May, 2022
Ponies and horses!
I love ponies and horses. I surely do. 🙂
And … this happens often in my travels when I’m camping. I jump into the big white truck and head out to a specific destination but I never get there because I get side-tracked. It happened again this afternoon. Ah me, tsk tsk.
I will eventually get to that intended destination later in this trip, and I’ll show it to you, but what I found this afternoon instead were three locations, three fields, with ponies and horses. I love ponies and horses. 🙂
I drove around the first corner in the road and saw ponies off to the left. The truck’s tires and brakes screeched all on their own I think, stopping fast! Oh, but I can’t just park in the middle of the road! Ok, let’s park this big white truck on the side of the road (no, not in the ditch please!) and then let’s go talk to some ponies. Yes!
The ponies were busy munching away, and the wind was blowing (it was cold even in the sunshine), and they were at a bit of a distance from the road (where I was standing in a ditch, yes in a ditch!, so I could get as close to them as possible). They seemed not to notice me.
I whistled. And three of those ponies immediately trotted over to me. I had three friends!
This one dark-haired pony below was particularly interested in what I might have to offer her. She stuck her nose and mouth through the wire fence, gingerly since there was a bit of barbed wire on that fence. But I had nothing to give her … no carrot, no apple, no raisins or dates, sigh … nothing. I petted her nose and spoke kind, warm words to her. She liked that. But then she went back to her other friends to munch on more grass.
Off to one side in that same pasture was the pony in the photo below. Unlike the others, it didn’t even lift its head when I whistled. She sure was pretty too though.
And then I got back in the big white truck and drove on down the road, trying to remember where it was that I had intended to go today.
Oh, but wait! Horses to the right! Screech went the brakes and tires again. This time there was a bit of gravel roadway on the right where I could pull over without risking driving into the ditch. I jumped out of the truck with camera in hand (and a spare camera battery in my back pocket).
They paid me no mind at first. But, as with the ponies, I whistled and that got their attention. No one came trotting over to the gate, but it was nice to have them looking at me. The young one on the right in the photo above didn’t give me the time of day. Kids these days!
She’s sure nice looking though, isn’t she?
And then they too went back to munching the grass. Those ponies must have told these horses that I had no treats. Next time when I’m out in this area, I’m bringing treats.
Back in the big white truck and driving up the road … I have now completely forgotten where it was that I had intended to go today. Around another turn in the road, and my gosh here’s a gorgeous scene with a green field, trees all around, a brilliant blue sky with fluffy white clouds … and a handsome white horse right in the middle of it all. This time, the truck pulled over to the left very gently and I simply opened the window and took the photos out my driver’s side window.
None of the ponies or horses that I saw today had halters on. I like that. It’s like watching a dog on the beach who is free to run and romp and jump without a leash on. It feels so good to be free.
I wonder where I thought I was going today, what my original intended destination was. It doesn’t matter. I’ll remember later, and I’ll get there later. Somehow the world knew where I was REALLY going … I was going to see ponies and horses. What a great afternoon.
They sure are beautiful! I don’t know anything about horses, but down at the end of our road there used to be two white/yellowish horses, with braids in their manes. Years ago I’d seen them (or maybe one of them, I can’t remember) pulling a carriage through the neighborhood. I used to walk down there just to say hi to them. One of them liked his nose rubbed, the other had no time for me once he (or she?) figured out I had no food. The lady that owned them was in a house far back from the road and I asked her once, when she was out walking, if she minded people petting her horses, and she said it was fine. But I always worry about getting out to pet other people’s horses, do they wonder what you’re doing? Is it OK? I even worry when I just stop to take a picture of a barn!
PS: This Friends’ Landing campground is a winner!
It sure is! I kind of think I shouldn’t post about it to people who live here. Someone might take my favorite spot!!!
Oh, wow, horses pulling a carriage would be great to see. Yep, some horses want a treat, some just like to be loved up. I bet the human “owner” might wonder, but I also bet even more that horses know what’s up, they know who is who, they have a mind of their own, they have an innate sense of who is safe and who isn’t. If they don’t like your energy, they won’t have anything to do with you. (Or maybe it’s about treats too.) But if they don’t feel safe, they will go the other way.
Ok, barns don’t care, and the heck with barn owners! ha! 🙂 Maybe barn owners love to have their barns photographed. I say go for it.
Sweet!
🙂
Great photos. Glad you didn’t mention feeding sugar cubes to those ponies and horses, it’s not good for them. Apples, carrots, dates, raisins, plums (pitted), all good. I knew a horse who loved chunks of sweet potato. Great photos.
No, no sugar!! Not good for any animals … horses or humans or any other animals.
Sweet potatoes, eh? Ok, I love them too, so I’ll just carry a couple of extra when I go camping. Thanks Tim.
AND … my horse when I was a kid absolutely KNEW when the plums were ripe on a tree that we always rode past on our way back to the pasture. He knew exactly when those plums were ripe. And he would trot exuberantly towards that tree and then stop and then reach up above his head and pick 2 or 3 plums and munch on them while I just sat there on his back waiting patiently. He always spit out the pits. When he’d had enough, he walked on towards the pasture, nodding his head as he walked, happy horse. Plums … what a great memory that brought up for me. Thanks Tim.
Cool horses! Your truck is smart! 🙂
She is! 🙂
Pretty horses! Furry ponies! Super big white truck! 🙂
Haha! furry ponies. 🙂
This just makes me feel good. There’s so much stress in life. But those ponies and horses just make me feel good. I hope they are treated really well and get lots of treats. Yes, Ann, take treats next time. 🙂
We all know about getting treats and how good it feels. Ponies and horses do too. Judy you can bet that I’ll be carrying treats with me on my next outing. Life is good. 🙂
When I was a girl, other girl friends had horses and I spent lots of time just in the pastures with them. I didn’t ride much because I was afraid of the horses at first, but over time, just walking around the pasture I found the horses were friends. I actually liked just walking around the fields with the horses way more than I liked riding them. Really nice photos … brings back lots of wonderful memories.
Gotta tell you, Lori, that most of my time, WAY most of my time with my horse was spent just in the pasture with him, walking around, scooping up his piles of “stuff”, talking with him, brushing him, cleaning his feet (hooves), tickling his mouth so he would open it so I could check his teeth, and then jumping on his back without a saddle or reins and just letting him walk around with me on his back. I loved the more formal riding we did, but I really truly loved all that time in the pasture with him more than anything. I like that you have those memories too.
Your dark-haired pony looks a great deal as Fell Ponies do here in northwest England. Haven’t been out to see them in years. I must go for an outing!
Henry, I looked at Fell Ponies on the internet and they sure do look like that pony I saw who seemed to be my friend. Yes, go for an outing!
Pintos, bays, an Appaloosa. Handsome folks. And ponies too. Nice neighbors. 🙂
Horses and ponies know who you are, and whether you’re a friend or not. Dawn, the people who own horses might worry about you, but the horses know instinctively whether you are “safe” or not. Let the humans worry … go talk with the horses! You are ok and they know it. 🙂
You are obviously a horse person, Sesapa. I like your advice to Dawn … “let the humans worry … go talk with the horses!”
Thanks for you comments here, and thanks for riding along. 🙂
We’re happy to have you head off into something purposeful, and then get distracted and forget where you’re going, and then head off into something else entirely. You find great stuff to share with us. Horses and ponies, oh my! 🙂 Great stuff. Just go, just go, just keep on going.
LOL! Ok, Nevada, I’ll keep on keeping on. Who knows where I’ll go, but I will share with y’all. 🙂