A trail-riding mare named Barmaid apparently got bored with her job and escaped her corral, then spent about two weeks running free in Grand Teton National Park before finally being captured.
Barmaid was back at work this week having suffered nary a scratch during her self-imposed vacation in the wild.
Mischievous Streak
The trail rides are run by the Grand Teton Lodge Co., and Barmaid escaped from a company corral near Jenny Lake.
It really wasn’t a surprise. She has a mischievous streak, Sarah Howe, the company’s director of sales and marketing, told Cowboy State Daily.
“This was her first season with us, so we had no idea how mischievous she is,” Howe said.
Wildlife photographer Melanie McCartney captured some stunning images of Barmaid living her best life in Grand Teton last weekend.
“I guess she was just enjoying herself. She was on a little bit of a vacation,” McCartney told Cowboy State Daily.
Barmaid could be a kindred spirit to Chester, a huge roan packhorse from Utah. In September 2024, Chester took off on a four-day, five-night solo adventure in the wild Wyoming backcountry.
He was finally discovered trotting around on a county road near Bondurant, no worse for wear.
Escape And Disappearance
Barmaid apparently likes pushing the boundaries, venturing toward the edges of the corral.
She might have been tempted by “all the goodies” sprouting up from the ground as the park greened up, Howe said.
On the day of her escape, she “spooked, as many horses do,” and ran off before anybody could catch her.
It’s not known exactly where Barmaid went or what sort of situations she got into during her free time in the park.
She stayed in the vicinity of the Snake River and several sightings were reported over her two weeks in the wild, Howe said.
“Every time we had a sighting reported we sent our wranglers out, but by the time they would get there, she had disappeared again,” Howe said.
A mare named Barmaid escaped from its corral near Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park and ran loose in the park for about two weeks before finally being captured, safe and sound. (Courtesy Melanie McCartney, Scenes from Nature Photography scenesfromnaturephotography.com) 
A mare named Barmaid escaped from its corral near Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park and ran loose in the park for about two weeks before finally being captured, safe and sound. (Courtesy Melanie McCartney, Scenes from Nature Photography scenesfromnaturephotography.com) 
A mare named Barmaid escaped from its corral near Jenny Lake in Grand Teton National Park and ran loose in the park for about two weeks before finally being captured, safe and sound. (Courtesy Melanie McCartney, Scenes from Nature Photography scenesfromnaturephotography.com) 
A horse wrangler tries to catch a mischievous mare named Barmaid in Grand Teton National Park on Saturday. Barmaid escaped from a corral near Jenny Lake and had been running free in the park for about two weeks. (Courtesy Melanie McCartney, Scenes from Nature Photography scenesfromnaturephotography.com)
‘Wow, You Don’t See That Every Day’
McCartney lives in Reno, Nevada. She visits Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks several times a year to photograph wildlife and scenery.
Last weekend, she was driving in Grand Teton between Signal Mountain and Mount Moran when she came upon a sight she never expected to see.
“I was just driving merrily along, and there was that horse, standing right there amid the yellow flowers,” she said. “I was like, ‘Wow you don’t see that every day.’”
The scene was too magnificent to pass up, so McCartney pulled over to take some photos.
Then she noticed that she wasn’t the only one who was watching the horse. Some wranglers were there trying to catch the free-running mare.
The horse was apparently having a lot of fun teasing her pursuers, McCartney said.
“She’d stand there and look at a wrangler up on the ridge and then look at the wrangler down on the flatland. But when they got close, she’d trot off,” she said.
“That horse was so beautiful, so free,” McCartney said. “She did not want to be caught.”
After taking numerous photos, McCartney left, not knowing the outcome of the pursuit.
Howe said that the owners of the Pinto Ranch adjacent to the park graciously agreed to open a gate to one of their pastures.
With the help of wranglers from the ranch, Barmaid was finally coaxed into the pasture, and her wild adventure finally came to an end.
Back To Work
Barmaid was transferred to another corral and hasn’t attempted another escape since she’s been back on the job, Howe said.
The mare apparently knew how to take care of herself in the wild.
“In her weeks of freedom, she didn’t get any scratches on her and she didn’t lose any weight,” Howe said. “We are very fortunate and very happy to have her back. We had a lot of eyes out there looking for her.”
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
