Over the weekend of July 23-24, 2011, Dannie Crawford in conjunction with The Community Draft Horse and Mule Association held his annual wagon ride at his farm near Hillsboro, Kentucky. Just like the prior year, the temperatures were in the mid 90's (°F) and heat index temperatures were well over 100°F . We were joined by several members of the Kentucky Trailblazers riding club and had 11 wagons and carts along with 16 outriders on Saturday. The route took us about 16 miles through the back roads of Fleming County. We took our time, resting the horses often and being sure that any who wanted it had plenty of water to drink. On Sunday, there was a smaller group consisting of only 5 wagons. We crossed over into Bath County and headed down the highway about 9 miles to the town of Owingsville where we stopped for lunch at Erma's before returning to the farm. We were accompanied both days by 5 of Dannie's hounds who put in about 35-40 miles themselves over the course of the weekend.
For dinner after our Saturday ride, Dannie and Shelton Morris again provided alligator meat and several types of fish for everyone along with hamburgers and hot dogs. After this feast, a group of local bluegrass musicians (two of whom had ridden with us all day) entertained everyone with their music. They were very good and, for the purpose of this report, I asked the wife of one of them what name they played under. She told me they didn't have a name, they were just a group of guys who really enjoyed playing together. As one of the musicians commented, if that music doesn't get your toes tapping, then there must be something wrong with you.
Dannie with Brooke, one of his many grandchildren and great grandchildren!
Click the links below to see slideshow presentations of photos from this event!
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