Horseback Riding

Last Monday we had an awesome opportunity to go horseback riding in the Pigeon River National Forest in Northern Michigan. It's about an hour from our house. This forest has the second largest elk population in the state, around 1,000 strong. As we were riding we entered a little clearing and behind a couple trees stood a huge bull elk. He had antlers about 3 feet high and he was a beauty! We didn't want to crowd him, so we slowly proceeded. What an awesome sight! We also saw lots of deer and a coyote as we rode. Nearing the end of our ride, we decided to gallop a little bit. We were in a field and the horses really wanted to run, or should we say race. Well, Heidi wasn't sure she wanted to gallop, but her horse really started moving out. She tried to slow him down, but he didn't want to. Before long, she just couldn't hang on because her feet were flying out of the stirrups and she had gloves on which made it hard to hold onto the saddle. So, off the horse she flew!!! Well, it wasn't a very nice landing and please don't try this at home. She has been very sore this week with a sprained rotator cuff and a major whip lash. But she is so thankful that God protected her from any major injuries. She is feeling much better now! Above are a few pictures of the trip!