benson mule days

well this was the trip i had been waiting for all year.i arrived at ronalds house on wendesday about 3 pm and unloaded my wagon and mules and headed to the barn where ronald and billy were ,said movie crew will be here shortly we are cooking pork roast ,cabbage beans and fat back well eat when the movie people get here.in a couple of hours they rolled up we said get a plate and help your self ,they looked at the fat back and didnt know what it was .al asked whats that i said just try it . when we got up from the table i told ronald we were among city people because country would never leave fat back .then out side to show them around ,in loving to play around i decided to get al .in north carolina we have a tree called a pressimon and it produces fruit that is good to eat if ripe ,if it is just i little green it is very bitter.i pulled a couple of ripe ones and ate them then gave al one a little green what a face.then it was time to put shoes on ronalds mules so we showed them how to do that.the next day we headed out for erect (population center of north carolina)with just two wagons we wound our way down to erect and set up camp ,that night several people came by to visit then off to bed .the next day we started cooking breakfast and the movie people had never seen double yoked eggs ,i guess being from the country is a little different .double yoked eggs arnt sold in the store ,they have two yokes when you break them in the pan .so off we were to high falls to a chicken farm that belonged to a friend where three more wagons met us .that night the film crew noticed a jar getting passed around one asked whats that i said north carolina spring water or some people call it corn in a jar (moonshine) so every body just took a little taste.the next day we headed out through the the country side headed for an old church back in the woods .we had stayed here several times before .when we pulled up we told the movie crew go check it out al said whos got the key ,i said there is no locks on the door they couldnt believe it ,its almost 200 years old and never been locked not even a lock on the door.the next day we headed out toward sanford and saw a copper head that a car had run over i was still moving so off with it head and skin it to make a hat band.late that afternoon we arrived at lemon springs .the movie crew found a lot of thing there they had never seen .the farm we stayed on was a working mule farm so a lot of mule drawn equipment was in the barn.there the only lady to drive a wagon met us .the next day we headed for lillington about half way there we stoped to take a break and a guy came out and asked need anything no we replied .as we pulled into lillington a guy stoped us and said come stay at my place ,we said ok.i think thiw was about the best place we had stayed great big field and a lake with a dock so a few of us went swiming.the next day would be the last day of travel so off we went toword benson mule days,.about lunch time we took a break and just as we started to leave i hit a hole in the deep grass and bent the tie rod end so it took about thirty miniutes to fix it.well off on the last leg of the journey.we got to benson about five pm set up camp and the next couple of days just relaxed.then it was time to compete in the events .we finished second it the obstacle drivine and first in pleasure driving.then it was time for what i had been waiting for the wagon race well we won it and the wagon drag race to .well then it was of to home pack up and drive 70 miles in an hour and a half what a differents.

