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These are few things I see as recipes for injuries.

You horseman out there let us know what you run into and recommendations for horse safety.

Any time you come to a downed tree, ditch or creek don't think the horse will just walk over it, grab the horn and be ready for him to jump or just bolt over it. Hunting on horseback is a great way to go but you really need to know your limits if you are inexperienced !!

My 9 years old grand daughter would rather ride horses than just about anything.

I have pack goats, Id rather walk in anyway, I do not trust being on a critters back to leave him decide my track in or out. My vet bills Zero$$, feed bills 150$$ a year, and shoeing bills Zero $$ are pretty cheap too! ' GBA

I really appreciated his horses, they were very well trained, stable, and you could grab a tail on any one of them and they would pull you out of the canyon.

His horses got us off a mountain and back to the trailhead, in a nasty snowstorm once, with no visibilty, and the snow so heavy we couldn't see the trails.

I think the horses are a reflection of the Outfitter!

Best of Luck, Jeff

Turns out his horse was night blind. Not terribly bad if on a straight trail, If on a switchback, he(bringing up the rear) would cut across, almost killing himself and rider.

We have 2 barrel horses, one is a 5 yo cutting bred mare that stops and gets low when spooked, i would have 100% confidence with her in the woods. Then we have a 6yo race bred gelding that takes off out of control when spooked and is crazy fast and dangerous, i would have .00125% confidence on him. We are hoping he matures out of it...

I rolled a horse last week. No saddle roll or anything. There was a tree growing sideways out of the hill before it turned upright. That meant about a 20 inch step up. He simply missed the step and was on his knees on the trunk. He got a little panicky and next thing you know he rolled twice. No big deal really since I wasn't in a steep or rocky area. Swaro binos and spotting scope were completely unharmed believe it or not.

I know stock well enough to calmly handle any situation. He was scared more than anything. So you get a firm grip on the lead rope and talk calmly and slowly. It's amazing what a little help on the rope will do to assist a 1000 pound animal in getting up.

If you do a serious amount of packing in steep rocky country and add a heavy rain eventually you'll have an issue. It doesn't have to be anyone's fault.

Obviously a bit of an education is a good idea before using livestock. Tagging along with someone with experience is priceless too. But I'll tell you this... a level head and an overabundance of common sense can get you pretty far.

Don't be in a hurry and make sure things are as they should be prior to hitting the trail.

Realize that although the pros far outweigh the cons.... livestock means a longer day. Catch, brush, saddle, unsaddle water, feed..... And they are PRIORITY 1. If any of my guides would sit down at the dinner table before the stock was fed it got ugly. Good horses and mules do their job as asked but they can't take care of themselves so we owe it to them to see that that get what they need. Mine are considered good friends.... even if I lease them. And you can definitely lease quality animals.

I had this client from Chicago that was a complete idiot. Rude as hell. During a fire ban in a dry September, after getting lost until 1 am... he came back and started a huge bonfire. I was out looking for him at the time. Just before he went into his tent for the night he piled wood as high as he could possibly stack it saying "I paid for it, I'll burn it" My wife was hysterical as it was windy on top of everything else.

This guys horse HATED him. ha ha The horses always whinny when we return to the tree they are tied off to after standing there all day. They know a big pile of hay is right around the corner. When the guy was lost he walked right past his horse and it remained totally silent letting him pass. I couldn't believe it!

Anyway at the end of the hunt on the way out we came to a switchback in the trail. The horse knew the trail well. On top of that he was about midway in the string so obviously everyone in front of him made the turn.

What did he do? Slowly but surely walked straight off the trail into a jungle of thick brush and would not stop. The guy was screaming and cussing you dumb s.o.b I'll kill you blah blah blah. All of his arrows were ripped out of his quiver and eventually he rolled backwards out of the saddle after-which the horse bushwhacked on it's own back to the trail.

I was loving it. Normally I wouldn't laugh at a client but after 10 day the feelings were mutual.... the city slicker hated all of us and we felt the same. I laughed my butt off right in front of him for a half an hour.

Good horsey... here's an extra coffee can of grain for a job well done. :-)

I am not built to ride a jumping horse.

The other issue on the trip was the tack......most of the bridles were held together with twine. I would have thrown away all of it back when I had a horse. I understand the cost the outfitter had with a string of 100+ horses and mules, but I was uneasy the whole trip wondering what was going to break.

