# High Uintas in the rain



## Charlie Horse (Dec 16, 2012)

Clay Zimmerman and I decided to go on a training hike even though we knew it was going to be rainy. Very rainy. But its high summer and why not test equipment out in the rain when its not ice cold rain?

The path started out the same as last time when we went to Allsop Lake, except this time we took the right side of the Y that leads to Priord Lake.

It started raining again as soon as we hit the trail and continued for 2 days with little relief.









Here we are taking a break. Certain goats had been hanging back under trees and being real refuseniks, so we forced them forward a bit and only then let them rest when the humans said it was ok.









We never really got to see the awesome mountains due to the low hanging clouds. At least there was no lightning. It was a Seattle style drizzle that phased in and out of real rain.









My rain jacket is more of an emergency thing (FroggToggs) than an all day outfit. I got a few holes poked by goat horns but they served well otherwise.









Oh, here's a peek at the mountain. I bet it looks awesome.









There were tarps set up for the goats to shelter under, but they intimidated Sasha the dog so much that she ended up sleeping in the rain like an idiot. She was cold and miserable the first night.









We never quite saw Priord Lake. We thought it was over a 50 yard high wall of rubble, but it was in fact just over a berm to our right. The trail had fizzled out and we didn't bring a map, so we'll have to visit again another time. Its a good thing though, since we didnt end up camping next to the lake like we had planned. At that altitude, the rain was worse, the clouds were low, and it was a lot colder. It would have been a horrible night. We ended up hiking way back down the trail, almost to the Y intersection, and camping in a spot we liked the looks of on the way up. It was a perfect campground.









The rain stopped at dinner time and slowly the low clouds broke up. That meant the stars came out and it got rather cold. The goats had dried off, but Sasha was still very wet. She spent the night rolled up in a tarp, and I think she stayed warm enough. My sleeping bag was my summer unit, good to 40F, and my feet were cold, and my back where it contacted the hammock. Otherwise it was a great night's sleep, as the goats were tired and stayed bedded down.









We had 7 river crossings on this hike, and for most goats it was the first crossing of their lives. Here is a video of the final crossing, and you can see how well they've learned!


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## Charlie Horse (Dec 16, 2012)

All the pictures are of Clay because I was the one behind the camera. It wasn't convenient to pass the camera around in the rain. I'd pop it out of my rain jacket, take a picture if I could (had some fogging issues at times) and pop it back in to keep it dry.









My epic picture was ruined by Orion slipping off of the wet log and plopping in the water.









The sun had finally made itself known on the third day.









It was actually a rather long hike with about 1700 feet of elevation, but it was not steep at any point. Very mellow going except that there was a lot of rock hopping crossing tributaries and marshes and flooded trail sections. My calf muscles are feeling it today.

One thing I had going for me is that I haven't been able to afford nice hiking boots. My New Balance trail runners got wet in the first 10 minutes and stayed that way. But this gave me super-powers out in the rain. I could march through a river and not care. The shoes would pump out the soggy water in 10 steps rather than holding it in like a waterproof boot would do. For wet hikes, cheap shoes win the prize.









I have to mention my Hennessy Hammock. I don't know if it would have survived a sideways driving rain even with the rain fly strapped down, but in this rain it kept me perfectly dry! My Wiggy's sleeping bag stayed dry, but it is just the outer-cover used for summer camping, so it wasn't quite up to the cold that last night. My Frogg Toggs rain gear did well, but its delicate and I'm going to be patching a few holes tonight.

I'm also going to figure out how to make a 4x7 tarp into a dog shelter for the future. Over and over again Sasha ends up needing something for herself, since the goats trample her when she tries to sleep near me or when I wrap her up in a blanket.

As far as a training trip goes, the goats got wet for the first time in their lives (they have shelters at home... never ever get wet) and they learned to cross rivers without hesitation. Some of Clay's goats carried packs for the first time in their lives and did it so well that they could maneuver through narrow gates by approaching at an angle. Very smart critters. A goat or two proved to be laggy, either from laziness or being out of shape, so they're going to get one more chance another time. I learned a lot about equipment, cooking and menu, and handling rain on a hike.

