Home»All Photographs»2022 March

Spent five wonderful days on three Oregon mustang ranges, beginning with Palomino Buttes and Warm Springs, and the rest of the time on Steens where we met six newbies and some old friends on this wild journey. We did a lot of hiking cross-country as a lot of the higher elevation gates were closed due to weather conditions, so we just hoofed it.

We started with Palomino Buttes, no mustangs to photograph, but could see nearly two miles out to the west there were a couple bands. Did find some beautiful Tundra swans at the common waterhole near the main road. Stopped at Warm Springs HMA also- couldn't get too high up in elevation due to snow, but did find one beautiful blue roan stallion below that area.
On Steens, water is at good levels from about quarter range on up- lower shallow waterholes are still dry. The herds are in better shape than usually anticipated this time of year coming out of winter, however, two elder stallions are of concern- BigBlack (second stallion of formerly the SilverBay band) wasn’t seen with his band, and Copperhead is on the lean side. Experience has taught us toothwear is often a common thread among aged horses on this range for degraded body condition as they pick up abrasive desert grit with their forage wearing teeth down faster than they grow.

During two of our days on our hikes in the Steens backcountry we found rather large cougar prints along the Tombstone waterhole that are probably since the last snow melt around the perimeter a couple weeks ago. Also on the south backcountry range found what appeared to be possible wolf tracks headed up a slope with a large stride in the trajectory of a yearling carcass.
Most of the horses are winter-fuzzy, and the babies are just beginning, as said, finding six- 4 in the hollywoods, and two in the backcountry of bands we were not familiar with. Most of the horses are fuzzy in their winter longjohns, but a few very robust stallions were already slick.
Keep the WILD in our WEST and our WEST WILD!
Mustang Meg
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