Run for your lives! It's ALPACAS! Save yourselves!

Today Baasha delighted me by being NAUGHTY on the trail. He must feel good if he can be naughty under saddle when we're out there exploring alone! I rode him across the huge sheep field and he got so excited he dropped his head to his knees and tried to crow hop a few times for fun. I pulled him up and said "none of that!" and he just wanted to go! I let him trot and even canter a bit - he's feeling good today! Totally limber and long strided, even on different surfaces.

We went up a favorite hillside and came to a field that had horses in it for the first time! Baasha was stunned! Two icelandics - one red and one black, a beautiful pair. They were so happy to see us it was as if they'd never seen another horse. They actually tried to push thru their fence! We spent a while there, just talking to them.

Then we trotted and trotted, and when I looked behind me, Baasha's tail was straight up like a flag, flowing and waving rhythmically in the beat to his trot. Happy tail is back! We trotted and trotted and then we came to a new animal for Baasha - Alpacas.

The moment he saw them, they turned thier cute heads to him serenely and he did a pivot on his hindquarters in a split second that almost threw me. I grasped for my slippery biothane reins with my wool gloves and couldn't get hold. I did the most amazing emergency dismount, something I haven't had to use with Baasha for years and years. He wanted to FLEE! He was absolutely terrified of those animals who looked like mini llamas with poodle haircuts, one black, one white.

One of them flattened her ears for a moment and Baasha did that super incredible loud snort heard thoughout the land. I said "Quit that! I'm serious, come see them, I bet they like peanuts!" and I reached in my saddle bag for my peanuts. Then I saw the sign on the fence with their photo. It introduced them by their names and asked that we not feed them. Darn it! So we just hung out a while, I kept patting Baasha's neck in that patronizing way. The whole time, I wished a photographer were near. He looked absolutely amazing, like one of those show Arabs. He was poised and tense, tail straight up, neck straight up, eyes full of wonder. I thought I might lose him, but he finally calmed down.

Since he was so feisty, I pushed him a bit and made him walk out really strong and trot a lot more than normal. We took enough breaks that the wind and sun dried his coat by the time we were home.

Fun day! One of those days that make me glad I have a blog so I'll remember it.