Gary Ferguson, left, and Mike Cardwell are two cowboys who were in Wallowa County recently when they attempted to ride their horses from Blanchard, Idaho, to Apache Junction, Ariz. The Observer/GARY FLETCHER

ENTERPRISE – Two Idaho men were recently off on the adventure of a lifetime, attempting to do what some only dream about.

Mike Cardwell, 49, and Gary Ferguson, 45, were trying to ride some

1,500 miles on horseback the old-fashioned way from Blanchard, Idaho,

25 miles north of Coeur d’ Alene, to Apache Junction, Ariz., just east

of Phoenix.

Not only were they covering a lot of territory, but they were also traveling back in time to the “Cowboy way.”

They both sold everything that they owned, except what could fit on the back of a horse, they said.

“We own nothin’ but what it takes to be a cowboy. There’s nothing modern (with us) on this trip,” Ferguson said.

“We’re packing iron, too,” Ferguson said, “six-shooters on our hip and 30-30s on the saddles.”

They pitched their cell phones off a bridge into a river, they said, and on Sept. 15 packed up and headed south.

They had six head of horses; one each to ride, two to pack, and two “naked” ones, they said.

They planned to follow trails, but by the time that they hit Enterprise on Oct. 5 their horses’ shoes were “paper thin” from riding on asphalt, and they had to have all the horses reshod. Kevin Botts, who has a place on the Grand Ronde River, shoed their horses.

The two talked of the friends and opportunities made along the way and how people helped them out and refused payment.

“Look at all we’d miss (if we were) driving – the country we’re seeing and the people we’ve met. It’s like the old day – 99 percent of the people won’t take any money (for helping them). We make friends where we go. It’s just who we are,” Ferguson said.

One of those coming to their aid was Biden Tippett of Enterprise. He met them when they were riding through the buttes north of Enterprise in the vicinity of his ranch.

He told them of a pasture and hay barn that he had in Enterprise where they could stay. They took him up on it and stayed several days.

“Horse people say, ‘Ride for us too’,” Ferguson said.

Part of the logistics of such a long ride is taking care of the horses.

“I can outride a horse. I can ride seven days straight. So it’s about (taking care of) the horses,” Cardwell said.

Both agree that they would have made good Pony Express riders where they would ride one horse 20 miles then switch off to a fresh horse. But on this trek they rode the same horses a long distance, and thus needed to take good care of them.

“It was a lot better 100 years ago. I should have been there. I would have fit right in,” Ferguson said.

Both said that they were fed up with the current way of society.

“Everything is out of whack. A single person can’t make it anymore,” Ferguson said. “I was sick and tired of it. I wanted to go back to cowboying. I was dying inside,” Cardwell said.

Both have ridden since they were little and cowboyed when they were younger, and loved it, they said.

“I don’t remember not riding,” Ferguson said. “I broke my first horse at age 12. I ride a horse better than I can walk, drunk or sober.”

If they ran low on money they had planned to stop and do day work along the way. They had offers along the way, such as to work spring branding on their return trip.

“We just like to ride,” Ferguson said.

“We don’t know where we’ll end up. We have no schedule. I don’t care how long it takes. It’s all about freedom. We’re not going to deny ourselves of who we are anymore.

“I’m gonna’ be free. I want to die on horseback.”

Ferguson said that they’d build a bankroll in Arizona and then head back up north.

They hit upon Apache Junction as a destination because they were looking for jobs training horses and that was the farthest one away that they found, they said.

From Wallowa County they planned to ride up Hurricane Creek through the Eagle Cap Wilderness to Baker City.

To them cowboying is more than an activity, it’s a lifestyle.

“It’s simple. It’s black and white. We know what is fair and good and we live that way. I treat you the way that I want you to treat me. I trust you then you trust me,” Ferguson said.

And as far as the challenges of the trip, Cardwell said, “I need to do this for myself. This is real exciting to me. I will be a better horseman as a result of it.”

One challenge became too great for them this time around. That was the weather. Recent rains and fresh snow turned them back from tackling the wilderness.

They retreated to Lewiston to take up one of those job offers they had.

But they vowed to be back next year to complete their trek.