The Road to Berrigan was cold and windy!
It has been so cold and windy for the three days and 120kms of riding between Boree Creek and Berrigan that the horses and I have just accomplished. I rode into Berrigan late yesterday arvo at about 4.30 which was awesome as we left Oaklands at 8am. I’d stayed Friday night at the Oaklands Hotel and had a great nights rest. Lisa and Kev are the publicans at Oaklands and provided me with accommodation and a meal. A very lively Friday night was going on at the pub with pizza’s being churned out of the kitchen at incredible pace by Lisa and her crew (eat your heart out Eagle Boys!) to feed the crew in the bar. The locals were very generous in their donating to ride4acure and very interested in the ride. A big thank you to Shane and Kate for providing a great paddock for the night and ferrying my gear from Oaklands to Berrigan for me. And most especially dropping off a hot curry pie for my lunch yesterday, in the cold and wind it was delicious! I’d just pulled up about 15kms from Berrigan for a late lunch and put the nosebags on the horses when Shane and Kate pulled up.
Had an interesting time with a solo, pshyco emu about 10kms out of Berrigan and for a brief moment wasn’t sure I was going to make it as the horses went ballistic when they saw this crazy emu running flat out toward them! all three horses went racing backwards away from the bird. I finally got them over the highway on the other side of the road and hard against the other fence and managed to get them past it JUST!! Of course all the way into town they were jumping out of their skins as every bush had become a horse eating emu! They didn’t really settle down until we got to town, but they walked that fast we covered the last ten kms in record time! So there was a bonus out of the experience.
I met some wonderful people a few weeks ago when I was riding through Mirool and they’d teed up a paddock and accommodation for me here in Berrigan which is very comfortable. I’m still tucked up in bed now with a warm wood fire going catching up on email. The horses are fetlock deep in good feed in a great paddock. I have a good friend coming to spend a few days with me whom I have known since my teens.
The exciting thing is I am about to cross the Murray River. Am only a days ride now from Cobram. This feels like a real milestone. I am also very close to Nathalia, in Victoria which is where I was born. My family had a farm there back in the 50’s and early 60’s. Also Berrigan where I am today is where my Uncle Ray Luxford lived for a good part of his life with his wife Betty and their family. The first person I met as I rode into town came out to give a donation and it turned out he’d worked with Uncle Ray! Good Welcome!
Today am kicking back and resting up, catching up on emails etc, planning events for the last three weeks-watch this space!
June 14th, 2010 at 11:50 pm
Hi Maura…cold are you??..ahh for the warm hills and valleys of the Macleay!!!! Sound like you are travelling well and Pete suggested farriering would be a perfect job for you as you are a short assssssss!!!My Dad used to say ‘you need to be 4 feet across the shoulders and 4 inches across the brain to be a farrier….he was 6’2″ and hated the job!! Sounds like you are having an interesting introduction to the wildlife down there, well, at least your ponies are….thought they would be so worn down by now that an elephant wouldn’t phase them, but, no…must be what you are feeding them!All’s well here with our first few very light frosts but winter is here for sure. Keep on trecking girl…you must be counting down the days now. Must be great to be back in ‘home’ country again and catching up with them all. Love to you girl and look forward to reading your next installments…LOVEEEEEEEEEE
June 18th, 2010 at 10:10 am
hello maura, my name is annette stclair, i am from wagga. I was so dissapointed when i read you had been to wagga, i would have really loved to speak with you.I have lost my daughter also to melanoma.Your daughter would be very proud of what you are doing.Congratulations
safe travelling
annette stclair
June 18th, 2010 at 12:33 pm
Hi Maura have been thinking of you all the time. My neighbours are even following you on the ABC and letting me know whats been said. Have such admiration for you and so proud of you and your gg’s. Cant wait to catch up with you and listen to your amazing experience i hope someone is cataloging your travels because it makes great reading – what a book. All our love Fiona, Dennis and Lexi xxx
September 17th, 2023 at 8:29 pm
Time has gone on and I have a photo of Ray Luxford with a tiny baby in his arms with my Dad Theo Smith this would have been 1948. Dad would often speak of him but he left Cohuna. Small world