I passed the civics, reading and writing test as part of the naturalization process yesterday. I’ve rarely if ever had that much fun taking a test.

Especially in light of the fact that just 8 days prior I took – and passed – the National Counseling Exam. That one was decidedly unfun.

This country offers new citizens an opportunity for a name change upon naturalization. I will be changing my last name to Schaefer, my maternal grandfather’s last name.

Wolfgang Schäfer was an endlessly quirky, painfully outspoken, forever young at heart, relentlessly active and knowledge-hungry math professor, story-teller and adventurer.

I wouldn’t be who I am or likely where I am if it wasn’t for him. It’ll forever hurt that he didn’t live long enough to see me find my happy place in life, and that I wasn’t allowed to say goodbye before he passed.

Anyway, when you see my name change on social media, the website, etc, that’s why. I’m excited to trade my A number (alien registration number ) for an American passport, and I’m so grateful to belong here rather than merely being allowed to stay.

Another thing:

This is a professional platform. I ask that whatever you wouldn’t say to me in person, or whatever you wouldn’t say to your male or female physician, mechanic, or insurance agent, you don’t say on here, to include comments, DMs, replies to stories, texts and emails. Especially if you don’t know me personally.

Not every thought in our head needs to be expressed via our outside voice or busy keyboard fingers. If this German, soon to also be American, can manage to have some kind of a filter, so can you. We’re not known to sugar coat much and I sure don’t.

I want this to be a friendly place, for you all and for me too. Rant over.

Packing picture featuring the Shepherds (fun fact: Schäfer means “shepherd” in German), Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador Mustangs Lacy and Tiny, and yours truly from earlier this month.

PC: Marcos Costa with 4 Corners Back Country Horsemen

#PSA#progress#makingmountainmustangmemories

What we do at Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy is mostly kindergarten and elementary school for wild horses as they find their way in the domestic world.

We’ve had some incredible Mustangs this year. Some took to doing “people things” like fish to water. Others, usually the more sensitive or “high octane” ones will try their heart out to do what’s asked but need extra time to relax into it.

With horses like that – Nash here, grey 4yo Antelope Hills WY Mustang gelding , being one of them – it’s extra important to focus less on teaching lots of new things or expecting significant progress all the time, and more on breaking tasks down and getting the basics solid in order to set them up for success and a good life with humans

That looks like actually teaching them to relax their bodies and minds, to look to the human for guidance, to self regulate, to think and respond rather than react their way through a tough spot.

There’s a big difference in a horse – Mustang or domestic – that will merely go through the motions or tolerate something and one that’s truly ok and engaged with what they are asked to do.

It pays to take the extra time to get the foundation right in order to pave a smooth path forward rather than ignoring little things that later come back and cause bigger issues down the line.

Example: Rushing to ride a horse before he’s truly ok with touch EVERYWHERE, accepts tack, yields softly to halter pressure in and outside of a safely enclosed area and is relaxed about picking up all four feet, can get excited and calm down again, and stay responsive at all gaits from the ground.

If you’re experiencing difficulties with your Mustang or have questions about the gentling process, we offer in person – at your facility or ours – as well as remote coaching.

Nash and several other gentled Mustangs are available for adoption. Check them out here:

PC: Our intern Kyle Dobson

Halter and lead: Rowdy’s Ropes

#BLMmustang#wildhorseswillingpartners#wildtowilling#adoptamustang#makingmountainmustangmemories

That’s what wilderness travel is like with a horse dog human herd.

Horses looking to the dogs to find a barely visible trail. Dogs waiting for the horses to create a path through tall grass or snow. Horses or dogs finding and pointing out water to the rest of the herd.

The horses going out of their way not to trample humans or dogs in dangerous situations.

Horses and dogs looking to the humans for guidance and safety.

Interdependence is key in the backcountry. Fellow travelers, two- and four-legged alike, rely on each other.

On our last pack trip I said something to the effect of “These kinds of trips show exactly how stupid animals aren’t” as the Mustangs and Shepherds were confidently finding their way back to camp without guidance, after only ever having been on a particularly hard to discern trail once before.

Grateful to have these experiences with our Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador Mustang herd:

Lacy (9yo dun Divide Basin WY Mustang mare, my riding horse)

Echo (2yo dun Twin Peaks CA Mustang filly, following along loose in this video)

Griffin (bay Devil’s Garden yearling Mustang gelding, also loose)

Tiny (15ish yo sorrel Salt Wells WY Mustang gelding, on this trip camera woman Tay Martin ‘s mount)

With trips and videos like this we hope to inspire and encourage others to make their Mustang dreams come true.

