Horse riding in Nepal
I like anything that challenges my guts. Horse riding fascinates me as it is about controlling the animal which is much bigger than you with a lead rope. I had done some horse riding before, once in Fiji, and then in Nepal and India.
The riding I had done in Nepal and India were on open, flat ground. There is no fear of falling and breaking your bones as the horse handler is running next to you while you ride the horse. On top of that they are trained horses which don’t run.(I guess 🙂 )
Horse riding in Fiji
When I did some horse riding in Fiji, it was in the beach so I remember it as being quite fun. It was flat ground and we were only 4 in the group .The horses behaved really well. So while we were in Hunter, I didn’t even think twice when we decided to ride horses. I was just happy to do the activity.
We reached the place 15 minutes late as we lost our way on the way there. It was really far away from the main area and our GPS didn’t help us. It was asking us to drive on dirt roads where you can’t take your car. Anyway other people in the group were waiting for us when we reached there. After hurrying to meet the ladies who run the farm and signing the waiver form, we were given helmets and a quick guide on what to do with the horse to command it to stop and move. Then we are given a horse and I was surprised that these horses seemed a bit bigger than the ones I had ridden before.
Horse riding in Hunter
In their website they said, “Ride the unique and beautiful Molly Morgan Range, experiencing the spectacular views of the Hunter Valley Wine Country and Lower Hunter and as far North as Barrington Tops, the northern boundary of the Upper Hunter “so I was expecting it to be a relaxing horse riding in a ranch but I was not ready for what came next.
I guess these horses are used to having people ride them all the time but the horse I was riding, named “Sunny” seemed to be a frisky one. PA and AS wanted their horses to be frisky and fast but their one’s were more tame, may be because they looked a bit old. But Sunny seem to be younger and a bit out of control from time to time.
While we were riding we were meant to form a straight line and follow the lady in the front but my horse didn’t want to follow the other horses, he just want to eat grass so I had to constantly pull his head up and push him to walk. We rode on a small hill so there were lots of ups and downs. Because my horse was more playful than others I was having a hard time controlling him. On top of that my bum was really hurting so I couldn’t wait to finish the ride.
Horse riding in Nepal
As it was an hour and half ride, there were lots more to come before we finished the ride. We were taken to pond where all the horses were supposed to drink water. All the horses waited for their turn for the water but not Sunny. He just passed the line and rushed to the pond. I was scared at that point because I couldn’t stop him. I was scared to fall and break my bones. Finally I was able to control him for a while and slowly guided him to the pond. There he wanted to go deeper into the water than the other horses so I had to pull his lead rope hard to divert him from there and follow others to the farm.
From time to time other horses would make some weird noises from the other farms which scared me , as Sunny seemed to be get more aggressive when he haers these noises. On top of that my friend PA was trying to gallop her horse from behind me which didn’t help either. At one point, our horses were so close that both of them looked like they were going to hit each other.
Finally after what seemed like forever we were back at the farm and then only could I think straight. For much of the time, more than enjoying the great view of the farm and watching wallabies and other animals near the track, I was putting my strength in controlling Mr. Sunny.
When I was relived that it was almost over, PA dropped the lead rope of her horse. I was scared because if the horse moved at that point, she could have fallen from the horse and hurt herself. Also I was near her so if that horse had come running I could have gotten hurt as well. Luckily the lady from the ranch came back to rescue us.
Finally when Sunny was back in his stable I was happy to get off him. It was an adventurous ride but I am not too sure I want that experience again. I will defiantly ride a horse again but not on the hills or uneven surface. It is just too dangerous. On top of that my bum hurt for rest of the day.
If you have interesting story about horse riding, please do share.
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