Phantom Hunter
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Just wanted to post-up a report. Our cow hunt in NM unit 51 was tough. Elk were tired of being chased for two weeks and were holed up in nasty thick blow-downs on steep slopes. We all had some type of chance, but only Allan connected. Lots of rain, snow, sleet. I think it only froze one or possibly two nights (9,000 +/- feet). Mud was covering everything. Now about the close call--We started down the mountain from the Trout Lakes, with the road so muddy I rode my horse and led another. We only loaded the mare in the trailer. We had been warned not to trailer the horses down. After a mile and a half or so we stopped to get the horses through the cattle guard. My two partners in the truck said they had no problem and suggested I load the horses in the trailer for the rest of the 11 mile trip. I thought, why not? One half mile later, in low range, 2nd gear, 4X4 on a slight turn I looked in the side mirror to see my horse trailer start to slide toward the downhill side of the road. I gave the diesel a little pedal to try to get across the slick spot. The trailer still slid, slid right off the road pulling the truck with it. As the trailer left the road it tipped over on it's side, slid a few more feet down the mountain. The trailer had come off the hitch. My truck was at about a 60 degree angle. Our only thought was the horses, fearing the worst we scrambled to the trailer. It appeared there were no broken legs but the mare was on top of one of the geldings in the front and he wasn't moving. My horse was by himself in back and had one leg through the bars of the side of the trailer. After carefully moving his leg, we pulled his lead rope and he started thrashing and came out. Now the the front compartment, after an eternity (2-3 min.) we got the divider loose and pulled the mare off the gelding. All three finally out, cut up and scared. We dared not try to guess what internal injuries they might have. Our good samaritan friends came down the road with a small winch and com-a-long. Three to four hours later we had both truck and trailer back on road. I started down riding my horse (who was the least injured) and pulling the mare, leading the gelding. My two partners pried the fender from the wheels, re-wired the trailer plug, and started down the mountain. At the bottom of the mountain more extensive horse first aid was possible. Looked like we were very lucky. We loaded up and started for Texas. A call to our vet had him waiting for us early next morning. He said most of the injuries were not serious and we would have to wait and see what developed on two or three of the injuries. Moral of the story, If you take horses into the high country and the road is muddy or icy ride your horses up/down and do not take chances. A trailer can be replaced (mine needs to be) but your favorite steed is cannot be replaced. Listen to the locals and the guys that have been in area for several seasons. They know best. Always take at least two com-a-longs with two or three chains. We had left four com-a-longs in my garage in the interest of room. We only had one chain. An accident can occur at any time even to guys who have been hunting in the mountains for several years. Take your recovery equipment and don't take chances. A special thanks to our good samaritans.
Phantom Hunter
Phantom Hunter