If you’re looking to adopt a gentled Mustang, check out our available Mustangs here:

We are a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization located in Guffey, Colorado. Thanks to reputable haulers, shipping out of state can be arranged.

BLM Wild Horse & Burro ProgramDouble Devil Wild Horse CorralsOutback Trading Company LTD.Rowdy’s RopesBest Ever PadsThe Colorful Cowgirl

#BLMmustang#DevilsGardenMustang#wildtowilling#wildhorseswillingpartners#adoptalivinglegend#explore#mountains#adventure#backcountry#wilderness#adoptamustang#makingmountainmustangmemories

This sweet, drafty boy who reminded us so much of Gus (Same age, HMA, gather. They could absolutely be related.) has found his person and has started his new life in California

These little clips were taken during his last couple of weeks here with us at Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy

We’re so happy for him and his adopter and excited to hear about his future and the adventures that await.

We have several gentled Mustangs – 1 to 5yo – currently looking for their humans. Feel free to check them out at

w i l d h o r s e o u t r e a c h . o r g , let your friends know who are looking and tag us on social media when you see someone searching.

We’ve been finding incredible homes for the wild horses in our care, let’s continue to do so. We appreciate your support, likes, shares, comments and donations so much.

We often have Mustangs that either need a little extra time to fully embrace life with humans or to find just the right person and situation. Thanks to you we can accommodate that!

Rope halters and leads: Rowdy’s Ropes

#BLMmustang#wildhorseswillingpartners#wildtowilling#bettertogether#nonprofit#adoptalivinglegend

#makingmountainmustangmemories

This sweet, drafty boy who reminded us so much of Gus (Same age, HMA, gather. They could absolutely be related.) has found his person and has started his new life in California

These little clips were taken during his last couple of weeks here with us at Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy

We’re so happy for him and his adopter and excited to hear about his future and the adventures that await.

We have several gentled Mustangs – 1 to 5yo – currently looking for their humans. Feel free to check them out at

w i l d h o r s e o u t r e a c h . o r g , let your friends know who are looking and tag us on social media when you see someone searching.

We’ve been finding incredible homes for the wild horses in our care, let’s continue to do so. We appreciate your support, likes, shares, comments and donations so much.

We often have Mustangs that either need a little extra time to fully embrace life with humans or to find just the right person and situation. Thanks to you we can accommodate that!

Rope halters and leads: Rowdy’s Ropes

#BLMmustang#wildhorseswillingpartners#wildtowilling#bettertogether#nonprofit#adoptalivinglegend

#makingmountainmustangmemories

That’s a bit how life has felt recently. Wonderful, unexpected, dramatic and a bit crazy.

Lots of great new wild horses, experiences, and opportunities, the tragic loss of our 2yo DG filly Cedar after a pasture accident, Lacy catching a bug, me getting Covid for the 3rd time – so annoying – and this past Thursday taking the NCE (National Counseling Exam) at long last. 4hours , 200 questions while sweating bullets, with hours upon hours of studying leading up to it.

It’s been a wild ride and I apologize for the balls I’ve dropped along the way. It’s nice having a little more headspace now. One more important test (immigrant stuff) coming up.

I appreciate everyone who’s supported, cheered me on and been patient with me through it all.

These photos are from the last day of our July pack trip. We were “just going to do a quick ride”, because we wanted to be back at a reasonable hour to pack up camp, ride out, sort our things and drive home. All during daylight hours, obviously. No problem, right? Ha!

We looked at this and then at that, and finally, while I was harvesting some particularly lovely bay boletes – yay for wild mushroom hunting – Tay Martin started acting rather strange and ran off into the forest, only to return with an enormous moose shed.

Once she was able to speak rather than squeal and sing, the question of “how do we get this thing down to camp?” arose. I offered to carry it if we could protect it (and me) a bit.

Taylor’s wilderness treasure traveled down the mountain cradled in my arm and wrapped in a sweatshirt. No trail, so it was looking at the app, directing my mount, climbing over deadfall and dodging low branches. Sounds safe, doesn’t it?

Not to mention the two loose young Mustangs and two German Shepherds that also all needed to be herded to our destination.

The first picture is me peeking over the shed, Divide Basin Mustang mare Lacy surrounded by the youngsters, Denali on a mission to go somewhere. Not pictured, Ranger, Taylor and the remaining Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador Mustang Tiny (Salt Wells).

