Bitterroot Ranch Newsletter
March 2006
We (Richard and Mel) joined a group for another adventurous riding safari in Kenya. The rains had failed to come in Tanzania and the famous wildebeest migration was disrupted with many of the animals still in pockets of the Mara. We were cantering with one of these great herds when a rider fell (unhurt) and his horse took off with the wildebeest. One sight that will remain etched in our memories forever was a fellow rider galloping into the dust of that great mass of animals to retrieve the loose horse. It turned out he had been a rodeo pick up rider and he soon came trotting back, mission accomplished!
We then went on to Tanzania and basing in Arusha with an old friend of Mel’s, visited her family farm at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro. It had been nationalized in the 1970s, but amazingly was still intact, with evidence of elephant coming to a salt lick along the forest boundary. We also explored Mt. Merus (15,000 ft.) eerie crater which one can drive/hike to, and checked out Ngorongoro Crater, Lake Manyara National Park and the northern Serengeti. The rains had just arrived here and the wildebeest were streaming through the area, returning to their traditional grazing grounds.
We were inspired by this visit to set up a new non-riding travel company enabling people to have a similar experience far away from mass tourism. We are now working on the details for very special, customized trips starting with Kenya and India and should have them up and running shortly.
Meanwhile back at the ranch we have been battling frigid, -26 F nights in the middle of calving season and Bayard has been busy these cold winter days writing some of his memoirs. One particularly good story about a favorite horse named Democrat is posted on the website.
Mel and Richard Fox