One of my "goals" (if that's the right way to put it) with wild horses has been to breakthrough in the same type of way that I've experienced with moose and bighorn. Close-ups and trust are one thing, but what I've secretly wanted is for a wild horse to trust me enough that it will lay down next to me. Moose have done this repeatedly and the bighorn herd that I regularly photograph in winter has also shown this level of trust, but before today I've not had the same thing happen with wild horses.

I arrived again in Sand Wash Basin, and as always, I wondered if any of them would come right up to me. The very first opportunity on this trip turned out to be the most memorable.

I had been driving for several hours from central Colorado and was ready to get out of the car by the time I reached the basin. I noticed a few small groups of horses in the distance, so I just decided to park the car and walk. I wasn't sure which lens to take (the 500mm long reach or the 100-300mm for wider and close-up flexibility). I forgot my cell phone but immediately remembered it ... but decided to just leave it in the car.

I never know in retrospect how different choices might have made things better or worse, but I went with the 500mm because the horses were all so far away and I had no expectation that any of them would run up to me so quickly.

About a half mile into the hike towards one group of horses to my left, I noticed a few ears perk up on the hilltop to my right. I immediately took a seat and all of the images shown here are another one of my "no step" encounters where I do not move an inch for the entire sequence. As this is also my 500mm, there is no change in focal length (no zooming in or out).

At first just two dark brown horses appeared... and then a third in white. I could immediately see the signs of curiosity with strong notes of threat assessment. The smallest of the three led the way. Trotting then pausing... galloping then pausing again. A third horse casually followed.

Closer and closer they came. I could see them all quickly relax. Soon they resumed grazing, which is one of the main signals that I like to see. They were close enough to know that I wasn't a threat, and trusting enough to lower their heads while grazing and drifting my direction.

It was at this point that I (partly) wished that I had my cell phone and/or a wider lens. Because the horses were now ~40 feet away after having been ~700 feet away just a moment prior, my 500mm lens was now too much for the situation. But, changing lenses wasn't an option. So, for better or worse, I did what I could with the big lens.

Then, it happened... well sort of. My dream situation is a sit-down-and-hang-out type of encounter where one or more horses stays with me for a good amount of time. I was elated to see what happened next.

The white horse started showing more interest in me than the others. Then all of a sudden he laid down and began to roll in the dirt right by me! He was maybe 20-25 ft away, and I knew that there was no way for me to frame his full body in the shot. I did what I could to capture the brief moment, and thankfully I didn't blow the opportunity entirely. It was pretty tough to keep his face in the shot since he was so very close while unpredictably moving all around, but I love some of his glances and the unique perspective.

I've never been so close to a wild horse where they did something like this. While he didn't sit with me for long, I'm thrilled for the baby-step towards a more intimate encounter. This was very much a first for me.

The mustang showed no stress, no concern, just being himself and trusting that I was a passive part of the landscape. He stood back up, shook off the dirt and grass -- and then went back to grazing. Slowly all three drifted away.

I had only been at the basin for a few minutes (minus the drive time to this particular spot), and was immediately greeted in spectacular fashion. Sometimes I feel like I should just pack up and leave when something so good happens so fast, but I stayed a couple more days (with mixed results).

The light wasn't all that great because of cloud cover, but those clouds made it cooler and really helped with heatwaves and sharp contrasts. I hope that this close-up roller isn't the last time something like this happens. Maybe I'll start using the wider angle lens more, but it's tough to use anything else when the 500mm performs so well in many of this unpredictable situations that are typically further away. To be continued...