So, you are hooked on riding in the West???? So are we! Try the link http://www.billythekidtrailride.com/. They ride from Lincoln, New Mexico to Sumner, retracing Billy's last ride. Also, try Allred's Adventures,LLC, Sawtooth Wilderness Outfitters. They provide the camp, pack horse and cook. We are going Nov. 2, 2008 on the Medicine Lodge, Idaho, horse drive. We will be trailing 80-100 horses from summer pasture to winter pasture. We are using their horses, but I think you can take your own. Do a search, "bring your horse vacations" to get more.. Last summer we did a week of Frontier Cavalry School, camping on the banks of the Little Big Horn River, exactly where the Sioux camped when Custer saw them. The culminating activity after we "graduated" was participating in, with many other reenactors, "Custer's Last Stand." You are permitted to bring your own horse. It is held the third week in June. It was one of the best vacations in my life! Put in search engine "cavalry school twisp washington" to get the details.

Brenda 

This is a two day ride in Utah's San Rafael Swell area.  Hosted by a group out Green River.  It will have between 50 to 100 riders.  You could easily spend several more days in nearby areas. Such as Bryce Canyon, Zions, Grand Staircase Escalante.

http://www.ecso.com/trailride/trail1.htm

Some pictures from the 2007 ride.  It is a desert ride.

We also put on a Strawberry Endurnace race in late June ( 3rd weekend)  You don't have to race. They would welcome people to ride drag and pull ribbons. It would give you the chance to see some beautiful mountain country in Northern Utah. It's a Friday-Sat-Sun event. But there are a lot of racer who show up a few days early to acclimate their horses to elevation. Or stay after to enjoy the area.

Also they used to do an Outalw Trail 5 day endurance race Near Escalante Utah every fall.  Again you wouldn't have to race, Just play Pinkerton and follow the trailer behind the racer. Being a safety rider or pulling ribbons.

http://www.outlawtrail.com/

Hey Paintedhorse - do you have a webiste with all your photos?  I just love seeing them everytime you post some.

I happen to know the owner of Renegade Rides (Belinda) and she has several different rides so you can see some different scenery. She's quite a horsewoman and has really nice horses (Morgans, QH's Arabs, etc)

 I did a gaited ride out of Missouri several years ago in Oct so we had all the color changes.  I think you can find it by looking up Mermac farm or something like that.    Arizona and Utah has really great scenery and very different from Wy. 

I've never taken the time to create a website.  Guess I should.

Anyway most of the photos that I share are hosted on Photobucket.

http://s130.photobucket.com/albums/p259/Painted-Horse/

I've spent a lot of my fall hunting for BigHorn Sheep on the San Rafael Swell of South Central Utah. This is a desert area, that John Wesley Powell said was of not interest to mankind except Geologist and Artist. It's been a great area to explore. I really wonder how Butch Cassidy and the wild bunch ever survived living in this area. But I do understand why the posses never followed them in.

Lots of Wild Mustangs and wild donkeys

I did a guided ride back in '90 out of Bluff, Utah riding along the various canyons in search of dwellings.  I was amazed at how much wildlife there was out there.  We had a history professor and a Navajo guide that took us to all kinds of neat places and told us so much about the history of the area, how to locate water pockets, etc.

      I envy you living out there and getting to see it all the time.  Thanks again for sharing, those donkeys are too cute.

we just got back from a week riding vacation near mexico city  Riding Holidays in Mexico...rancho las cascadas

it was perfect, 5 star all the way and very affordable.   we will go again.   it was quite an adventure and i highly recommend it!

As I have hunted for BigHorn sheep, I have looked in a lot of out of the way places. I am amazed at how much water is in the desert.

The rock structures catch and hold large pools of water every time it rains. Most had water skitters and other insects indicating that they don't dry up.

You can see the bath tubs of water in the bottom of the ravine (Left bottom corner of photo)

And if you knew exactly where to look you can barely see my truck and Horse trailer in front of that black mountain in the distance