Onaqui Wild
The Yin & the Yang
Like two different sides of the same coin, the wild horse range inspires opposing emotions in me.
On the one hand, I feel a sense of calm wash over me as I am welcomed by the softness of pastel colors all around me. I feel almost sedated.
Faint shades of purple, orange, yellow, pink, and blue, frame the pale mustard coloring of the brush and grasses bending in the breeze.
Like a beautiful mural spread out before me, I simply must stare in awe.
I am ushered into another dimension it seems, an almost surreal experience.
I take a slow, deep inhale and exhale just as slowly, yielding myself to the tranquility if offers.
This is the yin of Onaqui wild.
On the other hand, every cell in my body awakens from its comatose state,
energized by the geometric shapes of the mountains crashing into each other;
the crunching of the gravel beneath the tires; and
the anticipation of what's to come-
a full, fun day of exploring 2 track roads for the hidden treasures this haven holds:
the American Mustangs.
This is the yang of the Onaqui wild.
During a recent, unnecessary, and massive roundup, the horses had so much stolen from them:
their herd mates and the strong bonds they shared;
their freedom to move about and to support and protect themselves and each other;
the ability to run freely when they choose without the boundaries of an enclosed corral;
their health- staying well-fed, fit and strong
through the daily work of foraging and navigating across expansive and rugged terrain;
and sometimes,
they lost their very lives at the hands of those (the Bureau of Land Management)
who seek to significantly reduce their presence in the wild
so that they can generate more income by leasing the public land
(on which these horses were born and are protected by federal law)
to privately owned cattle and sheep.
And while the horses have been through so much
and have lost so much,
they gave me so much!
What a treasure these horses are! They are located in a historic and beautiful setting of a section of the Pony Express. Travellers from all over the US and the world travel here to be a witness to these amazing horses. Utah should be proud. Instead, they are violating federal law by not protecting them from harm. One of the reasons the American Mustangs were federally protected is because they are benefit to the land. But thousands of privately owned sheep and cattle are transported and deposited on these public lands on which these horses have a legal right to inhabit. The cows and sheep destroy the land by pulling up the grass by the roots and trampling the soil to ruins. The presence of these sheep and cows provide no benefit to the land to my knowledge. It only benefits the Bureau of Land Management by enriching their wallets. I can't think of any other reason why 400 American Mustangs were removed yet the hundreds and perhaps thousands of cattle and sheep were not. I am saddened and angry by the politics of it all and that justice is not prevailing for these American treasures! The fate of these horses once rounded up is bleak. Yes, some will be adopted but many more will be slaughtered.
