Early morning or just before dusk are optimal times to spot not only the horses but other wildlife like pronghorn antelope, desert elk, deer, rabbits, coyotes, hawks, eagles and sage grouse. Cell reception is limited, so be prepared with a high-clearance, 4WD vehicle, a spare tire and extra water. Horses can also be visited at the Rock Springs Wild Horse Holding Facility , where the horses are temporarily held before they are adopted.
To learn about adopting one of these magnificent creatures, contact the Rock Springs Bureau of Land Management. Start in Sweetwater County and follow the beaten path to gorgeous sights and exhilarating experiences. Though oral history says as many as 10, people lived in the valley before Captain Cook arrived in , today only some 50 people live in the area.
The best way to get to the valley floor is on horseback , where surrounded by 2,foot cliffs, you can explore and hopefully spot the three herds of wild horses roaming the lush vegetation. In there were nearly 31, wild horses and burros in government holding facilities and 37, in the wild—in an area that supposedly had enough forage for only 27, horses.
Numbers have grown steadily since then. Wanting to find homes for the horses in the government holding pens, I gathered three friends and planned to do another long ride to promote wild horse adoptions—this time going all the way from Mexico to Canada through the most backcountry route left in the American West.
To raise awareness, we created a documentary, Unbranded. We launched a Kickstarter campaign, gathered the money, attracted an all-star film production team directed by Phillip Baribeau, adopted wild mustangs from the Bureau of Land Management BLM , trained them with assistance from horse trainers Lanny Leach and Jerry Jones, and embarked on our journey. For five months and six days during the summer of we crossed 3, miles, primarily through public lands, in Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana.
We saw some of the most amazing landscapes in the world: the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, and many other wonderful but lesser known public lands. The trip was simply spectacular and redefined who I am. We took Unbranded to film festivals across the world and had a theatrical release. It received more than two dozen awards, and is available worldwide on Netflix.
The film has been seen by millions of people. We promoted the adoption of wild horses to the best of our ability, even going so far as auctioning a personal horse. We held nationwide theatrical screenings, with all the proceeds going to the Mustang Heritage Foundation to fund adoption efforts.
Did we succeed in getting wild horses adopted? Did we succeed in getting all the wild horses adopted and finding a solution to the plight of the wild mustangs? Not even close. As of March 1, , there were 67, horses and burros on public lands and 45, in government holding pens. Computer models show that the current population, including foals born in , is approximately 75, wild horses and burros. How did wild horse numbers get so much higher than the Appropriate Management Level?
The BLM gathers excess horses to prevent overgrazing and offers them up for adoption. The horses have accumulated in holding across the country to the 45, we have today. Without the budget or facilities to round up and hold enough horses to equal the birth rate, the population in the wild has increased to nearly three times the Appropriate Management Level. Ecologists, rangeland managers, and ranchers are concerned that overpopulated wild horse herds have caused and are causing irreversible damage to delicate desert ecosystems.
Wild horse advocates argue that sheep and cattle, which outnumber wild horses on public lands nationwide, should be reduced to make more forage available. Wildlife conservation organizations claim that bison, bighorn, mule deer, pronghorn, sage grouse, and other native species should take precedence over livestock and wild horses. Through the creation of Unbranded and an accompanying book, I had the chance to interview some of the most brilliant minds in ecology, wildlife biology, animal welfare, politics, and rangeland management.
I was humbled beyond belief earlier this year when I was nominated to sit as wildlife management chair for the volunteer Bureau of Land Management wild horse and burro advisory board, as a year-old, to help make policy recommendations that directly influence the rangeland and wildlife health on Since then, because I voted in favor of euthanizing unadoptable horses to prevent rangeland degradation, I have had death threats directed at me and my family. Visitors can often see the animals at recreation sites near the Salt River, but must purchase a day-use pass to park and explore the sprawling forest, northeast of Phoenix.
Many are auctioned off, and the rest are returned to the wild. This wild herd just east of Reno is celebrated because their ancestors inspired Velma Johnston, known as Wild Horse Annie.
She led efforts to create federal acts in and that called for the humane treatment of horses on federal lands. Protected by Congress since the midth century western ranchers, claiming horses took valuable grazing resources away from cattle, began killing off the herds , wild horses of all breeds have a majestic beauty to them that makes them an attraction for animal and nature lovers.
While native horses once lived in North America they died out over 10, years ago , the horses seen today are descendants of the domesticated beasts reintroduced to the continent by Spanish explorers in the 16th and 17th centuries. During the hundreds of years of breeding, trading and warring that followed, many domesticated horses were lost, abandoned or let loose, going on to form wild herds throughout the land, most notably out West. Without any natural predators , the herds swelled in size.
Before Congress got involved, passing legislation in an , the horses were subject to unregulated hunting and even poisoning of their water holes. Although management efforts have not been without controversy , today, there are approximately 60, free-roaming horses in the United States and Canada combined.
While the Bureau of Land Management considers the horses to be wild , they more accurately fit the definition of feral, which means they are free-roaming descendants of domesticated horses. Regardless of the label, there is no denying the majestic nature of these beautiful creatures.
Nevada is home to nearly half of the nation's free-roaming horse population. Many of those horses are part of the Virginia Range herd, which occupies a region in the western part of the state. Johnston originally hailed from Nevada, and these were the horses that inspired her campaign.
Today, the best way to see these horses is to hike the trails east of Reno and find a nearby watering hole. The mustang is often used as a living and breathing symbol of the American West.
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