Time to Set Up Camp

I slept past 7 a.m. because I had not set my alarm. I always wake up at 5!

So, I had to scurry around filling the water tank on the horse trailer, grabbing my saddle pads from the dryer and putting my bags and food baskets in the truck.

Then it was time to feed the goats and pen them so that Jay could drive through the pasture without the goats escaping. By then, Karen had arrived with a big light weight roundpen on the back of her truck for Red.

We walked down to the lower barn and watered the cows while waiting for Jay. Jay arrived at 9:15 and tightened up Falcon and Reds shoes, then yakked to Karen about the arrest of our local sheriff.

I grabbed the grooming box and an extra bucket and headed for the Trailer. Karen got the hint and shut the gates after Jay drove through. Then we brought the horses to the trailer.

Falcon was a pain and would not load, but after some coaxing he finally walked on.
Red loaded without issue.

At exactly 10 we motored out of the driveway with Karen in the lead, through town and on to Mechanic Street, heading for the Massanutten Mountains a few miles away.
The road up the mountain is curvy and narrow and at one point, I passed a van going in the opposite direction and there must have been only 4 inches clearance between us....yikes, but if I got over to the right, I would have rolled down the mountain side.

The down side is just as steep and curvy with a sharp hairpin bend thrown in for good measure. Then, reaching the floor of Fort Valley, the road widens and is more level, but still curvy.

12 miles later we arrived at Base Camp-Fitchetts Field. There was plenty of parking and we found a spot not too far from the Vet-In and Check In.

Quickly we set up the round pen and the porta corral, unloaded the horses (Falcon had to be coaxed off of the trailer) and put them in their corrals to munch grass.

Then we set up two canopys that Karen had that belonged to the Old Dominion...Set down our chairs, propped our feet up and each had a beer. Then we set about getting grain and stuff ready for the next day.