Two Salt River Wild Horses are enjoying the cool water of the Lower Salt River.
We have searched endlessly for the gorgeous, beautiful, inspiring Salt River wild horses. Their home is east of Mesa, within 20,000 acres of the Tonto National Forest, which includes the Lower Salt River.
They live in small bands or families of 20. The best place to find them is along the Lower Salt River, although we have found them in other places. We have seen them eating Palo Verde tree leaves like potato chips, and we have also found them enjoying the fresh green plants under mesquite trees in the spring as well as along the Lower Salt River, where they love to gather and cool off during the summer.
They have learned to hold their breath and plunge their whole head into the river to reach the river eelgrass that grows during the summer at the bottom of the Lower Salt River.
This is called eelgrass snorkeling! They were here before the National Forest was created in the early 1900s.
They are believed to be descendants of horses brought here by Spanish explorers of the Southwest in the 1600s.
These wild horses, or mustangs, are a true success story!
In contrast to the harm inflicted on wild horses in other parts of America, these mustangs are safeguarded by an incredible organization that has found a solution and is backed by the Phoenix Valley community in their efforts to protect them.
You can learn about this fantastic group in the comments below.
Photographed and written by Teresa Peters
