Don't
feed the ponies!
By Cathy
Brazzell
LENGTH: 5 miles SKILL: Novice - Intermediate
PROS:
Views, wild ponies CONS: Crowds
WATER:
At Wilson Creek NOTES: The shelter mentioned is new
and not on the map yet. The
A.T. in the
Jefferson National Forest Va.
A
hike on the balds
On
my first backpacking trip to the Mt.
Rogers Recreation Area, I saw cutest little brown and white
pony. I instantly fell in love with it. My husband said loudly DON'T
FEED THE PONY, so I didn't. I just petted him for a while.
Cute,
isn't he! |
We
went up the trail for a couple of miles and he stayed with
us. When we reached another group of ponies, he took a break
with us as we petted other ponies. As we walked he kept
sniffing my pack as if he was hungry. He never strayed
from my side. After a short break we traveled
another half mile and reached the shelter.
When
we got to the shelter it was time to eat so started to fix
supper. As we laid out the food we were preparing, the brown
pony started to circle the table. After the pony watched us
eat our supper I couldn't stand those sad eyes any longer.
I gave him some raisins.
|
| 
Licking
the pudding from the picnic table
|
We
walked to the spring to filter some water. We left our packs
and gear un-guarded on the picnic table. When we returned
the pony had helped himself to the chocolate pudding in my
husbands pack. It was quite a sight, the brown pony had pudding
all over his face ! He also managed to spread the dark powder
all over the picnic table.
We
were packing up our gear to hit the trail when my husband
noticed a large black cloud over a nearby peak. We decided
to wait out the storm at this shelter. Like a shark that smells
blood, the pony was even more interested in the contents
of our pack. My husband had to keep chasing him from the picnic
table.
|
The
pony and our dog "Blackie" |
It
was a good thing that we decided to stay in the shelter. The
storm that followed the black cloud was extreme. The wind
blew violently for several hours. Finally , around 11 PM the
storm subsided. Just as we were drifting off to sleep we were
awakened by a noise. It was the brown pony ! Again he was
trying to get into our things. Again my husband chased him
off.
My
husband was getting very irate so he decided to build a fence
to keep the pony out. He gathered the branches and downed
trees that surrounded the shelter. After some effort he built
a sturdy fence.
|
Once
again , as we drifted off to sleep the pony returned. We heard
a noise and this time he was trying to get under the fence. As he
was crawling under the makeshift fence one of the logs fell on his
back. He tried to shake it off but the log stayed with him. He started
bucking and the log flew off of his back. He took off in a panic
and we didn't see him for the rest of the night.
 In
the morning we cooked a big breakfast and enjoyed the morning mist
of the Jefferson National Forest. It didn't take long for the brown
pony make an appearance. Just as we were finishing breakfast
he poked his head out of the trees !
We packed our gear up and started hiking back to the trailhead.
Our brown pony followed us all of the way back to the State Park.
We crossed over the fence, out of the park and away from the pony
from hell.
If
you ever go to Mt. Rogers DON'T FEED THE
PONIES !
Mt.
Rogers Photos | Mt. Rogers Map
| Trail Information
|
