I wrote this poem as a tribute to the 3 Mules after I saw them at the corner of Monterrey and California in San Luis Obispo in 2013. Mule and his journey stayed in my mind and the poem arrived.
Don’t Fence Me In
A man leads two mules on the sidewalk past a café and an art gallery. Cars stop. People stare.
I learned about Mule Man when he came through town two years ago.
He moved into my mind, his way of living- traveling the West twenty miles a day, eating oats, rice, and canned green beans.
Some yards have invisible fences and dogs wear collars that shock them if they cross the property line. People have fences too. My collar buzzes when I stray too far. Some of us have small yards and some have grand estates. The Mule Man has the whole West.
I’m grateful he moved into my mind, letting me settle by a creek, tend the mules, fix a small fire, warm rice and beans, and hold solitude. When solitude shifts to loneliness, I talk with my mules, with the wind that allows trees to speak, with the sunset, darkness, moonlight, and with the rock I sit on. And I thank the mule man who brought me here.
Who Dee Doo, Lady and Little Girl on the trail to the Golden Gate Bridge
Last week, we were asked by park police to provide 24-hours notice when we were ready to cross the bridge. On Monday, we called the park police phone number provided to us on Friday, and were told to call the Bridge Manager’s office to confirm the crossing. Thus we called the bridge manager’s office informing them that the Mules planned to be at the bridge at noon. They said okay and sent an email to call Park Police dispatch an hour before ready for transport. We were also told on Monday that the Mules had permission to stay at the Park Police stables in the Presidio on Tuesday evening.
Based on emails that I saw yesterday, I understood that arrangements had been made with the bridge manager and National Park Service as we had did what we were told last week. This morning, I didn’t turn my cell phone on because I didn’t think that I needed to. My objective in the morning was to get to Sausalito City Hall to deliver the Declaration of Emergency before heading to the bridge.
When I arrived at the Golden Gate Bridge, I was informed by U.S. Park Police that they were no longer going to trailer the Mules across the bridge in their mounted police trailers due to rules that they had to follow. We were also informed that the invitation to stay at the stables was rescinded and that we were not allowed to be anywhere within the Presidio because it is a residential and business area. If we were trailered, we would be required to be dropped off by Ocean Beach. The U.S. police required vaccination papers on the Mules, which we don’t have, thus they said the mules could not be transported in their trailer or stay in their stables. This was told to us when we were at the bridge. They said this is to prevent risking the health of their horses by unknown animals.
We called the Bridge Manager who said that this issue was out of his hands, and that there was nothing on his end that he was able to do. While standing at the bridge, we were surprised that this arrangement crumbled since emails and phone calls last week and Monday from Bridge Manager and Park Police indicated everything was okay.
When a very nice person heard about these last minutes development, they immediately drove from Sonoma County to the Golden Gate Bridge with a large horse trailer to trailer the Mules across the Golden Gate Bridge. However, as upsetting it was to them for the time they took to do this kind deed, we refused their assistance as we were truly taken aback by everything we had just heard from the U.S. Park Police when we arrived.
The Mules and all venues have an equal right to use the public thoroughfare. It is public. It is open to all comers. It is the tool we use to move freely in this country. Highway 101 was built and now maintained at huge expense with taxpayer money. The bridge authority was given the right to charge tolls to those that use the 101 public thoroughfare crossing the Golden Gate, but should not given the right to exclude any segment of the public that needs to cross the bridge. Mules being one of those segments.
Monk walking across Golden Gate Bridge east sidewalk 2013
The justification provided by Bridge manager is for safety. Any common sense mind agrees that there is no safety issue at all. The eastern side walk of the bridge is closed to pedestrians at night, but open to cyclists. We requested an exception to walk across the bridge at 2AM when there is little bridge traffic and no pedestrians on the bridge. The sidewalk is still wide enough for a bicycle to pass at 2am. So this is not a safety issue.
Little Girl and Lady, San Francisco 2014
Last year the mules walked through the San Francisco Financial District, Market Street, the Embarcadero, and Fisherman’s Wharf where it is crowded with people and cars. We had no safety issues. We have walked throughout California without safety issues.
We did not accept a trailer ride offered by the supportive lady from Sonoma simply because the energy of our life (journey) in large part is the right to equal use of the public thoroughfare. It is the lifeblood of this ages old nomadic life which we still practice and enjoy. If the bridge authority can successfully put forth a common sense argument in the public court of common sense and deny the Mules their right to walk across the Golden Gate Bridge, it then must take full responsibility to arrange for a trailer assisted crossing.
The Mules are creating a blueprint by which anybody traveling with their mule, horse, llama, donkey, etc. can cross the Golden Gate Bridge.
This afternoon, the Mules were grazing in an open area when Mill Valley police officers showed up and introduced themselves. We had a nice conversation. They welcomed us to Mill Valley and for this, we say thank you.