labor day week long ride

well its back off to ride again,weather here in north carolina has started to cool off now.my friend don king came down with his two pony mules and wagon , he came down tuesday about 9 am ,i was ready to get going.so i decided to hook three mules this time (my two older mules mary and jane and a young mule named birdie) three abreast .off we went down toward the state land i love so much,we walked along at a brisk pace down accross the river bridge on to turn pike road ,not having any trouble all the way to the hunter camp at hoffman north carolina.we set up camp and as we cooked supper a visitor showed up .he had just stoped by to tell us about a military manovers in the area ,we said we were familar with them being in the woods.just as we had gone to bed a helicopter landed in the field just around the corner ,the mules had seen this before so it didnt seam to bother them. the next day ronald hudson and billy steveson arrived with a big mule and a little mule and a little yellow wagon .we then hooked up and headed out for laurel hill to listen to blue grass at the pickin shed .danny pate and mcfarland road bluegrass put on a good show.well the next morning we headed back to the hunter camp arriving in the afternoon we noticed people had started to show up for the nite ride we had planed.after eating supper ronald hudson and bernie harberts had decided to hook there two mules to the little wagon ronald had brought.we were off to a good start down the sand road ,as we arrived at a drop zone a c 130 airplane started droping paratropers ,well guess what you never know what will bugger a mule .as we watched the paratropers fall from the sky in the moon light jane and poly took off in a dead run away down the road some how they stoped them and headed back ,then all over again the mules were in a dead run again as they came by all of us the mules jumped off a bank all at once the little wagon was air born it came down on the front axle breaking it o my when the wagon stoped it launched ronald and birnie(river earth.com)out of the wagon about 30 feet then the mules left running down the dirt road full blast with the tounge and front axle .we ran over to see if they were hurt and all i heard was birnie laughing so i knew one was ok .ronald then responded by saying i dont know,but after sitting there he was fine just skent up a little .well we decided to leave the wagon there till morning .well we still had to find the mules well there one was they had centered a big pine tree and jane was standing there but no poly .we made our way back to camp and decided to wait til daylight to look for her but the next morning she had found us .well off to a day of rest and another nite ride was coming up. this time we had a good ride covering 18 miles with saddle riders and wagons with no problems .then the next day was departure time birnie had decided to drive poly on over to my house with me .we had a good day no prpblems at all untill we got about 100 yards from the drive way as i hit the brakes something broke in the wheel locking it up .after checking it out we just drug it on home .

its hot in the south most of the summer but we caught a break the last part of the week, my friend billy arrived thursday to ride with me billy has an eye diesease that has left him with only 15% of his vision.so we were of to hook 4 mules up to the wagon ,we had hooked my to older mules in the front and to three year old mules in the back as wheelers .well we were off to good start the weather was unusually cool for july only 82 for a high .after going about 15 miles we had decided to try and trot 4 mules up ,and it worked out untill the front mules traces came lose and they all pilled in the ditch ,but we were ok. so we unhooked the to front mules and got back strait in the road then hooked them back in front and off we went to we kenago farm for a night ride .e decided to work the to young mules friday ,so danny our friend had arrived early also .we rode off friday toword a monument on kiney cameron lake .during ww2 eight patroopers lost there life by drowning in the lake .they had mistaken the lake for the drop zone so we droped by and payed our respect for the soldiers that lost there life that night . then off to ride at night,being raised in the sandhills of north carolina we have often rode at night.its just great having a sixty thousand acre play ground ,as the moon came up it almost became daylight you can see great because the sand is white .we had a great time ,we rode from 9 pm untill 4.30 am and covered almost 26 miles .what a blast we had 6 wagons pulled by mules and only 6 sadle riders .then saturday night we went on a shorter ride only untill 1 30 am .

sunset beach drawbridge

well for just about fifty years hoke county has had a wagon train ,so this year we just trailered over because the heat was just to much for a all day ride.i had chose my stagecoach for this event.people ask whats it like to ride on a stagecoach well just hop on for a ride. we pulled out headed for down town loaded with kids and the first question one asked was do stagecoachs have flat tires ,i said of coarse not. but about five miles down the road i learned they do.we were just walking along and the front right wheel had come loose and the axle hit the pavement mules groung to a stop .what would we do asked the kids ,well i said we will just like they did years ago fix with what we can find. so with some help we picked up the front and slid the wheel back on,and we could see how it came off .the stage coach had been in a dry building for a while and the steel inside had got loose ,so the best way to fix this is put the wheels in the creek ,but we didnt have time for that.we then asked around anybody got nails ,i heard yea from the back i have some horse shoe nails ,so after puting the wheel back on i drove the nails between the wood and steel to tighten it up (worked great)so off we go .this would be a short ride because the day would just be to hot .as i travled along i told the kids in the old days we would have set up camp ,found a creek and put the wheels in . as we came back in i began to think about what i had read about early travel it had to be just plain tough. some times it gets a little boring so when something does happen it gives you something to talk about and surly a lot of questions from kids such as did they have to go to school if the wagon broke down . why yea i replied they just went late just like you when the bus breaks down.

dupont forest