Sometimes, I shake myself and think, "Here you are in Provençe, riding your horse through lavender fields and oak woods in the sunshine - do you know just how lucky you are, woman?"
Today was one of those days. I had already decided to give Aero a day off, which turned out to be a really good idea because he had done a "Flurry's Beauty Salon" type mud-coating job.
Aero's speciality is plastering mud all over his face as well as his body.
Today, he did both really well.
I gave him a pat (from
lmel!) and told him he was having a day off, and I took Flurry down to the stables to tack him up. He wasn't a whole lot cleaner than Aero...
I decided to try him barefoot for the hack. We set off on a route which would leave us with the option of a short hack or a longer one, so if he was a bit footsore I could cut the ride short, or keep going if he was ok. He was fine for ages, right up until we started on the second part of the hack, which was through another part of the woods along a gravelled trail. Unfortunately, at this point he got a bit "ouchy", so I turned back after about five minutes and took the short route home along the road.
He was perfect on the road, so I think that the chunky bits of gravel were just too much for his bare feet - there's been a lot of rain recently and their paddock is very muddy, so I think his feet have softened up a bit, unfortunately.
We had started the hack riding through the lavender field and the woods where he had been spooky last Sunday, but he was perfectly behaved this time. It was while we were strolling through the lavender that I found myself grinning like a Cheshire cat and thinking just how lucky I am to be here, with a super-sensible horse like Flurry, on whom I can just relax and enjoy the scenery.
Just as we approached the gate of the farm, I heard a loud roar and two French Air Force jets flew overhead, skimming the hilltop - not an unusual occurrence. They were only a couple of hundred metres away from us, though, but my bomb-proof horse didn't bat an eyelid, and once again I thought, what a sensible horse I have - until we went into the farm and he spooked dramatically at the heap of gravel inside the gate.
Horses, eh. They'll always bring you down to earth.
Lovely post -- can almost smell the lavender as I read. First time here -- how lovely to read of your adventure in new places.
ReplyDeleteWelcome, Sallie! Good job it's the lavender you're almost smelling & not the mud ;D
DeleteOh mu muddy ponys!! I do not envy you having to rid Aero of that mud.
ReplyDeleteI still find it funny what horses spook at. . .one day something is scary, the next not and vice versa.
It sounds like a dream there! You are very lucky indeed!
In Flurry's defence (god, I've said that before!) it was a NEW heap of gravel!
DeleteNice mud monsters you have- but at least Aero is dark, my lot show every last speck....
ReplyDeleteTansy had a grey pony which was a dirt magnet so I know what you mean - we'd have her spotless for a show, wearing a cooler overnight to stay clean and in the morning she'd have poop stains UNDER the rug on her sides & flanks
DeleteMud, seems to make them happy. Nice ride on your steady mount! You know, sometimes horse-eating monsters hide in piles of gravel ;)
ReplyDeleteespecially new piles of gravel which suddenly appear overnight...
DeleteSounds heavenly :)
ReplyDeleteIt was :)
DeleteYou are wonderfully lucky to be living and riding in such a beautiful place. Lavender fields and trees, how great. And not to be forgotten are the mud baths to keep horses happy. Spooking ... it's always something that makes no sense (to us).
ReplyDeleteYes, I always wonder what's going on when there's a dramatic spook and no obvious (to me) reason.
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