This past week, when we were coming down Petaluma Boulevard into Petaluma, the kids were grazing in a vacant lot. The manager of the nearby Hunt & Behrens grain factory introduced himself. He said that he has followed our journey extensively for the past two years.
He reminded us that in 2013 as we were passing through Petaluma, he invited us to stay in the empty field behind the grain factory and he had also provided us a bucket of water and grain.
So after he saw us on Tuesday, he invited us to stay the night in the empty lot behind the grain factory again. We accepted his invitation. The kids got grain, alfalfa and water from the factory along with good rest and grazing in the field.
This gentleman does not want to be recognized publicly by name or photograph. The Mules do want to let him know that we do appreciate what he has done for us back in 2013 and now 2015. Thank you.
Last Saturday afternoon after delivering the Declaration of Emergency to Sebastopol City Hall and stopping at the Sebastopol Library to recharge phone and tablet, we were walking on the side of Gravenstein Highway South (116) heading towards Cotati when a Sonoma County Animal Control Officer stopped to talk to us.
Usually, anytime we are stopped by a police officer or an animal control officer (ACO), it is because a concerned citizen called police or animal dispatch to report the unusual sight of a man walking with three horses that look skinny, tired, and/or abused. The ACO usually approaches and asks the usual questions. We explain that Lady, 36, has walked with us for 31 years, and Little Girl, 26, has walked with us for 23 years, while Who-dee-doo, 11, has only been with us for four months. ACOs usually provide feedback that the kids are in excellent, lean and muscular condition than many of the horses that they see left alone in paddocks all their lives. After confirming that the mules are fine, ACOs wish us well and move on.
However, this past Saturday afternoon, the encounter we had with Sonoma County Animal Control Officer Shirley Zindler was different. She stopped to talk to us after receiving a report that there was a man walking three horses on the side of 116-S. She asked where we were going and we weren’t quite sure yet. She said that she lived a half mile down the road and had a fenced pasture and invited us to stay the night on her property. We accepted her kind offer and ended up staying two restful nights in her pasture. On Sunday, her friend Lisa brought a bale of alfalfa for the kids.
During the course of the weekend, we learned that Shirley started as an animal technician in 2001 for Sonoma County Animal Care and Control and decided to become an ACO when the other ACOs would return to the shelter with adventurous stories from the field. For the past 10 years, she has held the position as an ACO. On her personal time, she fosters dogs, cats, and wildlife at her Dogwood Animal Rescue Project.
Thank you Shirley for your hospitality to The Mules.
ACO Officer Shirley Zindler with Lady, Little Girl and Who Dee Doo
Earlier today, Novato Police Department Sergeant Howard stopped to introduce himself and welcome the Mules to Novato. He said to let him know if we encounter any problems and gave us his business card.
As we arrived in Cotati, we were greeted by Cotati Police Officer Perez and a few fans of the Mules, one bringing carrots for the kids. Thank you everyone for your support as well as providing us directions to Cotati City Hall.
Awhile ago, I heard the story about a Chinese farmer named Chen Guan Ming who has been traveling the world since 2001 peddling a one speed, heavy tricycle loaded with his gear and pulling his rickshaw with a rope to get up mountains, visiting 23 countries and over 87,000 miles. He sleeps outside in his rickshaw with his belongings and by news accounts has been redirected to remove himself from riding on a few public thoroughfares by police for safety. My interest in Mr. Chen grew greater when I heard that he had entered California. I wondered if our paths would cross. But before we get to that, here is some background about Mr. Chen.
The Olympic Rickshaw Rider cycling around the world In 2008 at age 53, Chen decided to ride his three-wheel rickshaw 497-miles from his village to the Olympics in Beijing. He rode around 1,700 cities in China to celebrate the Beijing Olympics and was dubbed the“Olympic madman.” Filled with the Olympic spirit, in May 2010, he decided to embark on a truly epic journey. A two-year rickshaw ride from eastern China to London, England, the host of the 2012 Olympics. His long and tortuous route took him through some of the world’s most troubled regions and difficult terrain including flooded Thailand, the Himalayan foothills, war-torn Afghanistanand Pakistan. But despite the condition, and being turned away from Singapore and Myanmar, he finally made it through 16 countries that also included Vietnam, Turkey, Italy, France, where he took a ferry to England and arrived in London in July 2012.
Because nobody knew he was coming, nobody in London welcomed Chen. And with no English to explain his rickshaw odyssey to the locals, it didn’t look like anyone would recognize Chen’s feat. One man, John Beeston, spotted Chen slumped over the handlebars of his rickshaw. Using his limited knowledge of Mandarin Chinese, Beeston discovered Chen’s amazing story and set out to tell the world. Only a few days later, Chen had spoken to BBC and CNN, been awarded a ticket to the opening ceremony of the London games, and been honored at a dinner held by the Chinese Olympic team. Energized by the that journey to the London Olympics, he set his mind to ride to the 2016 Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.
