A few pictures from the last few days
Just a few random pictures from the last few days that I am putting together as though they add up to a post:
Iris looking pretty on a sunny morning before a very long, very boring, schooling ride in which we had a lot of conversations about going where she is asked to while out on the trail, rather than deciding that she is definitely going to take the shortest route home. I think it was probably a success, but time will tell.
Riding up through the misty woods. The other day we had a heavy fog that gradually lifted until it went through a beautiful luminous phase as the sun started to break through. At that point I realised my camera battery was flat, so I ended up waiting a while before going out for a ride and the mist was only hanging on narrowly.
Grey ears and a misted field.
We did our first full circuit of the Devil's Punchbowl, which was a reasonable distance and with lots of hill work. Iris comported herself with absolute excellence. The only time she got at all flustered was when there was a big crane thing picking up whole trees and swinging them around and to be fair that was a touch discombobulating. It was a very pleasant ride.
Also the mist was hanging a little on the lower ground and obscuring the hills in the distance so that the world grew and instead of low downland ten miles away they became grand mountains on the far side of a broad plain. A very pleasing effect.
We have been using the school a lot too, as it is still sufficiently dry ( until today it had barely rained in weeks ) and Iris is starting to do some really nice work. I think I'm getting better too, but I feel like my riding has not been up to scratch lately so I'm working very hard at making sure I'm really going with her whenever we work and not getting all caught up and carrying tension that I then convey straight to her.
With some fence work and more cantering since the dressage test a few weeks ago, we're starting to get some reasonable brakes too. She is an absolute joy to work with.
(Last two pictures by herecirm, as you probably guessed.)
Iris looking pretty on a sunny morning before a very long, very boring, schooling ride in which we had a lot of conversations about going where she is asked to while out on the trail, rather than deciding that she is definitely going to take the shortest route home. I think it was probably a success, but time will tell.
Riding up through the misty woods. The other day we had a heavy fog that gradually lifted until it went through a beautiful luminous phase as the sun started to break through. At that point I realised my camera battery was flat, so I ended up waiting a while before going out for a ride and the mist was only hanging on narrowly.
Grey ears and a misted field.
We did our first full circuit of the Devil's Punchbowl, which was a reasonable distance and with lots of hill work. Iris comported herself with absolute excellence. The only time she got at all flustered was when there was a big crane thing picking up whole trees and swinging them around and to be fair that was a touch discombobulating. It was a very pleasant ride.
Also the mist was hanging a little on the lower ground and obscuring the hills in the distance so that the world grew and instead of low downland ten miles away they became grand mountains on the far side of a broad plain. A very pleasing effect.
We have been using the school a lot too, as it is still sufficiently dry ( until today it had barely rained in weeks ) and Iris is starting to do some really nice work. I think I'm getting better too, but I feel like my riding has not been up to scratch lately so I'm working very hard at making sure I'm really going with her whenever we work and not getting all caught up and carrying tension that I then convey straight to her.
With some fence work and more cantering since the dressage test a few weeks ago, we're starting to get some reasonable brakes too. She is an absolute joy to work with.
(Last two pictures by herecirm, as you probably guessed.)