We rode out of camp at 8.40pm that night (second picture) with the moose shed (3rd pic) secured under the lash rope atop Twin Peaks, CA Mustang filly Echo’s load. We arrived at the truck around 10pm. That was some kind of a ride, but we made it out in one piece. Mostly. SOMEONE had a sad headlamp and steering malfunction, yet is blaming 400lb yearling Devil’s Garden gelding Griffin for pushing 1200+lb Tiny into a tree, resulting in a bruised (human) knee…

Here’s to embracing life, good friends, good horses and slowing down to take it all in!

#BLMmustang#DevilsGardenMustang#wildtowilling#wildhorseswillingpartners#backcountry#wilderness#adventure#makingmountainmustangmemories

This handsome yearling Devil’s Garden Mustang gelding didn’t let a rough start keep him down. Pippin was facility-born and rejected by his dam. Double Devil Wild Horse Corrals staff kept him alive and raised him, through ups and down, until he was strong enough to travel. No easy feat and a huge commitment.

He arrived here earlier this year with several of his friends to get an education and find a wonderful home. Pippin – now Joey – has the biggest personality and is willing to grab life by the horns. There’s a lot of resilience and spunk in that little red roan body.

Pippin was adopted and picked up by one of the experienced haulers we work with. He took the long trip from CO to MI in stride.

The Champion Farm sent us these photos and made our hearts sing. That little guy found horse heaven on earth and it appears he’s embracing it. I think he’s sure he deserves no less. Happy trails with your sweet boy Taylor, thank you for giving him such a wonderful home!

Thank you to our amazing adopters, supporters, clients, haulers and everyone else who makes what Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy does possible. This is what we do it for. Keep the updates coming!

We have several incredible gentled Mustangs currently looking for their humans. You can view them under the Available Mustangs tab at w i l d h o r s e o u t r e a c h. o r g

If you have questions, feel free to email, PM, text or call us.

We’re located in Guffey, CO. Hauling can be arranged and out of state adoptions to approved, suitable homes are possible.

#DevilsGardenMustang#wildhorseswillingpartners#wildtowilling#nonprofit#bettertogether

#makingmountainmustangmemories

That’s what I think horse packing and backcountry riding do for us: We feel alive and present.

In a world where we are often numb, stressed, irritated, anxious or distracted (but utterly comfortable because in many ways our lives are easy… We get heat, cool air, coffee, fuel and millions of items online simply by pushing a button), exploring the backcountry with horses pulls us out of all of that.

Packing is time and labor intensive, uncertain, dangerous and if you want to save on weight and maintain some level of convenience, comfort and safety for yourself and your stock it’s rather pricey too.

The payoff? Being in the moment for as long as you’re out there. Seeing things not many people see. Experiencing nature in its raw form because you’re immersed in it, rain or shine. Having your character, gear, navigation skills and your animals’ training tested. Slowing down to take it all in, because that’s all there is to do.

These photos are from the same day ride out of camp, taken a mere few hours apart. It was a hot, dry, exhausting first few miles. We almost turned back because the animals needed water and some time to graze.

The vegetation was poor and all but one of the intermittent streams shown on GPS were dry. The one that wasn’t offered two tiny spots of water. One was muddy, the other required that they push their heads into and under a bush to drink.

The trail was growing fainter by the minute. The dogs and horses were getting tired and the humans worried.

The app said half a mile to water, down some steep-ish terrain. We said to heck with it, we’re already here. So we went.I heard Marcos promise his geldings “paradise at the end of this trail”. I grunted. I was just hoping for flowing water and some grass.

Turns out he was right. I walked Mustangs Lacy and Tiny down the canyon. The trail was so faint and overgrown in spots and so narrow in others that I felt safer that way. At the bottom we found grass almost to the horses’ backs, all the water we could ask for and incredible scenery. A perfect lunch and cooling off spot for the weary two- and four-legged travelers.

Riding back we tried and failed to outrun a storm. Watching it approach, hearing the thunder and finally seeking shelter from hail and rain in a small grove of trees was intense, scary and beautiful all at once.

I’m glad for the experiences and memories and thankful that both Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy and groups like

4 Corners Back Country Horsemen are doing their part in keeping backcountry packing with horses alive.

#BLMmustang#wildhorseswillingpartners#wildhorses#wildtowilling#horsepacking#packhorse#mountains#adventure#explore#backcountry#bliss#nature#horses#adoptamustang#makingmountainmustangmemories

I left for the wilderness practically right after we got back from Trinidad and haven’t had a chance to share any pictures.

