Chat
08-28-2017, 06:19 PM
On Saturday 5 of us hiked with 5 goats along the Snake River at the Big Flat Habitat Management Unit about 12 miles east of Pasco, WA. It’s managed by the Corps of Engineers. The area we hiked is an island on the Snake River. A causeway has been built to the island so the Corps can farm areas for wildlife.
The trails are a total of 7 miles in length. We hiked a little over 5 miles. It’s been in the 3-digit temps for so long we haven’t been able to get out to hike much. The 5 miles was plenty.
Eldon & Debbi Otta brought their goats, Pac-Man and Rudy. I brought Bourbon and Jethro. We introduced Jessica Benson, her daughter Elise and Elise’s Mini Alpine doe, Honeybun, to hiking with goats. Jessica and Elise are hooked!
Jessica was going to carry a soft sided ice chest on the hike. I told her Bourbon would be happy to carry their stuff. She thought it might be too heavy for Bourbon. I told her he wouldn’t even know he was carrying the weight of their sandwiches, snacks and water!
I recently purchased one of the Mark Warnke Kid Trainer Saddles sold by Bantam Tack (Matt Lyon) for my Mini Alpine doe to wear on hikes. We saddled up Honeybun and away we went! Although designed for young standard size breeds of goats, the saddle is a perfect fit for smaller goats like the Mini breeds and the Nigerian Dwarf! I love the ease of use of this saddle and the adjustability of the straps.
Since it was the first time we’d been out together this summer we weren’t sure how the goats would do as a “herd” on the trail. They were fine. Honeybun was a little intimidated by the larger goats at first but by the end of the hike she actually challenged Pac-Man – the largest goat! Rearing up on her hind legs and pushing on him. Pac-Man just looked at her and chuckled (if goats can chuckle!).
The areas where the Corps farms are irrigated. The rest of the island is dry with native desert vegetation. We hiked down to the river where Elise collected some small clam shells from the water to take home. She was just going to carry them along on the hike. We told her to put them in Honeybun’s pack. That opened a while new world for collecting things!
Further along the trail we found a patch of milkweed. Elise had a ball throwing the seeds and silk into the air! It was floating everywhere! Jessica loves seeds of all types so put a milkweed pod in Honeybun’s pannier to take home. Since milkweed pant can be toxic to goats we made sure they didn’t eat any of it.
Shade was at a premium throughout the hike. We found a pretty little glade where we sat and ate our lunch. By this time it was beginning to get warm. None of us wanted to leave the shade! We decided to head back to the vehicles.
On the way back Eldon discovered a couple of wild plum trees! Boy, do they have HUGE thorns! Eldon and Debbi picked a couple to try. They were ripe! The skin was tart but the flesh of the plum was super sweet. Yum! A double handful of plums were added to Honeybun’s pannier!
We also saw wild honeysuckle which Elise plucked and sucked on for the sugary nectar. There were thickets of Russian Olive trees whose berries are not edible and they have huge thorns. We also found a walnut tree which was large enough to give us some shade.
By the time we got back to the vehicles it was in the mid 90’s. The goats enjoyed their buckets of water while we put the gear away. Everyone loaded up and headed home. A good time was had by all!
Elise on log at Big Flat.jpg (Size: 99.51 KB / Downloads: 95)
Elise and wild plums.jpg (Size: 120.95 KB / Downloads: 95)
The trails are a total of 7 miles in length. We hiked a little over 5 miles. It’s been in the 3-digit temps for so long we haven’t been able to get out to hike much. The 5 miles was plenty.
Eldon & Debbi Otta brought their goats, Pac-Man and Rudy. I brought Bourbon and Jethro. We introduced Jessica Benson, her daughter Elise and Elise’s Mini Alpine doe, Honeybun, to hiking with goats. Jessica and Elise are hooked!
Jessica was going to carry a soft sided ice chest on the hike. I told her Bourbon would be happy to carry their stuff. She thought it might be too heavy for Bourbon. I told her he wouldn’t even know he was carrying the weight of their sandwiches, snacks and water!
I recently purchased one of the Mark Warnke Kid Trainer Saddles sold by Bantam Tack (Matt Lyon) for my Mini Alpine doe to wear on hikes. We saddled up Honeybun and away we went! Although designed for young standard size breeds of goats, the saddle is a perfect fit for smaller goats like the Mini breeds and the Nigerian Dwarf! I love the ease of use of this saddle and the adjustability of the straps.
Since it was the first time we’d been out together this summer we weren’t sure how the goats would do as a “herd” on the trail. They were fine. Honeybun was a little intimidated by the larger goats at first but by the end of the hike she actually challenged Pac-Man – the largest goat! Rearing up on her hind legs and pushing on him. Pac-Man just looked at her and chuckled (if goats can chuckle!).
The areas where the Corps farms are irrigated. The rest of the island is dry with native desert vegetation. We hiked down to the river where Elise collected some small clam shells from the water to take home. She was just going to carry them along on the hike. We told her to put them in Honeybun’s pack. That opened a while new world for collecting things!
Further along the trail we found a patch of milkweed. Elise had a ball throwing the seeds and silk into the air! It was floating everywhere! Jessica loves seeds of all types so put a milkweed pod in Honeybun’s pannier to take home. Since milkweed pant can be toxic to goats we made sure they didn’t eat any of it.
Shade was at a premium throughout the hike. We found a pretty little glade where we sat and ate our lunch. By this time it was beginning to get warm. None of us wanted to leave the shade! We decided to head back to the vehicles.
On the way back Eldon discovered a couple of wild plum trees! Boy, do they have HUGE thorns! Eldon and Debbi picked a couple to try. They were ripe! The skin was tart but the flesh of the plum was super sweet. Yum! A double handful of plums were added to Honeybun’s pannier!
We also saw wild honeysuckle which Elise plucked and sucked on for the sugary nectar. There were thickets of Russian Olive trees whose berries are not edible and they have huge thorns. We also found a walnut tree which was large enough to give us some shade.
By the time we got back to the vehicles it was in the mid 90’s. The goats enjoyed their buckets of water while we put the gear away. Everyone loaded up and headed home. A good time was had by all!
Elise on log at Big Flat.jpg (Size: 99.51 KB / Downloads: 95)
Elise and wild plums.jpg (Size: 120.95 KB / Downloads: 95)
Goatberries Happen!