Mr. Appaloosa

TTR: What books have you written?

Hatley: The first book I wrote, Horse Camping, was about taking horses into the mountains, and how to pack and manage horses in the mountains. Unfortunately, it's been out of print for a few years. However, someone is now trying to get it back into print, because there's a need for that kind of a book.

Next, I wrote Pioneer about my grandfather, Riley Hatley. Born in North Carolina, he moved to eastern Tennessee, then traveled to Kansas to take the Santa Fe Trail as far as Colorado, where he ranched for about 10 years.

Riley had a cousin who settled in Washington's Palouse country who persuaded him to sell his Colorado ranch (for $1,000) to move to Washington. Riley traveled north until he joined up with the Oregon Trail to cross southern Idaho, then to Walla Walla, Washington, and finally east, settling in the Palouse Country. Riley landed there in 1877.

My most recent book is Riding the Nez Percé War Trail Twice.

TTR: What's your favorite book?

Hatley: I've always been very interested in the Nez Percé War. The two books I feel are most accurate on that subject are written by Virgil McWhorter. He interviewed and conferred with many of the actual Nez Percé warriors. He wrote Yellow Wolf and Hear Me My Chiefs. When he passed on, his family gave all his files to the Washington State University in Pullman. The files included a drawing made by a Nez Percé warrior. It shows himself leading an Appaloosa horse as he approaches a Cheyenne who was working with the U.S. Army.

TTR: What's your most valued possession?

Hatley: That's hard to say, because I've collected a few old saddles, bridles, and spurs. I had a good friend named John, who had a fine saddle made by Ray Holes of Grangeville, Idaho, a top saddlemaker in the early 1940s.

John died in the Philippines during World War II, and now I have his saddle and his spurs. His name is tooled onto the skirts of the saddle. I named my son John Craig Hatley, after him. When he inherits this saddle, he'll have his named carved onto the skirts. I guess that would be my most valued possession.

TTR: What three people of any era would you invite for an evening around the campfire?

Hatley: I'd invite Bob Peckinpah, who served as president of the ApHC for a record nine years. We traveled together many autumns on pack trips and for elk hunting. I'd also invite Bill Moore, who was ApHC president for five years. He became a very good friend and we've also been on several pack trips together.

Both men have a tremendous sense of humor.

I'd add Margie Berndt, a past director of the ApHC. She comes to the Apalousey Trail Ride, an annual summer fundraiser for the Appaloosa Museum. She's very helpful with that program, and great fun, too.

TTR: If you had a motto, what would it be?

Hatley: Get the work done!

TTR: What's your idea of happiness?

Hatley: A pack trip in the mountains with good Appaloosa horses and good company.

For an autographed copy of George Hatley's book, Riding the Nez Percé Trail Twice, contact him at (208) 882-4879. To contact the ApHC, call (208) 882-5578, or visit www.appaloosa.com. To contact the Appaloosa Museum and Heritage Center, call the ApHC, and enter extension 279.