Capturing the magic of moonlight!  I wonder if the magic of riding by moonlight would wane if there were more regular dates to enjoy our trails by moonlight! Young and old are always blown away by the excitement of heading out into a darkening sky and searching in anticipation for the moment when the bright moon pops over the Witzenberg range. Situated high up in the shadow of the imposing mountain range., the moon is late in showing her face, but riding under an ever darkening sky, you can see the valley below lighting up until the rays brighten up the gulley and suddenly the moon crests the high peaks. Riding home on paths lit by moonlight, guests always exclaim in surprise at the long moonshadows of horse and rider. This past weekend we enjoyed 2 beautiful moonlight rides, on the one ride there were children who had never seen a full moon rise and certainly no one had experienced moonrise on horseback before! Back home at the hitching post, once the horses were unsaddled and grazing for the night, we sat back on the lawn enjoying the magic and great company of guests from around the world! Thank you Søren Schaller for capturing some of the stunning moments and sharing with us! We hope to see you back in the saddle soon!
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The owners of White Bridge Farm Accommodation joined us recently on one of our Magical Moonlight rides - this is what they had to say. (original posted on Facebook)
UNBELIEVABLE EXPERIENCES FOR VISITORS TO ENJOY: Last night we were yet again privileged to enjoy a spectacular moonlight ride with Jo and John Lister from Horse About. It was a perfect evening and since we were all reasonably experienced riders on this occasion, we went for a beautiful canter through the vineyards until we reached the foot of the mountain. Here we took the forest path and slowed our pace to a stead walk in single file as it was by now pretty dark. We entered the thicket and could no longer see anything as the darkness surrounded us. This was a real lesson in trust between man and horse. Suddenly the moon crested and all the leaves on the surrounding trees turned a shimmering silver. We lost the moon again as we moved closer to the mountain and it appeared again as we moved the other way. In this way we experienced the "moon rising" about 5 times during this magical experience with the night jar calling in the back ground. When we finally broke through and exited the forest on the far side, the moon was by now fully up and we headed through a paddock of cattle. We continued in moonlight on another bush path taking us past a tree which has signs of having frequently been visited by a leopard. This I have witnessed on a previous ride in the daylight. We finally arrived at a wonderful new gathering place under some large trees where John and Jo have created wonderful log tables and chairs and a tethering pole for the horses. It was the first time that this site had been used by guests. We felt very privileged when we dismounted here to enjoy some wine and snacks as we looked over the valley below and, listening to the silence and toasting our good fortune with gratitude. Thank you Jo and John for sharing. This wonderful experience, along with sun set rides, family morning rides, proposal or romantic rides etc. can be enjoyed by anyone visiting this valley and we are very grateful that the Listers have this wonderful activity to offer our guests. |
John & Jo
We are the owners of horseAbout Trails & Adventures in the Western Cape. “We left the premises with heart full of joy, love for these amazing horses and admiration for the lifestyle of John and his family.” Categories
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