Hello from
Hoofbeat!
We wanted to give
everyone an update on what we've been up to at camp. In between snow and ice
storms over the last few weeks, we've had several UW groups out for retreats, a
camp fair in Illinois, and Ted has been busy hiring staff for the summer.
The weather has
been interesting to say the least. We got a couple of pretty good snowstorms
and had snow piles that looked like small mountains all around camp.
With the
temperatures bouncing around and a little rain in the mix, we've had the horses
in the barn quite a bit. The last time we let them out (after being in for 3
days straight), it was like a circus! There were horses running everywhere,
bucking, snorting, and being wild. Even our 4 oldest mares did laps around
their pasture. When they act like that, you'd never know that they can be well
mannered enough to carry the youngest of our campers around on trails and for
lessons! But to be fair, they have not been ridden since December and they've been
getting corn (which makes them extra wild!).
The ice made
things a little rough for feeding - we're really glad that our feed truck has
chains on all of the tires. One of the crew that was out feeding and shall
remain nameless , was seen sliding down a short hill (on his posterior) and
under a gate with some hay. When asked what happened, he replied, "Well I
started to slide, so I just sat down." Our miniature ponies reportedly
took off after spooking at the large person sliding down the hill toward their
pasture. Once they realized he had their breakfast they came trotting back.
So, if you've ever
wondered what life is like at Hoofbeat in the winter……now you know!
We are counting down
the days until spring. It'll be nice to see the leaves on the trees and the
horses out in their pastures eating grass again!