It was a total success and went as well as a completely soaked hike is ever going to go. Everyone thought we were crazy going out in the biggest storm in months, but I'd do it again next week.


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

Love these updates.


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## toth boer goats (Jul 20, 2008)

Awesome, thanks for sharing.


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## Chadwick (Jan 24, 2014)

How many humans? That's a lot of goats! Looks like a good time!


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## russellp (Apr 10, 2013)

Great story, you have a real talent for expressing your thoughts in writing. Just reading the small excerpt made me feel like I was there, like a Hemingway book. Please keep us all updated on your adventures.


Sent from my iPad using Goat Forum, Russell P. Hammonds


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## wyomingtrapper (Mar 27, 2014)

Great pics and a pleasurable narrative. Good for you for getting them out in the rain. I have intentionally left my goats out in the pasture without shelter this summer. Initially when it rained, they seemed a bit forlorn and wandered about, clearly looking for shelter, but the past few weeks, they pretty much ignore the rain and go about the business of grazing and chewing cud. In the next month, they will need shelter again as we are at a high altitude and the rain will be getting very cold again. 

Keep sharing your adventures!


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Love the updates!


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## nancy d (Oct 5, 2007)

Wow. Very impressive, especially fording the waters! Your narrative is indeed refreshing & well done.


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## mntnflyr4fun (Sep 14, 2014)

*Mixed Herd*

Being new to the subject of pack goats, I found the pictures showing both horned and dehorned goats together which I had been told was not recommended as the horned animals had a distinct advantage and would use it.

Any issues related to that concern show up on your adventures?


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

mntnflyr4fun said:


> Being new to the subject of pack goats, I found the pictures showing both horned and dehorned goats together which I had been told was not recommended as the horned animals had a distinct advantage and would use it.
> 
> Any issues related to that concern show up on your adventures?


Just this year I have kept horned and hornless together - no issues thus far. I only keep mild-mannered goats and they have plenty of room.  The horned were raised here as kids, so that may have helped too.


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## Suntoo (Nov 14, 2013)

How much fun!!!
Having physical limitations myself.....I just LOVE seeing your adventures!
Thank you!
Love your goats!!! They are a great inspiration!


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## Charlie Horse (Dec 16, 2012)

My thinking on the horn/no-horn issue is like this:

Most of your problems are going to happen at home, not on the trail. While out on the trail, every goat figures out his place in the line and more or less sticks with it. There's too much interesting stuff going on for the goats to worry about beating on each other with horns. 

I have a mixed herd, and it works, but I picked the goats carefully. Three of mine, Amelia, Victoria, and Shelby GT, have no horns. Then I picked up Bacchus because he's so perfect-- Except he has magnificent horns. I knew he would end up being king, and sure enough he now has ascended the throne. Woodstock also has horns, but he is half Boer, and is so meek that he rarely bothers any of the others and certainly wont go after Bacchus. Without anyone interested in fighting him, Bacchus's horns arent much of a problem. The other goats know to let him eat alone, so there's not much to argue about. 

If I were to pick up another horned goat, I think things would start getting a lot more complicated. In short, no horns is good. All horns is good. One with horns is good. But one without horns is bad (or any minority of goats without horns)

To be honest, none of my goats, even Bacchus, is aggressive. They all butt heads a bit and will even spin on Bacchus and give him a bit of a challenge if he's too mean to them. I never have seen a real knock-down fight though. The goats always had more trouble with the yak I had, because her horns pointed forward and they'd get jabbed pretty good.


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## nchen7 (Feb 25, 2013)

hike looked awesome, even if the rain made it a bit of a misery. thanks for these updates!


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

Great pictures and documentary! I sure miss the mountains! I used to live in Colo.
Why I came East is a big mystery! Your goats look well trained and happy, and the German
Shepard is beautiful, too!


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