August 29th & 30th, 2020
Canceled
Come join us to CAMP, LAUGH, RIDE and once again make memories in the historic Medicine Bow National Forest at the Happy Jack Hightail! Truly fun rides for all. We’ll have plenty of natural water,
dinners after the rides, lots of fantastic awards …. and most of all gorgeous views and wonderfully marked trails to explore!!
A Tad Bit of History:
The area was inhabited by Native American tribes for many centuries who according to legend
gathered here to make medicine and bows, hence the name, Medicine Bow. The Pole Mountain area was established as the 55,000 acre area for Fort D.A. Russell Wood 11th Infantry Encampment, (Camp Otis) target, maneuver and water reserve in 1879. Then came the railroads who used the lumber for railroad ties and telegraph poles, and gave it the name Pole Mountain. Between 1879 and 1961 the area was used as target and maneuver area for military training. There can still military munitions found in the target and maneuver areas. These include fuzes, mortar rounds, small arms ammunition and 75mm artillery shells. From 1879 to 1925, various proclamations and executive orders changed the land status back and forth from National Forest to a military reservation. In 1961, all lands on Pole Mt. were placed under the National Forest administration.
There have been at least two movies filmed at the Pole Mountain area, incidentally both used members of the military for extras. The first was the “Charge of the Light Brigade” which depicted the famous charge of British cavalry in the Crimean War. It was produced in 1912 and used 800 troopers of the U.S. cavalry for extras. The second is “The Plainsman" which was produced in 1937 and starred Gary Cooper and Jean Arthur. Members of the Wyoming National Guard were used for extras in the cavalry scenes. This famous area now is centered around Headquarters Trailhead which is very close to basecamp and offers wonderful hiking, and scenic views under cool aspen breezes!
Trail Experience:
Prepare for a fun stunningly gorgeous experience. All distances start at base camp in the Happy Jack Recreation Area with a majority of the sections of the ride on 2 track trail, but plenty of single track as well. You will find yourself traveling through conifer forests with beautiful open meadows, passing
rugged rock formations and aspen glades.
We will have distances of:
- 25 & 50 miles and an Introductory ride on Saturday
- 25 miles and an Introductory ride on Sunday
There will be 3 loops flagged:
- Loop I: Crow Reservoir, ~25 miles-- is a mixture of USFS roads and trails that can be fast.
- Loop 2: Twin Mt., ~15 miles
- Loop 3: Pole Mt., ~10 miles
- Loop 2 and 3 will be slower with mountains and thick forests, single and two-track, hills, water crossings and lots of BIG ROCK outcroppings to view.
There are some areas that are “flat ‘n fast” or a place to rest and walk along the trail ;), but gradual trail changes are either climbing or descending. There are plenty of scenic places along the route to catch a breathtaking view or soak up the sounds of the natural rivers or creeks while getting get a refreshing drink of water!
Yummy tummy stops for our horses too-- there is excellent forage and great grass in many places along the trail.
Several of the trails are comprised of Granite or decomposed Granite- footwear protection is recommended.
Vet Checks: All vet checks are at Base Camp, for all rides!
More Day to Day Chatter: To keep up with ride development, please join and follow our Facebook page or reach out anytime! We are so excited to share smiles with you!