Yes... it's important to bail out when the time comes. In shay spots my feet are out of the stirrups to the tips of my toes. Comes naturally. I've had two horses go down on me. Not bad really considering the miles I've ridden. Both were in really deep snow. they couldn't see the trail and stepped right off the downhill side. it was like slow motion though and I was prepared. I simply stepped off to the uphill side, waited for them to come to a stop, and went for the lead rope.

No doubt though it makes inexperienced people nervous seeing that. Again... keeping a level head is always a good thing to do. A horse senses when you're panicking and it won't help that's for sure.

I'll save the details of the hunt for later when I do my end of the year thread, but suffice it to say had a bummer of deal in the back country this year. I'm not the most experienced horseman, but not the least either. Decided to pull the plug on my first hunt due to lack of action. A week later I went in for a second trip without my wingman (Bernie1)... Brought a buddy who isn't a real serious hunter, but a good kid who grew up on a ranch/farm, and figured he could handle horses alright.

Shot a great bull, and the next day packed him out. Put the heavy load and horns on the more mild of the two horses, and the light load on the other. (Saddle panniers) Made the mistake of not insisting that my friend and the horse follow me. Paid for it....

Went thru a ravine with a lot of dead falls. My buddy decided to take his own path. Next thing I know I hear him yelling and the horse running like a saddle bronc horse thru the dead falls, up and down, complete blowup rodeo. I got up to the trail with no problem, and my buddy catches up to the horse at the bottom. Tells me I need to get down there asap.

Horse had snapped his rear right leg like a twig. Made me cringe to look at. Tried to get him to the trail but it was no use. Had to put him down. Never had to shoot a horse before, and I hope like crazy I never have to again. Good horse overall too. Went from the super high of shooting my bull to a super low of shooting the horse. Didn't see how it happened, but I really believe what mule power says about the wonders of level headedness, firm grip on the lead rope, and using a calm voice.

Not at all holding it against my buddy, but I learned a hard lesson thru it. I will forever make sure from now on that things are done my way when it comes to the horses. Period.

All that said it can certainly happen to anyone. I do agree with mule again though that common sense can do wonders when it comes to horses. Still learning and always will be I'm sure. Tough deal, but wrecks happen. Unfortunately it cost that horse his life, and me a bunch of money. In the end I have decided to learn from it, and not let it ruin an otherwise awesome year.

At that moment it felt like heaven itself was shining on me. Little did I know all hell was about to break loose.....

Not sure he was worth a horse, but it's spilled milk now...

I look at it like this: Could have been me or my buddy that got all busted up. Not to be callous but I'd rather the horse get hurt than one of us.

Again not trying to trivialize a very serious situation, but if I don't laugh I'll cry....

On the first trip that same horse kicked me in the leg. (My fault) The next morning neither of us were feeling the love, and he started pulling some other didos. At this point I was getting fed up with his antics, and told Brian (Bernie1) "I'm going to kill that stupid horse!!!"

When I got out of the back country after the second trip I called Brian up, and told him "Well I told you I was going to kill that horse"... I also had a chat with the other horse and told him that he better behave, as he saw what happened to the last guy! ;)

Do you think something slid back to his flank area causing him to buck around like that?

Dude!!! First time seeing those pics, makes me sick man! It’s terrible Roy ended up that way.

Again Awesome Bull! I wish wish wish I was there on 2nd go around...could have been there when you stuck that monster and enjoyed it with you...maybe no horse blowups...maybe I would have not gotten skunked...etc.

Endeavor to persevere! You earned the bull buddy and you will never forget the 2014 Elk season.

In the backcountry, expect the unexpected...

My new favorite quote "a horse is an 1100lb rabit" funny but very true.

I appreciate all the input. These kind of discussions are very helpfull to all hunters who use horses.

I would give anything to spend the season with an old timer who has spent his life with a pack string.

Craig

A horse loving Bowsite Sponsor

I got hurt this year because I came to a water crossing riding one horse and leading another. The water was a littler higher and faster because of some rain but not bad. We had crossed the creek several times already without a hitch. When we got to the creek there was a slight drop-off into the water. The horse stutter stepped and jumped the creek. Happened in an instant. Since i had a death grip on the lead rope to the pack horse I got jerked off the horse. Landed flat on my back in the creek. Horses just stood there looking at me, one on each side of the creek. Lucky I didn't hit my head on a rock and drown in 12inches of water. I dragged my wet, pissed off butt, out of the water and climbed back on. My first thought was, why didn't I simply turn loose of the lead rope... Happened too fast.

Now I'm sitting here reading bowsite as I recover from surgery to put my shoulder back together. First time anyone's ever been hurt in a horse wreck in all the year's we've done this.

