Brumbies On Their Own Turf

 

IN SEARCH OF THE WILD HORSE

The day dawned picture perfect for a brumby walk, with clear skies, mild temperature and gentle breeze.

No one else had been able to join our adventure, and so it was just the two of us out for a day in a beautiful part of the country hoping to see and spend time with some of the brumbies that usually inhabit the High Plains behind Falls Creek Resort.

We had looked at the map, and decided to alter (and shorten) our original intended route by starting at Pretty Valley Dam and walking out from there. And so, having woken with the birds heralding the dawn we made good time and headed off from the car park at 9.30am, full of energy and high spirits.

An hour into the walk we spotted our first glimpse of the alpine brumby.  Two dark coloured horses some distance away and mostly obscured by a small rise. As we altered course towards them they dipped below the rise completely out of sight.

Our second glimpse was of these two and the rest of their herd cantering purposefully but gracefully away from us, like fleeting momentary shadows passing over the landscape.

We were surprised to have startled them from such a distance, but the cause of their departure quickly became apparent as a group of four riders with packsaddle horses came into view from a different direction. The wild ones of the High Plains are very wary of the ridden variety and had obviously decided to make themselves scarce when this group arrived on the scene.

As we continued walking towards Mt Jim, and in the general direction the herd had gone, we realised that we had picked a day of high activity in the mountains. To our slight disbelief we found ourselves in the midst of a steady stream of extreme athletes competing in a running race that took in the area we, and not so long ago the brumbies, were in.

It was almost comical; runners in lycra, a fluttering flag checkpoint, a packsaddling party and us, all in the one area, the area that generally the brumbies like to inhabit. No wonder the wild horses had made themselves extremely scarce, extremely quickly!

It was slightly disappointing to realise that it was unlikely we were going to see much more of the mountain brumby in the vicinity of Mt Jim with all this activity going on, but we were pleased to have at least caught a brief glimpse of a group, and were delighted at the glorious blue sky day we found ourselves blessed with.

Circumnavigating Mt Jim with the vague hope that the mob might have taken refuge on the quieter south eastern side, we enjoyed the views, admired the delicate wild flowers peaking up from the grass, and enjoyed the flight displays of the resident ravens as they cascaded and rolled on the air currents around the rocky outcrop.

With no brumbies in sight, we decided to make our way over to where the flat open plains dropped off to gentle slopes and met up with the forest below before descending steeply into the valley far beneath. These gentle slopes where plains and trees merge were another area that the brumbies might have retired to.

As we made our way across the plateau, Glenn noticed fresh hoof prints in some soft ground. The brumbies had certainly passed this way recently, but who knows where they had gone, perhaps indeed they had slipped over the edge and were resting quietly on the slopes below.

Walking across the plains and on reaching the edge, the views were stunning.  Just in front of us on the opposite side of the deep valley below was Mt Hotham and Mt Feathertop joined by the long jaggered ridge known as the Razorback.  In the far distance Mt Buller and Mt Stirling were clearly visible and even Mt Buffalo was sneaking a look in from behind Feathertop.  Horses or no horses, this is really a spectacular part of the country. We felt so happy to be out in the midst of it on such a lovely day.

But still not a horse in sight.

Making ourselves comfortable on a couple of flat rocks almost designed as lunch stools, we soaked up the aforementioned spectacular view, enjoyed the sunshine that was tempered by a light breeze and lazily watched the distant string of runners still making their way along the competition course. We ate some delicious sandwiches and fruit cake to quieten our rumbling bellies.

Having rested our legs from the morning walk and refuelled, we gave a last searching glance for any sign of the horses we had glimpsed earlier in the day, but to no avail. And despite being slightly disappointed that it was unlikely we would see more of the horses, we were still so pleased to be out enjoying a beautiful part of the world on a glorious day; and to have been blessed to see any brumbies at all, albeit for only a brief moment.

Packing up our lunch boxes we decided it was probably time to head toward home, as in reality we could wander around for a long time looking for the elusive horses.