Event Schedule
Friday
| 10:00 AM | Base camp opens. Helpful volunteers will guide to your campsite location. |
| 12:00 PM | Office Opens |
| 1:00 PM | Vetting in begins and will continue until sunset |
| 5:30 PM | YUMMY dinner serving begins! Main dish and & pot luck! |
| 6:00 PM | Ride meeting, our trail masters walk through tips and tricks for the trail Day 1, includes extra maps if you need them. NEW RIDERS-- please ask lots of questions, we are all here to help and make the ride successful! |
Saturday
| 6:00 AM | 50 Mile controlled start |
| 6:30 AM | Vetting begins for 25 milers |
| 7:30 AM | 25 mile controlled start |
| 9:30 AM | Introductory ride meeting, Q & A session. Riders may start afterwards at a time of their choosing by no later than 10:30am. |
| 12:00 Noon | Vetting open for Sunday |
| 5:30 PM | YUMMY dinner serving begins. WOW-o-WOW what a treat!! Wonderfully delicious dinner catered out of Wheatland by the super amazing magic chef Susie Schomburg-- YUMMY EATS for sure!! Bring your smiles! So many THANK yous Susie!!! |
| 6:00 PM | Awards for Introduction, 25 & 50 Mile events along with good camp laugh awards, followed by ride meeting with our trail masters walking through tips and tricks for the trail Day 2, includes extra maps if you need them. NEW RIDERS-- please ask lots of questions, we are all here to help and make the ride successful! |
Sunday
| 6:30 AM | Vetting begins for 25 milers |
| 7:30 AM | 25 Mile controlled start |
| 9:30 AM | Introductory ride meeting, Q & A session. Riders may start afterwards at a time of their choosing by no later than 10:30am. |
| 3:30 PM | YUMMY dinner serving begins. Main dish and & pot luck! |
| 4:00 PM | Awards for introduction & 25 events along with good camp laugh awards. |
Monday
| 8:00 AM | All hands on deck for camp clean up. Please leave it the way you found it or better! Scatter all Hay and Manure. Please grab a bag of trash on the way out if possible. |
| 12:00 Noon | Base Camp Closes.
Note-- the Medicine Bow Forest Service does not allow in our permit to stay over in your campsite longer than Monday. Please make accommodations or a slight shift in campsite if you will be staying in the area past Monday. |
Yummy Tummy Meals!
Friday Night - Main dish combined with a pot luck!
Main dish provided will be a Taco Bar. Please bring a side dish and join the meal.
Saturday Night - WOW-o-WOW what a treat!!
Wonderfully delicious dinner catered out of Wheatland by the super amazing magic chef Susie Schomburg-- YUMMY EATS for sure!! Bring your smiles! So many THANK yous Susie!!!
For riders and volunteers each day meals are included, all others at $10 per person daily. All are welcome-- Please let us know early so we can plan for headcount accordingly!
Availability & Restrictions
Port-a-Potty - Several will be available throughout camp.
Dogs - Dogs are allowed, but on leash only please.
Weed Free Hay - Being a National Forest, there are restrictions on weed free hay. We will have very limited amount weed free grass hay bales for sale in camp. Please bring weed free hay. Scatter hay and manure when you leave.
Water - Non-potable water will be available for horses - again THANK you volunteers! Please, be sure to bring enough for your use.
Wyoming Health Paperwork: Current health certificates and coggins for any out of state horses required. Address for Health Certificates - 147-191 Happy Jack Road, Laramie, WY 82070
Awards- Fun fun fun!!! -- expect lots of laugh and smile awards, completion, top ten and 2 day 25 milers.
Parking
In order to remain compliant with our Forestry Service permit, there are a few rules we'll need to follow when setting up camp. Please be patient, we will do our best to ensure there is enough room for everyone within walking distance of the base camp & vetting area.
- All sites are on a first come first serve basis.
- There will be several areas reserved for Ride Management use. These will be designated with pin flags / cones.
- Camping is only allowed within 100' of a forest service road. For example: Blair Wallis / Headquarters Road and 707D.
- All rigs, tents, cars and horse pens must fall within this boundary limit of 100' of the forest road.
- Due to potential Spring contamination (water on site), there will be NO camping on the North side of 707D.
- Camping IS allowed within the horse corrals. Please do not block access to the spring fed water tank on the west end.
- Ride Management will do our best to flag non-accessible areas with pin flags to conserve space for everyone. If you have questions, please ask at the registration desk.
Veterinarians
"How lucky are we to have such fabulous talent join us!" Thank you to all Veterinarian support- we are very grateful!
Control Judge: Dr. Laura Blanton
Dr. Laura Blanton - Control Judge
Branson, CO
Backgrounder: 
Dr. Laura Blanton, DVM, was born and raised in a small town in northern California. From there she left to attend Colorado State University, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Science in 1998. After CSU, she spent two years gaining experience in the industry, including time spent working for an outfitter in northwestern Colorado and on feedlots in Iowa and eastern Washington state. She eventually attended the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, earning her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degre in 2004.
