnson: You keep sneezing, it'll come out all right. Haven't seen anyone pass by recent, have you? Del Gue: Nobody's gone in front of me. Can't say what's happened behind me, though. Jeremiah Johnson: The Injuns put you here? Del Gue: T'weren't Mormons. A Chief, name of Mad Wolf. Nice fella, don't talk a hell of a lot. Say, you wouldn't have an extra hat on you, would you? Shade's getting' scarce in these parts. Jeremiah Johnson: What'd you shave your head for? Del Gue: Mad Wolf figures like every other Injun I know. Says this scalp isn't fit for no decent man's lodgepole. Ain't the first time I've protected my head in such a way. Name's Del Gue, with an "e".

While we watched Jeremiah Johnson last night, I became struck by the cinematographic portrayal of Red Rock country. This movie is a where's where of Southern Utah's beautiful places! Our Cool-factors got excited over and over as we realized that we recognized nearly every single location in the film. Its a great movie. Full of classic lines and an amazing catalogue of Utah's diverse beauty, Jeremiah Johnson is a fun watch for the whole family.

Coyote Symphony

Water carved this singular amphitheater from petrified sand dune formations rising nearly 2500 feet from the Earth's surface. Then, as if to punctuate the already intense visual effect, the Author of this beauty poured some lava over the East edge of its canyon wall, covering red and white layers of sandstone with black basalt. The lava flowed south through the deep canyon floor and continued out the mouth of the canyon, finally stopping in present-day Ivins and Santa Clara. Discovered by the world, and in danger of being loved to death, Snow Canyon is now in the iron grip of State Park culture. It has become a haven for tourists and nature lovers who don't mind paying a fee to be mother-henned through a controlled experience. Its pretty enough that even I will occasionally ride through her bottoms--dutifully staying on the trail and paying the entrance fee.

Not this trip. When you go with the Rocky Mountain Mule Association, it is the ultimate ATV ride. The rougher it is, the more they enjoy it--guy and gal alike. We spent two days on the rugged upper platform that looks over Snow Canyon from above. Petrified dunes and ledges theme this landscape, and they didn't see a set they didn't like. Like mountain goats, the mules negotiate this stuff with grip and confidence. I had seen pictures before, now I have the perfect knowledge that comes from trying it. Mona Molly was a little hesitant to play in the ledges by herself, but she was perfectly willing to follow the more experienced mules.

My boys came along on the Mustangs. Two-year-old BarbWire was on her second ride and Justin agreed to take the honors. The Mustangs didn't cliff dive like the mules, but they covered some rough country with nerves of steel and perfect foot-work. Randy Johnson brought his winning barrel horse and was expertly careful about the country he traversed.

The stars shone clear and bright Friday night. Frost settled on our bed rolls as we lay curled around the flickering warmth of our campfire. About two a.m. we were treated to nature's symphony. It was theater in the round, but we were the center, and a musical entourage circled our camp. In perfect surround, with brilliance and nuance Dolby labs could never duplicate, the Coyotes performed a piece that left my heart standing, roundly cheering for an encore. First, a commanding bark somewhere off center shattered the heavy silence, answered by barks from the remaining quadrants--then the movement began. A harmony of staccato yips and soul-full howls penetrated the crisp black air--our stage lit only by star and the red glow of embers. It came in rounds like the primary songs of my youth, but with polished sophistacation-- rich of tone, pitch and key. The encore came a half hour later. No art or composition can compare. God is Good.

Owning an American Legend

In 1900, wild horses, numbered in the millions, roamed North America's praries, moutains, and deserts. America's Mustangs were mostly decended from horses brought by early European explorers--particularly the Spanish, but reflected an impressive mixture of genetic types from the smaller Spanish Barb, to Percheron and draft type stock. For many years, a frustrated Spanish government turned out thousands of wild Spanish-bred horses along the Rio Grande hoping the Indians would capture them instead of stealing from the Spanish missions. Today's Mustang herds, restricted to specific herd management areas by modern development, continue to thrive, but in much smaller numbers. The BLM estimates that 29,000 Mustangs and burros currently exist in the wild and they have 31,500 animals in holding facilities. Since the controversial passage of the Wild Free Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971, about 218,000 wild horses and burros have been placed in private hands through the BLM's adoption process. http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/wild_horse_and_burro/Fact_Sheet.html

Tried, trued and tempered in Nature's selective furnace, the Mustang is iron tough. While Americans were busy breeding domestic horses for specific jobs, the creative forces at work in the wild were building a naturally hardy animal that could endure a much harsher world with poorer food and more distant water holes. While the story of Hildalgo is probably just legend, there is little doubt by those who ride the Mustang that it can out-distance its domestic counterpart. The Long Riders' Guild report some modern distance rides by Mustangs, including a 3,000 miler in 2001. http://www.thelongridersguild.com/nativebreeds.htm

We adopted two American Legends in September, 2006 from the Sulphur herd. Our experience with the BLM and these tough little horses has been completely positive. One, a scrawny, buttermilk-dunn weanling named BarbWire, gentled right down within a couple of hours. She has the softest temperment of all our horses and she should be old enough to start riding this spring.

The other, a 4 year old line-back dunn we named Kissin' Kate Barlow, made me wonder if I had made a monumental mistake. I watched the BLM handlers load every horse into buyers' trailers the day of the sale. Kate was the only Mustang to try climbing out of the 8 foot loading chute. When we got her home, she showed the most fear and the most aggression to pressure. She would go to a corner and spin circles whenever anyone came near her pen. She was WILD! I finally sent her to Neil Childs, a professional trainer in Fountain Green for two months--and while she was there, I got to go help with her training. The day I brought her home and saddled her up she threw me off the first two tries--I stuck her on her third valiant try and she has never bucked since. In the short year that followed, she carried my family and me all over Snow Canyon, Pine Mountain, Zion Nat'l Park, the Uintas, Escalante's 50 Mile Mesa, parades, Grand Entries, and many other places.

Inside Kate's chest beats the biggest heart of any horse I've ridden. She's so little, my knuckles nearly drag the ground. But she can carry my 200 lbs over ground that surprises most of the riders I encounter. Kate is agile, flexible, and with a ten inch overstep--she's a very smooth ride. I hate to be guilty of personifying my animals, but I swear she is the happiest, most exuberant and playful horse on my place. I've seen her smile and lay down in the middle of a stream or sand bar to joyfully roll with rider, saddle and all. Whatever you want to call it--she's got loads more personality, wit and smarts than any of the quarter horse types we own.

If I had to sell her, today's market might struggle to bring me $500 dollars; but I'm not sure I'd take $10,000 if you were begging me cash in hand. From wild to mild in a few short months; from mistake to brilliant stroke of genious--this timeless American Legend is a priceless classic.