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O
nce a year, a small group of
women from different back-
grounds and locations jour-
ney by horseback five hours
up into the Rocky Mountains of Alberta.
e Wild Deuce Women's Retreat Ride,
run by Wild Deuce Outfitters owned by
Terri McKinney and her husband, Chuck,
makes base camp at an elevation of 5,500
feet, beside the winding Cutoff Creek.
is past season I had the pleasure of
being one of those women for the second
time, the first being eight years ago. Begin-
ning in the Cutoff Creek staging area just
outside of Rocky Mountain House, a
small town in the Bighorn Backcountry,
you throw your gear into the accompany-
ing chuck wagon, this year hauled by Bel-
gians Ben and Fred, get introduced to your
mount, mine a large Percheron-Quarter
Horse named Rusty, then climb in the sad-
dle to ride to your new home for five days
of relaxation and revelation in the bush.
"There's no other ride I know of
that caters to every personality,
bringing complete strangers together
to become such a supportive group
for each other," says photographer
Shawn Hamilton.