Immediately after finishing veterinary school, Dr. Laura took a job with Bakersfield Veterinary Hospital in Bakersfield, CA. There she primarily worked with horses, with just enough cow-calf, exotic and exhibition livestock work to keep the days really interesting. She has a special interest in goat medicine and husbandry, and really enjoys working with youth projects.
Having spent nine years in Bakersfield, Dr. Laura left BVH in the fall of 2013 to join her husband Chad, who had been managing a ranch on the Dry Cimarron River outside of Folsom, NM for the past three years. She is looking forward to sharing her experience and knowledge with the people of Union County, NM and surrounding areas.
Dr. Fox
Cheyenne- WY
Dr. Carey Edwards and Staff
Alpine Animal Hospital
Laramie- WY
Nearest Emergency Clinic: Colorado State University Veterinary Hospital
Phone: (970) 297-5000
Hours: 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - 300 W Drake Rd, Fort Collins, CO 80523
We will be following Medicine Bow National Forest camping rules:
- ALL camping must be withing '100 feet of a forest service road'.
- Our permit for the event strictly prohibits any violation of this rule. Please help us keep this event going an comply. If you have questions, please ask.
Generators: ALL generators off by 10pm please.
Elevation: Base camp is at ~ 8200 ft. Conditions can be windy, sunny, hot, cool, rainy, cool, hail, and even snow. Horse blankets are suggested.
Dogs are welcome (on leash only please).
WEED FREE HAY IS REQUIRED. Please bring your own. We will supply weed free hay at the vet checks. We will also have a very limited supply of weed free bales of grass hay for sale in basecamp.
Water: Bring your own people water. Horse water provided. We must truck all of it in, so use it wisely.
No campfires. No smoking except inside your vehicle.
Campsite Clean-up: Please clean your site well. Scatter manure.
Base Camp GPS: 41.2170 / -105.3860
From the North on I-25
• I-25 into the Cheyenne area, take exit 10B and go west on WY Highway 210 towards Laramie & Curt Gowdy State Park to F.S. road #707 (The Blair Wallace Road). This turn is ~32 miles. This will save you miles compared to continuing south on 1-25 and then west on 1-80. The turn on to Blair Wallace Road is not listed on most maps. GPS lat/long for the turn is: 41.2258 / -105.3607.
From the South on I-25
- Take I-80 to exit #323 where you will see the Abe Lincoln Statue.
- Go east to the junction for WY Highway 210 (look for flagging).
- Then proceed ~5 miles to F.S. road #707- Blair Wallis Road (AKA Headquarters Rd.). It will be flagged. This turn is not listed on most maps. GPS lat/long for the turn is: 41.2258 / -105.3607.
- At this junction proceed southwest ~2.2 miles, on a good dirt road to camp.
Going East or West on 1-80
- Take I-80 to exit #323 where you will see the Abe Lincoln Statue.
- Go east to the junction for WY Highway 210 (look for flagging).
- Then proceed ~5 miles to F.S. road #707- Blair Wallis Rd. (AKA Headquarter Rd.) It will be flagged. This turn is not listed on most maps. GPS lat/long for the turn is: 41.2258 / -105.3607.
- At this junction proceed southwest ~2.2 miles, on a good dirt road to camp.
HJ Base Camp turn-off
| 25 Mile Ride 50 Mile Ride |
$125 |
| Introductory Ride | $60 |
| Active 2019 AERC Member Per Rider (Ride Insurance) | Included |
| Non-AERC Member Per Rider (Ride Insurance) | $15 |
| Additional Meals (Meals for Registered Riders & Volunteers are Included Per Day) |
$10 / person |
We also have offer the option of submission of payment via Zelle to the email address of RideManager@ColoradoHightail.com.
Question about registration can be submitted to 'Registration@ColoradoHightail.com'