In June 2013, he flew from London to Nova Scotia, traveled west acrossCanada, entering the United States in Washington in January 2015, riding through Oregon, and entered California in February. After KRCR News found him traveling through Red Bluff and ran astory, the 3 Mules began receiving more messages from followers about Mr. Chen traveling through California and we were informed about his Facebook pagewith posts on his whereabouts.
Little Girl, Who Dee Doo and Lady
The Mules Close encounter with Mr. Chen While Mr. Chen was in Northern California riding south to Los Angeles, and we (the Mules) turned around in San Diego to head back north, I kept tabs of his progress. I wondered when and where our paths would cross since we were both following Hwy 101 going in opposite directions. On March 21, I found out an hour after the fact that we were both in Santa Barbara riding/walking on the same road. However, the Mules missed seeing him by a mere 30-60 minutes as we had experienced a delay in our morning start. However, I still felt it was really cool that someone who I have been following and cheering virtually from afar was so close by, but we had no way to catch up to him at our 3mph speed.
The Mules in front of Orland City Hall
Out of the Who Dee Doo Fast forward to July 6, 2015. Woke up in the morning on the Sacramento River, packed up the Mules, and started walking on Hwy 32 going west towards Orland. We got to Orland around 2:30 and went to the city hall to deliver the Declaration of Emergency. We then walked through Orland to Hwy 99, where we decided to we would go south to Willows. Around 3:00, there was a nice green grassy spot along the side of the road for the mules to stop and eat. As I was sitting on my water bucket letting the mules graze, a gentleman named Omar approached and introduced himself. He looked us up on 3Mules.com and appreciated what we were doing. We said thank you and then we had a conversation that lasted for awhile. He asked us if we liked peaches and said he would bring us back some peaches from his tree. When he came back, we continued our conversation.
Omar and Mr. Chen
During one part of our conversation, he started out by saying “There was a Chinese gentleman that came here with his bicycle…”
I immediately said “Mr. Chen!”
“That’s right!” said Omar.
He then took out his Smartphone and showed us a picture that he took of Mr. Chen near the same exact spot that we were currently sitting.
Thus, we think this is something that comes out of the Who Dee Doo. Because if we hadn’t decided to change course and stop in that same exact place at the time we did and wait awhile, we would never have met Omar, who met Mr. Chen, a person we have great interest following on his inspiring, epic world journey to “promote the Olympic spirit, hope for world peace, and protecting mother earth.”
This is the energy, magic and mystery of this place that we seem to encounter frequently along our journey and where we find ourselves in this point in our lives.
Omar with Lady and Little Girl (Who Dee Doo on other side of Lady)
I was sitting back having a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale(ChicoStyle), celebrating the 4th. I caught a glimpse out of the window of a man and 3 equines. I immediately knew it was him. 3Mules.com. I had come across the story of his amazing journey while web surfing a couple years ago. A man and his 3 Mules traveling the State of California. My recollection of why was murky, but that didn’t matter. Like “On The Road” by Jack Kerouac, it was more about the adventure than the destination.
I yelled out “3 Mules!, 3 Mules!” My wife and guests had no idea what I was talking about. He and the Mules were walking at a very brisk pace, there wasn’t a second to spare. I grabbed my camera and ran out the door. “Hey there, I saw you on the internet a couple years ago”. He was friendly and let me take pictures of the mules and him. With the temperature near 100 degrees I offered him some cold water, but he declined.
“What’s Your Message?”, I asked. “Freedom”, he said. This 4th of July just got real. “To travel freely” he says, as a police car drives by slowly for the third time in two minutes. Turns out, not everyone thinks his journey is so amazing. He has received citations and even been arrested for traveling the state with his Mules. To the credit of Chico Police, I believe he made it out of the city without any citations.
He likes to be called Mule. The 3 Mules names are Who-Dee-Doo (the newest member of the group), Lady (the oldest), and Little Girl (the lead mule). Like Kwai Chang Caine from the classic TV show Kung Fu. A man with a simple appearance, walking the land on a seemingly endless journey, but extraordinarily in tune with the “Natural World” and mystical forces.
His quest is to bring awareness to the ever shrinking free space by the”Mega- tropolis” and to establish a statewide network of paths and trails for Hikers, Cyclists, and Mules. It was getting late in the evening and I told him “I better let you get on your way” and with a nod, off he went.
He was gone as quick as he appeared. Reflecting on the encounter, I regretted not convincing him to have some cold water. I had carrots in the fridge, I had oats. If only I’d given him advice on where to get the Mules a drink, and where to spend the night.
Checking on him the next day on Facebook, he had posted this photo and message.
“Where we slept last night. Where we going now? Who knows? Great way to be.” – in Chico, CA
I realized that he had left the comfort of the world I live in (the “Man-Made” world) far behind, and that he was on another level altogether. A Master of the “Natural World”. One with it, protected by it.
