Wild Horses, Sunset and a River

This is my last post about the Salt river wild horses until next winter. To say I was sad to leave this wonderful area is an understatement. Between the horses, the birds, and just the general beauty of the area, I was enthralled to say the least. I miss it already. We met new friends, spent time with old friends, and had a great time on every visit there.

I knew we were down to the wire on leaving this last trip, and I really wanted to capture the horses in the river in the evening. So on our last evening there, we met our new friends at the river and had a magical time. The light is amazing in Arizona at sunset anyway, add to that a river, and horses….well you get the idea.

Oh, and the reflections. Not just in the river, but the river on the horses.

I was obsessed with the reflections on the horses, so amazing.

We had gone to the river in the evenings a couple times, and seen a smattering of horses. This night, it’s like they knew I had one last shot and a bunch of horses were there.

It was hard to keep up with all the activity in every direction.

It was peaceful, and chaotic.

There was a lot of pawing of the water, from the stallions mostly. In the summer, the horses do this to get the eel grass in the river. They somehow have learned to snorkel for the eel grass, like a moose does. But this time of year, it was all about splashing.

I’m not sure what was happening here. The big stallion seemed to be chasing the little guy for some reason.

Several laid down in the river, that must feel good.

This little foal got caught in a melee. She held her own though, and mom, the white horse, kept her safe.

This is the same mare, the white one. We watched the stallions trying to breed with her all week. I think she was just so done with all their crap. I’ve never seen a mare rear up on her back legs like this before.

But in general, everything was very peaceful.

I hope you enjoyed all these images, and the others I have posted of this beautiful herd of wild horses. It was very special being able to spend time with them this winter, and I am looking forward to next year. One thing that makes these guys so fun to see, is they are protected against roundups. Nobody ever has to worry about losing their freedom, and ending up in horse jail for the rest of their lives. They are lucky, were other wild horses aren’t. This year the precious Onaqui wild horses of Utah are scheduled for round up of 80% of the herd. This is devastating news for them, and for all of us who have come to love and cherish these horses. American Wild Horse Campaign, and The Salt River Wild Horse Management Group are fighting hard to stop this roundup. Right now the best option we have is to pressure the BLM to not do it. AWHC and SRWHMG are willing to get a PZP program started on this herd for birth control. You can help lend your voice to this fight. AWHC has a website, Save Onaqui where you will find a petition to sign, a way to donate, and information on the rally they are organizing in Salt Lake at the BLM office. I will be attending the rally along with friends. Please do what you can to help, and share the information with everyone you know.

If you would like to have any of these images, or any I have posted previously as a print, just let me know. I will also be getting a bunch of new stuff on the website soon. And as always, 15% of proceeds goes to AWHC to help them fight for OUR wild horses on OUR pubic land.