We'll be back in there next year doing it again.. with horses.

I have only hunted with horses a few times. In Colorado's West Elk Wilderness I watched my guides horse blow up with a Sow & cub in the trail pre-dawn. I was white-nuckeled the rest of the day. Later the cook got horse kicked pretty bad. They hauled him to the ER.

In the Frank Church Wilderness (Middle Fork of the Salmon River) we had quality stock, gear, and a competent staff. The country is rough and on this September Rifle hunt we had encounters with yellowjackets and the drama that they cause. My rental horse was a real star. They called him " number 9". He had a fast walk and handled my bulk with out much fuss. The 16 mi. + pack in and the breathtaking country made me a believer of this classic hunting style. I got better and less frightened of the constant risk of a fall, wreck, or problem with the stock. Often thinking of that release form I signed at the trail head.LOL! Shot a great 6X5 bull- great memories -and some of the finest table fair came from that kill! It was 232# of the best processed elk Ever! The Folks in Challis,ID did a awesome job! Every flatlander should make a trip like this once in his life. I love DIY self hunting, and have since applied what I learned on those early guided hunts. Getting older now,and might be ready for another horseback hunt. I wonder what happened to ole Number 9?

LaGriz

I don't think so, but it's definitely possible. I think what probably happened is that my friend (who took a much more difficult route) got a little too hasty and didn't give the horse enough time to cross the dead falls. I think the horse was probably already amped up after 2 weeks of hard grinding, and got spooky. My buddy probably didn't see the warning signs until it was too late. Also as he was going nuts he threw the meat and the saddle slid under him. Not good. He also might have caught a stick in the belly, etc... who knows... Just a good lesson to slow down and let the horse take his time.

svrelk,

Same with us. Decided to short cut it and here we are.

Bernie1,

If you had been there I'm quite confident Roy would still be around to kick unsuspecting victims! LOL.... and I'm sure you would have filled that cheap non-res elk tag.

ELKMAN,

Thanks, and lol....

Sfiremedic,

Prayers for a speedy recovery.

I think in the end hunting off of horses is the best way to effectively hunt the back country, but it is a constant balancing act of trying your darndest to avoid Murphy's law. Just like the rest of you I'll be back at it with them next year.

At some point we are going to move out of town to my grandparent's old house. I think I'll go with llamas.

I think it's important as stated by others to try to always stay calm and relaxed around stock in all situations, and to always be aware that anything CAN happen at ANY time! Do not become complacent on your animal either while riding or leading them, especially when in rough country or while packing game.

I nearly got knocked out cold while leading my horse while packing elk 2 years ago. This horse was a bit spooky from it's first time hauling elk and was riding my heels too closely despite my demands to hold him back. I was bringing up the rear, and the trail was passing by some dead willows. I think the horse got stuck in the face by a willow and threw its head RIGHT INTO MINE, striking me near the temple and nearly knocking me out. I remember seeing black and red color only for about 2 minutes and trying to get my wits about me back. Kinda scary how fast things can happen.

Even still, LOVE to hunt and explore the mountains while on horseback, and love all the care and work that you have to provide to these critters, but certainly requires commitment...

Troy

So we get him back on his horse, and I follow him from then on to make sure he doesn't fall off. We're nearing the trail head going down fairly steep decent and I see him trying to light a cigarette while loosely holding the reins. All the sudden the horse bucks sending him through the air and landing face first on the trail. Unreal. The guide leaps off his horse and comes running to his aid, as did I. He asks me, "now what", and after telling him the story he looks around for the cigarette. I said, "I think he ate it".

We were able to get him back on the horse and he was taken straight to the hospital once we got to the trail head. We were later told, in addition to several broken bones in his foot, he also had a broken cheek bone, a cracked eye socket and a couple of chipped teeth.

I felt bad for him then, but my buddies and I crack up now every time we tell that story.

On the way out of the Thorofare on this trip the hunters and one guide left early on the 34 mile, 10 1/2 hour ride back to the trailhead. The other guides would leave with the packstring an hour or so later, saying they would catch up with us by the time we got to the trailhead.

They showed up about an hour after we arrived, apparently they had a wreck on the trail, a mule carrying an elk rack spooked at something, jumped ahead and gored the mule ahead of it in the flank, deep enough to get guts hanging out the wound. They had no choice but to offload the mortally wounded mule and lead him off the trail and end his misery with a .44 round to the head.

I am not sure how far they got him off the trail, but that could have resulted in a really bad deal if the grizzlies found and claimed the carcass.

