It is getting quite warm here in Tasmania! Perfect horse-lover weather.
About a week ago, we took the horses down to a large pond here on the property and had some fun with the horses. Some touched it with their muzzle and others launched themselves in (and back out) with enthusiasm. One of the mares even took up snorkeling by
swimming with half of her head under water. It was great seeing all of the horsenalities (parelli.com) dealing with water. The extroverted types splashed and swam further out, while the introverts hung on the side and took their time to get to know the water and the mud leading to it.
Photo by Rebecca Schmidt Gold and I playing in the water
Other than that, I have been continuing with the other horses and making progress, especially with Ty, who is now started under saddle. He is such a calm horse! One day, he will be the horse who will take anyone out on the trail and “take care of them” – even inexperienced riders. Today he had his third “official” ride (aka not just getting on and backing up), and we calmly walked all around the pasture. He was very responsive to stopping and backing up. Backing up can make newly started (newly broke) horses feel claustrophobic, even if you just use one rein, so I made my intentions very clear to him and he did wonderfully.
Bush walking. What will I miss when I leave Australia? Lots of things, but especially bush walking. There are so many unique obstacles and I love hearing the unusual australian birds squaking in my ear and seeing wallabies flash through the trees (spooking the horses… yay! We love challenges, right?). I am hoping to take Lace, the Appaloosa, and Ty on longer trail rides next week and the week after.
I will have to get used to finding the occasional leech on my leg, though. Before Australia I had never seen one before, and now I slap them so hard they fall off my leg before biting me. I guess you don’t have to love every living thing…
Photo by Tiamat Warda
Ty embarking on a Bush adventure
I also saw a fairly large Echidna on the side of the road on our way back home from town the other day. They are very calm and although it was a bit spooked, it let me stroke its back. I only stroked it once and left the poor thing alone, but it was pretty cool to feel the rough fur and spikes!
Stay tuned for more adventures.