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A quiet mountain evening can turn fast when you live off-grid with horses at 9,300 feet in the Colorado Rockies. We start with a real update on Merlin, who’s holding steady but having more frequent spins and spills, and we talk about the seasonal grind of fly management when summer finally kicks in. Even the weather shows up with us this time, as a rainstorm rolls through while we record.

Then we shift to the best kind of tired: kids horse camp week. We break down what we actually do all day with campers, from catching and grooming horses to goat herding, riding games, and creative projects like painting horseshoes. The week builds into daily demos for parents and a Friday finale where every camper tries vaulting, gymnastics on horseback, including standing on a horse’s back with no saddle. It’s equal parts skill, trust, and courage.

We also share what’s next on the ranch: a women’s weekend horse camp planned for the last weekend of September in Eagle County (Colorado River Road, out past Dotsero), plus ideas for a Saturday night get-together and live music. Finally, Russell tells the story of running the ranch solo, building a massive log fence for mustangs, and a tense “last check” where Merlin goes down with a hoof stuck in a 20-gallon water bucket, followed by an unexpected bear sighting on the road.

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Merlin keeps us humble. One quiet morning on our Colorado mountain ranch, Alecz finds him down in the early light and has to make a fast call: let him rest, assess what’s happening, then step in with the safest help possible. We talk through what we saw, why a senior rescue horse can get “stuck” even when they’re not panicking, and how a couple of lead ropes, the right angle, and a calm plan can help a horse get their feet back under them.

From there we get practical about equine care and animal behavior. Merlin is sensitive and disruptions can shut down his appetite, so we share the tiny body language cues that tell Alecz he’s struggling at the bucket, from face rubbing to that unmistakable feed rattle. If you care for an older horse, a hard keeper, or any rescue with a complicated past, you’ll recognize how much progress depends on routine, observation, and staying present when they eat.

We also zoom out to the broader off-grid ranch life we love: our hands-on kids ranch camp (horses, chickens, goats, farming, and safety), wild turkeys that surprise us with how smart they are, and the joy of spotting newborn elk and antelope. Finally, we get real about Colorado wildfires and why evacuation planning is different when you have rescues, limited trailering options, and animals that mirror your stress.

If this feels like your kind of real-world horsemanship and off-grid living, subscribe, share the episode with a friend, and leave a review. What part of animal care do you wish more people understood?

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A 40-year-old horse teaches you fast that the goal is not perfection, it’s comfort. Up on our off-grid mountain ranch at 9,300 feet in the Colorado Rockies, we walk through how we’re supporting Merlin as he ages, what his daily routine looks like right now, and why we keep adjusting feeding without losing the structure that helps him thrive. We talk about grain four times a day, hay access, and the small hands-on moments that matter most, from scratches and massage to watching how he socializes with the rest of the herd.

We also rewind to a deeper, tougher story: Santi’s decline and the kind of extreme care that can come with late-stage equine health issues. We share what it was like managing sores, hygiene, and comfort day after day, plus what we learned when a prescribed medication led to a sharp downturn in her appetite, interest, and weight. If you care for horses, especially senior horses, this is a real-world look at observation, risk, and the constant balance between doing something and doing the right thing.

Then we answer a listener question we think about all the time: how do we keep our sanity while caring for animals off-grid? We get honest about exhaustion, mood, and how animals pick up on stress, along with the practices that help us stay grounded, like breathing exercises, yoga, eating in a way that supports stable energy, and making time for connection.

And because it’s mountain life, we end with a surprise visit from our wild bear, who outsmarted the trash setup and even opened truck doors. If you’ve ever wondered who’s really the guest in bear country, you’ll relate. Subscribe, share this with a fellow horse person, and leave a review so more listeners can find Off-Grid With Horses.