Cousins, Sisters And Best Friends:
Riding in the White River Wilderness Area by Audrey Stogsdill Beggs, R – A Mule Ranch, Sims, Ark.
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming “Wow! What a Ride!” --Hunter S. Thompson
This is my motto, and I have had it printed and framed for my dear husband. My dear cousin, sister and best friend Claudia Stogsdill Sharp shares this motto with me. She and I are first cousins according to our DNA, but we are actually sisters and best friends. Claudia does not own a horse or mule, but she volunteers at a HOH (Heroes on Horseback) facility in Bluffton, S.C. They help children with special needs and veterans to master the art of horse back riding. We share a love of equine, and after being apart many years since we were small, we reconnected about five 41 • April 2020
years ago at a cousin’s get together at her house in St. Charles, Mo. Travis, our farrier, told me Marie Haskett, JML Outfitters, in Meeker, Colo. She is a third-generation outfitter with this company and is the most awesome lady. She has 24 horses and six mules in her remuda, and they are beautiful. She is very passionate about her animals and it shows. It’s a delight to meet someone that loves equine as much as we do. She teaches a children’s riding camp during the summer months along with the trail rides, and then does the elk, moose and mule deer outfitting in the fall. Meeker is named for Nathan Meeker, the United States Indian Agent who was killed along with 11 other U.S. citizens by the White River Ute Indians in the 1879 Meeker Massacre. The site of the massacre, the former White River Indian Agency, is located along State Hwy 64 in the White River Valley west of town and is marked by a prominent sign. None
of the buildings remain. After the massacre and the ensuing conflict known as the Ute War, in 1880 the US Congress passed legislation requiring the Ute population to relocate to reservations in Utah. The United States Army established a garrison on the current site of the town, called the Camp at White River; the town was founded in 1883 following the removal of the troops. Claudia and I spent about three hours touring the White River Museum with the curator Libby Wilson. What a delightful lady and such an awesome museum. This is one of the best in the state of Colorado, as far as I am concerned. Even though we ride horses most of the time when we travel, I am a devoted mule lover and mules are my passion. I tell my husband all the time that we would be much richer if we didn’t have nine mules, three dogs and three cats. He always replies, “Then what would we be? Rich, but
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