Brrrrr

 You might remember that previously I have mentioned that I am lucky enough to live in the Yarra Valley, pretty much smack bang in the middle of it actually. (Sadly not the glamorous part, but still only a short drive to a good winery!) One of the best parts of living in "The Valley:" would have to be Autumns...they are simply stunning. Crisp mornings and blue skies make you just want to get out there and get busy with the "Neddies". Some mornings I have trouble getting Jack out of bed, he does like his stable on those cold nights.

Dear Moo has been doing some miles out on the trails. Once again I'm lucky enough to have many trails in the area. The Warburton Trail, once the rail line from Melbourne to Warburton, is only a very short ride down the road, and just perfect for getting out there and running the km's up on the clock. I know I always go on about how good this horse is, but out on the trail she is a gem - nothing worries her at all (not even the "city cyclists'who wizz by) One of the great things about the "Warby Trail" is that it is a perfect place for everyone to ride, it seems that you can see a little bit of everything at one stage or another, so it really is a great place for riders to take young horses.
Last weekend Moo was a "helping hand" for a young baby horse. This young man was heading out on his first ride out on the trail, and he did wonderfully well! I actually think I was more concerned than anyone else, but I can be a worrier. Of course we decided to ride out on a Sunday afternoon, and any local will tell you that Sunday afternoon is NOT the time to take a horse on the trail, but we did lol. Young "Jim" just took it all in his stride, he encountered cyclists, an echidna (which made me go all "nawwwww"), some deer, the odd dog here and there and a selection of odd older people who like to walk with sticks they have picked up off the ground. I've always wondered why they do that, but who am I to judge!! Our ride kept us out on the trail for a couple of hours as we really wanted Jim to feel comfortable with everything he saw. This young man is going to be an absolute superstar of a horse for his rider, they will be a great team.

Jack has also been doing some trail riding miles, although his miles have been a little bouncy...in fact everything about Jack over the past week has been bouncy. I suspect he is also enjoying the weather...sometimes a little too much. I'm afraid that I did use the ejector seat over the weekend, it was simply a case of he went one way, which was left, and I went another way, which was up, then down...with a thud!! Being as big as he is, there is time to think about your fall, but sadly there isn't enough time to call for a mattress to land on, and I really wish there was because the ground is HARD!!!!! Once on the ground there are a few things that flash through your mind of course "where is the horse (I let go of the reins)...can I feel everything?...was anyone watching and are they laughing?" Last question was answered when I noticed my dear daughter standing by the fence in stitches...hmmm, she'll keep,. And of course I could feel everything and in the days after I could feel every single bone in my body, and they weren't happy! I didn't pack Jack away after the tumble, I got back on, a little tentatively, and off we went again, and we had the best ride at home ever! I certainly won't be making a habit of tumbling in order to get good work from him however; I'll leave that to the trick riders.  It's at this bouncy time of year that I'm glad Jack is a great horse on the lunge...I think we will play on that for a few minutes before I climb aboard.

But as wonderful as these gorgeous Autumn days are, they'll soon end and we will have Winter here...Winter and its cold, wet, muddy days that just don't seem to end and horses that look like yaks direct from Tibet, so I'm going to continue to make hay while the sun shines and cross my fingers that Autumn stays around for a little while longer. Please Autumn stay!!