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Brumbies Novels
Paula Boer
Category:
Young Adult/Teen
Publisher: IFWG Publishing
ISBN-10: 0615560938
Type: Fiction
Pages: 140
Copyright: November 2011
ISBN-13: 9780615560939
Price: $2.99 (eBook)
A horse packed adventure in Australia. Book one of the Brumbies series.
When city girl Louise moves to the country, she discovers the mountain brumbies are to be killed for pet food. She and Ben, a local farm boy, determine to save as many of the wild horses as they can. Despite opposition, they arrange a muster, but nothing goes according to plan. Following in the hoof-prints of “The Silver Brumby” and “The Man from Snowy River”, this horse-packed adventure encounters challenges through some of the toughest territory in Australia.
Excerpt
Louise flopped to the ground and opened her saddlebags. With the horses watered and tethered to a nearby tree in the shade, she welcomed the chance of a drink and a sandwich. Her mother had insisted on packing two rounds of tuna sandwiches, plus cake and muesli bars, fruit and an energy drink. “Do you want some? I’ve got enough for my whole family.”
Ben shook his head. “Nah. I’m good with water and corned beef.” He lay on the creek bank with his hands folded underneath his head. The water burbled over the rocks. “We’ll rest for a few minutes then head out. There’s still a long way to go.”
Louise’s cake crumbled into a million pieces. She laughed. “What a mess. It didn’t survive that last chase.” She strolled over to the Appaloosa who gobbled up the crumbs. “There you go, boy. Wild horses might have freedom but they don’t get cake.”
“Some of those wild horses may not have freedom for much longer.” Ben rolled onto one elbow and stuck a blade of grass between his lips, making whistling noises like a bird.
“What do you mean? The horses are safe here in the park aren’t they?” The sun felt hot on Louise’s back as she knelt by the creek and washed her hands in the freezing water. A bronze dragon-fly hovered in front of her nose then darted away. She shook her hands dry then sat cross-legged next to Ben.
Ben mumbled through his sandwich. “Every year the rangers round up as many as they can. The park can only sustain a few hundred and the horse numbers are blowing way out.”
“What do they do with the ones they catch?” Louise ran her fingers through her blonde fringe where her helmet had made it stick to her forehead. She tried to imagine the wild horses being tamed and ridden. She doubted she would be able to stay on a horse that bucked and pig-rooted like the ones they had seen. It didn’t seem right to confine them.
“They go to the sales. Most of them will end up at the doggers.” At Louise’s puzzled look, Ben shrugged. “You know, for pet food.”
“Pet food?” Louise sat up in alarm. “You mean they’ll be killed?” The thought of the beautiful horses being turned into dog meat sent shivers of revulsion through her body. “Can’t they be broken in and sold? Or used for breeding? They look really strong and must be tough if they can survive up here in the mountains.” It occurred to her that maybe being confined wasn’t so bad if it meant the horses stayed alive.
A snort erupted from Ben. “Who’s going to do that? Nah, if someone wants they can buy them at the sales, but no-one usually bothers. They’re so fat when they come off the mountain at the end of summer they go for good slaughter prices. That’s why they’re mustered then, not after a hard winter when they’re in poor condition.”
“No way! Can’t we stop them?” Louise couldn’t believe what she heard. “The RSPCA, or Pony Club, or the greenies or someone must care.”
Ben climbed to his feet. “Don’t worry about it. It happens every year. They only get a few herds, there’s plenty more. But it’s important to keep the numbers down to protect the environment. Come on, we’d better head off.” He tightened the girth of his saddle and vaulted onto his mare.
The day no longer seemed so bright to Louise. She checked her tack then mounted her gelding. Following Ben, they splashed across the creek and entered the eucalypt forest. A narrow kangaroo track wound between gnarled and twisted snow gums, their bark peeling off to reveal splotches of pastel pink and cream. The horses’ hooves made barely a sound in the deep leaf litter, just a rustle of leaves and the occasional snapping of twigs.
Louise couldn’t stay unhappy for long. Being out on a horse in the mountains made her heart swell with joy. An echidna waddled by, snuffling for ants. A kookaburra declared his territory with a cackle that built to a raucous laugh, only quietening after the horses passed by. Breaking out of the trees, Louise marvelled at the alpine flowers carpeting the undulating hillside. Purple, white and yellow stretched to the horizon. A lone wedge-tailed eagle soared in lazy circles overhead.
Ben held up his hand and signalled for silence.
Louise froze. She didn’t know what Ben had seen. Then a movement caught her eye. Far away to the left in a sheltered hollow, two horses grazed. The black coat of the lead one shone like ebony. A larger liver chestnut with a thick mane and tail kept a few paces behind.
Ben turned slowly to Louise and indicated for her to be quiet with a finger to his lips. He kept his voice to a whisper. “Bachelors. They don’t belong to any mob. The mares push them out when they reach breeding age. I bet they’d like Lady to start their own herd.” He applied his legs and a tiny bit of rein, causing the responsive mare to perform a perfect turn on her hindquarters.
With a last backward look, Louise also turned her gelding and headed back into the trees, though not with the same elegance. The thought of the young stallions occupied her mind. “Can they be dangerous?” She couldn’t see how two young horses could harm them when they were mounted on well behaved domesticated horses.
“No point risking it. It doesn’t matter, there’s another way. It’s just a bit longer.” Ben squeezed Lady into a trot along the trail they had just travelled, then turned into the scrub. The delicate mare flashed her white socks as she lifted her feet high to navigate over dead branches and rocks.
Louise couldn’t tell where the track ran amongst the trees. Everywhere just seemed like a jumble of fallen timber. “Do you know where we’re going?”
“Of course! Just let Ned follow. You’ll be right.” The riders pushed their way through thorny scrub.
Ben emerged onto a dirt road. “This is the Broken Cart fire trail. Come on, let’s race!” He took off before Louise had even gathered her reins.
Ned followed Lady without any instructions from her. Louise leant forward and rammed her feet deep in the stirrups. The fire trail rose and fell, winding around trees. Adrenaline surged through Louise’s body as her horse picked up speed. She heard Ben shout from up ahead but couldn’t make out what he said.
The next instant she saw a large tree across the track. Without time to think, she grabbed her horse’s mane as he leapt over the fallen trunk. No sooner had she sat up she had to duck down low against his neck to squeeze under a branch at head height. “Slow down! I’m not used to this!”
Louise didn’t know if Ben had heard her or not as he raced ahead. She hung tight with her knees and shortened her reins. The exhilaration of hooning along the track made up for her fear.
She caught up with Ben where he had stopped. Having pulled Ned up with ease, she sagged, relieved she hadn’t fallen off, but at the same time wanting to race again.
He grinned at her. “How cool was that? We’d better walk for a bit.”
Louise nodded, unable to speak, her heart pounding in her chest. She had never ridden so fast. She patted Ned on the neck with shaking hands and loosened the reins to the buckle. The gelding stretched his head to the ground and blew his nose, then gave a violent shake through his whole body. His bit chinked and rattled. Louise felt as if her bones did the same. “Hey! Stop that.”
By the time the riders reached the edge of Tumbleford Farm, Ben’s home, the afternoon sun hung low in the sky. Louise’s legs felt like jelly. “What a great day! But I can’t get that beautiful buckskin out of my mind. She looked so healthy and full of life.”
Louise recalled how the young mare’s coat gleamed bronze in the sun, her thick black forelock wrapping behind her ears as she galloped, her black legs a blur of agility. “How could anyone kill such a magnificent animal? Are you sure we can’t do anything to save her?”
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