Westerner

Apologies for borrowing the name of a European champion horse for the title of the blog. However Westerner was a Gold Cup winner at Ascot and a superb stayer for a small horse. I did breed a mare to him this year, that my brother gave me, so there is bit of bias name-wise as I travel west. Today was by far the most beautiful drive I have ever done. It started in Aspen and ended in Nevada, en route to Tahoe. I could not stop thinking about how tough the early settlers were for taking their families through and over the rugged canyons on horses and wooden wheeled wagons. They were the ultimate stayers and had the good fortune to cross the most beautiful country on earth however difficult it was. The light was extraordinary and regardless of my immersion in the desolate country was able to catch up with friends from my past. I think that the cell phone can be considered a miracle if looked at the right way. There is a lot of romance in the texture of the canyon country. It's hard not to think so when the dirt your standing on is 50 million years old. Did you know that it is iron oxide that makes the soil and cliffs red? The same mineral is responsible for the unique and exquisite color of tourmaline from Mozambique - perhaps my most favorite new color coming out of the ground in gem material. It's the soft purple that comes through as a secondary color that gives it its depth. Lots of neon here in Nevada. Kind of like it. The honkey tonk never disappoints. Great day! I will go back to Moab with a bit more time, and a bike.