Pairs of yellow and black tiger swallowtails fluttered by on the breeze. Black and white magpies chattered noisily in the trees, scolding each other as they flew from branch to branch. A handsome coyote stared back at us when we met on the trail. What a great day to be alive!

The day had begun when the warm (uh, hot!) sun woke me up inside my tent. The choice was to be baked alive in the tent or get up and get out. The friends I was camping with had gathered in the shade of a horse trailer and were enjoying a leisurely cup of coffee.

While we ate breakfast, a hard-working red-headed woodpecker brought food to her babies, who peeked out from the hole in the sprawling oak tree, eagerly awaiting her return. A family of young ground squirrels rolled happily in a playful shower of dust. Two tiny yellow-rumped warblers gracefully hunted bugs nearby. The horses munched on their hay in the corral nearby.

This is horse camping! I was out for the week-end with friends from an equestrian club that I belong to. During the night I had slept well. I left the cares of the office and the worries of the world back in civilization. Out here, cell phones do not work. I figure if a person is beyond the reach of a cell phone, they are also beyond the reach of worries. My Thermarest pad provided an excellent night's sleep, except when a pack of hunting coyotes started yammering about 4:40 a.m.

The horses were behaving themselves in a large communal corral and all were eating and drinking well, despite the over-one hundred degree heat. I could peak out the window of my tent and check on the horses.

Like any adventure, there were a few glitches. On the way into the park one of the trucks overheated in a showering geyser of boiling water. (That would be my truck.) And one of the horses took exception to wanting to be saddled and seriously misbehaved. (That would be my horse - the one I confessed to wanting to sell in my first column.) It was between 95-105 degrees most of every day. And while picking up a water bucket, I came face to face with the very largest black widow spider I have ever seen. It was an enormous, absolutely humongous, shiny black widow. Did I mention that this was a BIG spider? I am sad to say this particular spider is no longer with us.

And you know what I discovered? I was not the only person who had come to the mountains for some mental health rest and relaxation. Our campsite was on a fire road that joined several popular trails. All day long (and part of the night), mountains bikers slowly toiled up the road or whizzed down it in a blur of speed.

For the poor mountain bikers toiling up the hill in the baking sun, our grove of trees offered welcome shade. As a group, we were well-prepared for the hot weather and had enough bottled water for a small army. We offered cold water to every mountain biker who passed by. Many stopped to rest and chat with us. I felt rather like Lucy - the lemonade stand psychologist in the Peanuts cartoon. She Doctor Is In - 5 cents.

As we sat out under the stars on a warm summer's night (did I already mention it was a WARM summer's night?), we looked into the heavens. We compared constellations and satellites and stars and planets. Looking into the night sky can certainly re-focus one's perspective. If you think your troubles are big, I suggest you go outside on a dark summer night and look at the heavens.

And if you really want to enjoy your horse, take him camping with you. As you explore new trails and meet new friends (mainly coyotes and squirrels), you will appreciate him in a whole new way.

If you need a fresh perspective or a renewing of your faith, I suggest you find a couple of friends and go horse camping. Head to the hills or the mountains or the beach. Enjoy the natural world around you and let your worries go. Give your faith a chance to be heard and your mind a chance to rest. A few wonderful days of horse camping and your load will be lightened and your spirit renewed.