We squeezed an unbelievable amount of oohs, aahs and adventure into a whirlwind 30h trip to the opening weekend of Cowgirl Artists of America ‘s art show Women’s Work at the A.R. Mitchell Memorial Museum Of Western Art in Trinidad, Colorado.

We saw incredible art work, met talented artists, enjoyed the museum and lovely gift shop. Seeing Sarah Dean Art ‘s beautiful oil paintings “Leaving a Legacy” and “Capable Hands” of our Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador Mustangs, most notably the one and only Lacy alongside Tiny and DG Petrie, and forever goofy Ranger the “free on Facebook” younger of the two German Shepherds was both humbling and a bit surreal.

We’re grateful to the organizers and to Sarah for reaching out to and partnering with us and for giving Mustangs yet another platform to shine. “Capable Hands” sold that weekend, so Lacy, Tiny, Ranger, and the full moon over Pike’s Peak are going to be hanging in someone’s home soon.

For those of you who have a 2024 WHOA calendar: Look at your August picture and see if it seems at all familiar

We got up early on Saturday and decided on adventure over breakfast, knowing we’d want to make it back to the museum for the luncheon and awards ceremony.

Following a friend’s suggestion, we drove to the equally quirky and scenic mountain town of Cuchara, sat on a bench in the morning sun with iced coffee, wandered all around the tiny town and bought elk jerky for breakfast.

On the way back we made time for mountain lake wanderings and an impromptu swim, and still managed to be presentable and even punctual for the luncheon.

“Leaving a Legacy” won people’s choice award. That may be the only blue ribbon Lacy ever wins but it’s an especially cool one and she’s the best, toughest, fiercest pretty little branded mare in all the land in either case

If you enjoy artwork, beautiful scenery and horses, check out Sarah Dean’s work on social media, you won’t be disappointed!

If you’re interested, you can see all the amazing pieces through the end of September. The museum is worth a visit in either case!

Peep the branded Mustang on a boot that was also part of the show. It was neat seeing wild horses so well represented.

Also, Tay Martin rocking one of the pretty teal and cream WHOA hats. It’s my favorite color but being the dirt magnet I am, I wear the charcoal and blue one. Thank you to Western Skies Design Company for making them for us!

#BLMmustang#AmericanMustang#westernart#grateful#ridethebrand#sunset#mountains#adventure

#makingmountainmustangmemories

Last week I was on the phone with an old friend. She was my German teacher in middle school. Dorith is in her 80s now. I graduated high school 20 years ago (ouch). We go back a long time and she’s essentially my bonus grandma.

She asked what I was doing the following week. I replied “Going packing with a stranger from the internet.”

Dorith: “We’re not telling your mother, are we?”

“Correct.” I said, “Maybe afterwards.”

That’s where I’ve been these past few days, in a new to me wilderness area, with Wild Horse Outreach & Advocacy Ambassador Mustangs Lacy (Divide Basin, WY, under saddle) and Tiny (Salt Wells, WY, pack horse), German Shepherds Denali and Ranger, and Marcos Costa – the stranger from the internet – and his horses.

Marcos is an instrumental part of 4 Corners Back Country Horsemen as well as the Durango Cowboy Gathering . He wanted more packing experience. I wanted someone to pack with because going solo can get sketchy fast. A slightly awkward “I don’t know you but I guess we’re doing this” turned into a win-win situation and a new friendship.

Over the years several internet strangers have become some of my closest friends, mentors and adventure buddies.

That’s another thing Mustangs and a passion for exploring wide open spaces do for us. Connecting interesting people. Wild horses and wild places also go exceptionally well together.

Another monsoon season pack trip with the wild ones is in the books, more box hitch practice, more learning where I can improve and fine tune gear, planning, prep and routines. More making great connections and character building.

In a way the – hopefully not – dying art of horse packing needs just as much help and attention as do Mustangs and I’m beyond grateful to be involved in and continue bringing awareness to both. That’s only possible with the help of our friends and supporters.

I’m thankful for all of you. Thank you for making what we do possible through your input, questions, donations, volunteer work, the horses you adopt, the workshops and remote coaching sessions you book, the merch you order, by spreading the word through shares, likes and comments and referring your friends to us.

If you have questions, want to help us help wild horses or are interested in learning or adopting, feel free to reach out via email, phone or PM. You can also contact us through

w i l d h o r s e o u t r e a c h . o r g

#BLMmustang#wildhorseswillingpartners#ridethebrand#horsepacking#adventure#backcountry#mountains#courage#learning#makingmountainmustangmemories