Today I saw the sun and got excited. I stepped outside for a minute to check the temperature. The snow in the front yard was melting. That could only mean one thing - it was warmer than the predicted high of 24 today! I texted Ruth about riding. She was also excited at the prospect of riding so we planned for her to meet me at 12:30.
Gail came by before then and said her outdoor thermometer read 34 in the sun.
Ruth picked me up and then we went to get her trailer and Otto. Then out to collect Sinwaan. We reached Madam Dorian without delay. I was on the shade side of the trailer and it was c-o-l-d getting tacked up and ready so I put on my gloves. I was excited to finally swap out my saddlebags for the new red ones that I got from my mom for my birthday!
As we were tacking up an ambulance went by. It did not have its siren on but it was really moving over the rough gravel road, every part of it jarring as it drove past. Ruth and I both thought that curious. Madam Dorian is remotely located and we rarely see other people out there. It is used a lot for duck hunting however so sometimes we see men working their bird dogs, or hiding out waiting for a duck.
Not long after a helicopter flew overhead, going the same direction as the ambulance. Hmmm. We were thinking maybe someone was having a medical complication, or maybe shot by a hunter and needed a life-flight out of there.
Ruth and I walked for awhile to warm up the horse and let them settle in and get the crazies out of their system. The trail was a little frozen, which surprised us, because it is primarily sand out there. We would be moving along and Otto would see a little ice on the trail and jump sideways but Ruth kept her seat.
After awhile Ruth commented "I haven't seen that helicopter leave, I hope we don't run across it and have it spook the horses." No doubt. We rounded a turn and saw a line up of vehicles across the ridge where the gravel road was above our sandy trail. I think there were three big pickups, a cop car with lights on, and the ambulance. Perhaps one other response car. No helicopter. We had taken the low way around a hill so I asked Ruth if she wanted to climb that hill to get a better look at what was going on and maybe see where the helicopter had landed.
We climbed up the hill and saw the helicopter, just starting up. I asked Ruth if she wanted to go back down the hill. She said she would dismount. I thought that was a good plan. The horses didn't seem to notice or care about the helicopter, they were looking for grass to graze on. You can see in these photos how close we were to the helicopter. Thankfully it didn't fly directly over us, and it didn't scare the horses.
After that bit of excitement we continued down our trail. I was tempted to ride up and talk to the people gathered with the response vehicles but the policeman looked kind of busy. Ruth thought she heard one of the guys say something about how 'you can't beat yourself up.' So that made us think it must have been someone shot accidentally by a hunter.
Oh man that made us a little worried about riding out there. We heard a couple of gun shots and saw a lot of ducks.
Towards the end of the first half of our ride, I looked over and saw the most beautiful majestic owl flying alongside just staring at us. The horses must have sent some vibrations through his den. Otto saw it and spooked sideways. The owl decided we were trouble and flew away. He was so silent it was really amazing.
We also saw a couple of hunters. One of them scared the horses half to death on the ride back to the trailer. Ruth and I saw him briefly and knew he was headed up towards us from the lake, but then lost sight of him. We were riding along at a walk and then Otto caught sight of him and jumped and then he was recovering when Sinwaan caught sight of the man and spun around so fast and tried to bolt but realized he was kind of aimed at a big sagebrush and by the time he gathered himself I had a handle on him and was turning him uphill to slow him down. It was a little amusing. Horses afraid of a man but not a helicopter. In their defense the hunter was in cameo and very quiet and carrying something. Never said a word to us but we were a little far for a conversation.
We rode out to the end and back again today and barely made it back to the trailer by dark. It was glorious being out on the trail again and in the sunshine! I have been getting a little cabin fever being in the house so much over my Christmas break from work. Thanks Ruth for the adventure!
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*UPDATE* Article from the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
Teen shot while hunting
by Alfred Diaz
WALLULA JUNCTION - A 15-year-old Kennewick boy is recovering after being shot in the arm while hunting with friends.
According to a Walla Walla County Sherriff's report, four teens were duck hunting near Madame Dorian Park on Thursday around 1:30 p.m., when one of the teens checked the safety on his shotgun and then set it down.
When the butt of the shotgun hit the ground, the weapon discharged, hitting the upper right arm of another member of the hunting party, according to the report.
A Tri-City Herald article reported the injured teen waded to a nearby log and waited, while his friends called 911 and gave him first aid.
Firefighters from Walla Walla County Fire District Five provided basic life support until a Northwest MedStar helicopter took the teen to Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland.
The teens, whose names were withheld were all reported to be from the Tri-Cities and had hunting licenses.