Picking a path that would lead us back toward the car we set off at a steady pace, continuing to marvel at the expansive views and wondrous country.

It was then that Kell noticed two black dots on a distant grassy slope, which was joined to the plateau by a large saddle. They didn’t look quite right, and from past experience it made her wonder if they could be a couple of horses. “What are those dots over there” she asked Glenn, “do you think they might be horses?”

With a two kilometre distance between us and the dots we pulled out the binoculars and peered through them. And yes, they were indeed horses, in fact it was a family group of six, all dark in colour and undoubtedly the herd we had seen that morning, slowly making their way down the slope. They had obviously made a big arcing loop from their original spot before doubling back and settling themselves in a quiet part of the plains some five of six kilometres from where we had first seen them and certainly well out of the high traffic area they had been in that morning.

We pulled up a rock, and settled ourselves in to observe the horses through the binoculars, and take what pictures we could from such a long distance away.

So we sat and watched and enjoyed. The sitting part was most agreeable as we had walked about eight kilometres by that stage, and the legs and feet certainly knew it.  If this was as much as we would see of the brumbies we were more than happy and deeply satisfied, but still they ambled down the ridge line in our direction.  This was exciting!

They kept on coming, and when they had about halved the distance between us and them, we decided to see if we could meet them in the saddle. We headed off and picked up a foot pad that took us down to the large grassy saddle that the group was seemingly making its way to. The horses arrived in the saddle a short time before us, so we slowly but calmly made our way into the saddle with them, but walking in an arcing course and keeping our energy low. By this stage they certainly knew we were there but didn’t seem too fussed.  Bushwalkers don’t really pose a threat to brumbies.

We were now only a few hundred metres from them, and although the binoculars were still better, we could easily see them with the naked eye. The family group appeared to be made up of the stallion and two mares, one with a 3-4 month old foal at foot, and two yearlings undoubtedly from last year’s drop. All were dark, almost black in appearance, some with stars and one mare with a thin lightning bolt blaze.

We kept gently moving closer in the non threatening arcing pattern which deflects that focused human posture that easily frightens horses. Mustering all our quiet, gentle, soft energy, and peaceful thoughts, we kept moving in, stopping regularly to sit or kneel and allow the horses to watch and assess us and invite us closer by showing no fear or wariness.

Slowly but surely the distance between us closed to around 100 metres.  It was very exciting and the horses were just not bothered by our presence.  In fact they were so relaxed the stallion decided to enjoy a roll in what was obviously a favourite dust patch – not once, but twice. Without a single word spoken he let us know that we were okay and accepted in his and his family’s presence. We call them a family because that is exactly what they were.

 

Continuing to softly move closer we approached to about 30 or 40 metres, when the stallion became specifically curious about us and decided to investigate more closely. He came up to within about 10 to 15ms of us, wary but very inquisitive. Although we were very alert to his presence and ready to “get big and loud” if we needed to send him away, not once did we feel threatened in any way, more just the focus of a curious horse wanting to examine us more closely. 

Later the youngsters became intrigued with Glenn and crept closer for a better look…………

 

………….whilst the stallion snoozed in the background

The following photos will probably tell the story better than words, but it was just such a privilege to be accepted so easily by this group, and to watch them interact and go about enjoying their day:

         

From what could be seen, the stallion could probably, from a barehoof trimmer’s perspective, do with a tidy up trim! – long toes, and there was evidence of recent laminitic rings – most likely from the change of feed at the end of winter. 

He also seemed to have something “not quite right” in his hind end, that pointy outline at his sacrum and quite a small looking back end.

One of the yearlings looked like she had a herniated belly button area.

 

But all seemed fit, healthy, alive and alert.  So even though they might not have been “perfect”, they certainly were perfect in all ways.

Although we could have stayed there all day, after about an hour we felt that we should let them be and not overstay our welcome. And so we departed for the return walk to the car, feeling deeply blessed that these wild horses allowed us to spend that time with them, we immersed in their presence, and they, so relaxed in our company.

One very special experience that we are still energised and thrilled by.