Deer Creek Lake

DEER CREEK LAKE TRAIL

We all have our favorite trails. Fremont Bob loves "B-Lewis" Flat, and Utah Jack's favorite is Death Hollow. Ole' Dangerous probably rides the Deer Creek Lake Trail at least six times a year. If you come to ride with Dangerous, rest assured you will see it with him. Even I get a little tired of the same old scenery, but I have to admit the Deer Creek Lake Trail is one of my favorites along with most everyone else.

Lunch

Dangerous likes Deer Creek because it isn't all that steep like most High Plateau trails. He starts Dottie and Little Guy on the Deer Creek Trail to get them in shape and take the jumpiness out of Dottie. Unlike me, both horses are real soft early in the spring, and Dottie hasn't accepted the fact that there is life outside her winter pasture. It also helps that the trail is non-motorized. Occasionally, we cross an ATV track; but for the most part, motorized riders haven't intruded too far into this supposedly protected area.

A relatively flat trail doesn't mean we don't have an occasional accident or near disaster. When you ride an 1,100 pound horse with a mind of its own, accidents happen. It was on the Deer Creek Trail where Dottie knocked Dangerous out of his saddle. She took him off on a tree, and he landed face down in a pile of rocks. Lucky for us only his pride was hurt, and Dottie stopped when she caught up with Hemingway and Scottie. Oh, what names Dangerous hurled at Dottie as he limped along on foot trying to catch up.

Horse Back Philosophers

What really appeals to me is all the water along the trail. Deer Creek Lake is at the end of a relatively steep climb. Situated directly under the rim the lake provides a refeshing stop for me and the horses. I get to cool off with a swim and a roll in the mud. Dottie and Little Guy get a cool drink and time to munch the meadow grass growing around the lake. Dangerous and his buddies take in the scenery while solving the world's problems from horse back. All solutions sound plausible with these guys when sitting tall in their saddles.

Deer Creek Lake

Dangerous has his own route that we follow from the lake. Most hikers and riders don't know about the upper, less traveled trail situated right under the rim. Dangerous has a variety of routes we follow depending on the day and season. During the summer we most always take the higher trail, depending on his "singing saw" to get us through. In the fall, we usually follow the well traveled main trail to take in the beautiful aspen groves in their fall colors. The aspen trees are huge and their beautiful gold leaves carpet the trail in late September.

Another attraction for Dangerous is the wildlife you see on this trail. If you remember back a few blog entries ago, I shared with you a picture of a black bear track. Black bears frequent the Deer Creek Trail regularly along with deer and elk. Dangerous never tires telling the story about riding into a herd of cow elk with their new born calves. According to Dangerous, the mothers and their babies never stood up as he rode among them. You can tell that I wasn't around then. It wouldn't have taken me long to scatter the entire herd.

Well, I am sure you have your favorite trails and places. I would love to hear about them! By the way, Utah Jack caught Dangerous in a serious error. An earlier version included a picture of Long Lake not Deer Creek Lake, so Dangerous had to go back and correct his mistake. Utah Jack caught the mistake and eagerly pointed out the error.