It seems like I have picked the worst year to ride through the United States.

Up to Dupuyer, Montana the grass was green and the creeks were flowing with fresh water from the mountains. But this last stretch of the ride has been a lot different.

The heat has been a factor since I left Calgary. I have been trying to leave as early as possible but by 8am it is already super hot. There have been days where by the last 2 hours of the ride I have had to push real hard to continue. Especially since I have been carrying a heavy back-pack since Cardston, Alberta – walking for half of the day to help Bruiser.

Now we are starting to experience the extreme drought the United States is facing. The last stretch of our ride has been accompanied by burned grass and dry creeks.

“On July 24 more than 54 per cent of the United States was in moderate or worse drought conditions,” National Drought Mitigation Center.

According to the website, droughtmonitor, over 80 per cent of the topsoil in Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico was rated short or very short of moisture. We will ride through all three of these states.

Since my horses health comes as an absolute first priority, I will have to find a way to make these hard next few months easier on them. One way I am thinking of doing so is by having a vehicle follow us with tanks full of fresh water and some hay for the day. It will be hard due to my budget, or lack there of, but it may be the only alternative as the United States faces the worst drought in a generation.

Luckily every problem has a solution! We will continue moving south 🙂