I calmed him down and managed to untangle everything. he was bleeding pretty bad so I got some bleed-stop powder on him and call my vet and sais get down here asap.

He ended up developing an infection even though we flushed everything with peroxide and kept him on antibiotics for awhile. it took a year for him to fully recuperate. A year and a good bit of money. As much as I paid for him. A couple outfitters shook their heads and said why in the world would you do that when he couldn't even work for a year and the results weren't guaranteed? Simple.... Squirt was a good friend. I loved that mule. When we'd stop on the trail he'd step up and rest his chin on my thigh and look up at me. Who would put down a great hunting partner? Not me.

For every story of a wreck I can remember I could tell you a hundred of great days riding and packing in the Rockies in Idaho, Montana, & Wyoming. After dinner I'd go hang out in the portable coral and shoot the chit with them. They liked that. So did I. We developed trust.

For every story of a good day on a 4 wheeler I could tell you 10 of days I nearly killed myself on one.

jdee--- we use a breakaway pigtail when we're leading more than one and they're strung together. Not sure I'd want it tied to the mount I'm on... i I've always held the leadrope/packhorse with my free hand.

Any thoughts mule power?

Hunting the wilderness has been a great joy in my life. I love the adventure and the memories it has given me. Horses have made the experience better.

My plan was to do a scouting trip to the Big Horns this year with my girlfriend and our horses as she has ridden there before and has way more experience than I do with horses. Knee surgery kept me off a horse all summer so it got put off.

Next year I hope things change and hopefully I'll have a story of my horses out west and not include a story of a wreck.

I keep hearing that "if you have never been dumped off a horse you have not ridden very much!"

We shall see!

Seriously... the most dangerous animal in the world? Kind of a ridiculous statement.

Maybe the most useful.

Sfiremedic using bale twine for a breakaway is called a piggin. It will do a great job of leading animals and even pulling ones that are a little stubborn but if an actual fall or emergency occurs it will break for sure.

Some critters learn that they can hold back and break the twine. In that case, as long as the terrain is easy and no chance of a serious issue I'll run the lead rope through two piggin loops instead of one. That's 600 lb test instead of 300. They learn pretty quick who's the boss.

I always have piggins on my riding saddle. Mainly for times when I decide to walk so I can hitch my pack animal to my riding horse. But many many times I have hitched them to my saddle while I was riding. Again.... when I was on easy trails that I was familiar with.

Think about it.... we slip and trip all the time. Losing your footing is a regular occurrence in the mountains. When that happens we only have a singe foot on the ground to support us until we recover and get the other foot back on track. When a horse or mule loses it's footing they still have three feet on the ground. A way better scenario. The worse case situation is a trail giving out but even then they usually have at least two feet on a solid part of the trail. It's very uncommon for a horse to actually go down. Even less for mules because they have narrower hooves so they don't twist the animals ankles as much on uneven ground. A good riding mule is worth big bucks in mountain country.

'There is never a horse that couldn't be rode,

There is never a cowboy that couldn't be throwed'

He rubbed me off the first day on a 15" diameter tree leaning at about a 45 degree angle. I thought I was fine to clear the tree, then he cut to the right at the last second, the last thing I knew before I bailed was that the trunk was heading right toward my belt buckle. I went backwards and down to the left, ending up under his feet. He could have kicked me to New Mexico, but he calmly let me crawl out and get on again. I was a lot more alert after that!

Luckily, the only thing hurt was my pride. I think the outfitter was scared to death, but that was the last incident for the week, and we logged a lot of miles in rough country.

As I looked for water holes I came upon a area that was void of vegetation and led down to about a 20 acre pond with ducks.

About 20 feet into the area the front legs of the horse sank out of sight. I just about went over his head and quickly bailed off. I was on the verge of panic. Three year old Q horse stud worth about $25,000. I was about 2 hours horse ride from any help. Not a clue on what to do. The horse finally decide it needed to take matters into it's own hands/hooves. Somehow it managed to use its hind legs to pull its front legs out. I managed to grab the reins and flipped them over his head and kept it from running off.

Walked the horse over a tree and tied him up. Walked back to where the horse sank. The holes where the his legs had been were slowly filling up with water. QUICKSAND!!!

I stomped my feet on the ground and it shook like jello. Untied the horse, swung in the saddle and headed home the EXACT SAME WAY we had come in.

Got him back to the barn and gave him a bath. He had sand/mud from his chest to the cinch area. I was still shaking and never told anyone about it. I was 16 at the time and was sure that I would be spending the rest of my life paying for the horse. Never ever took a horse back down into the flood plain area.

Terry