We woke early again and took a walk along the beach. After the tasty breakfast, we were ready for the day's adventures. Today was a big day for me- my first ever horse ride. We were told that the island people were accustomed to 'the island time' and start when they are ready. But we were picked up by the owner of the Santo Horse Adventures, Megan-Jane Lockyer right on time.
Megan owned Lope Lope Adventure Lodge, which was located in the middle of a forest with a lot of coconut trees. The ground had beach sand and everywhere there were holes made by crabs, big enough for the horse legs to get trapped in. We were driven straight to the stables which had just four horses. Megan explained that she owned about 28 horses and most of them were rescued from abuse. I felt an instant love for these beautiful horses.
I was extremely nervous as I had never been this close to a horse before. Megan was very encouraging and gave me a lot of tips on how to hold on to my horse 'Duke'. When I approached him, he seemed calm and relaxed. As it was my first time, Megan got out a mounting step for me which made it extremely easy to climb onto the saddle. I felt taller looking down and felt more nervous. I was instructed on how to sit, hold the ropes, ride and change directions. I tried to make Duke move once I felt a little comfortable. Being a gentle and lazy horse, he just stood there yawning.
Once everybody was on a horse, we started moving towards the forest trails slowly. Duke was a follower and so there we were, walking slowly through the path, avoiding the spiders. It was a sunny day and Megan had made sure we had riding hats on, incase of any falling coconuts. She kept up a steady chatter about the plantation, the horses, the villages, the history and the tamanu trees. Tamanu oil is extremely beneficial to the skin and grows easily in this beautiful island.
Gradually I felt my nervousness evaporating and started enjoying the scenery around me. Duke would stop every few minutes to bite off leaves from the bushes he could reach and no matter how hard I pulled, he wouldn't budge. The plantation also had a few fresh water blue holes which the horses enjoyed immensely. The cold water was so clear the we could see the depths of the pool. It took me a while to persuade Duke to get out, he really loved the cold water. Off we were again, through the forest and onto the main road.
For the first time I heard what the books call the 'clippity clop of a horse'. It was a distinctive and mesmerising sound. Before I could gather my thoughts, we were back inside the forest and into another blue hole. After a little more walking and much more yawning from Duke, we reached the beach and the water was a beautiful shade of blue shining in the bright sun. The horses were at ease in the water and there were no coral reefs here. We rode in the calm waters whilst admiring the magnificence of the waters. Everything was perfect, the weather, the breeze, the endless water. I didn't ever want to leave.
Eventually we got to the end of the path on the beach and Duke got out of the water. The walk back home seemed to have given Duke new energy and he trotted happily first in line. Once we were back at the stables, the mounting steps were brought out again and I was happy to be on solid ground. The trip took about an hour and half and was entirely worth the experience. My legs hurt a little and was told this was normal the first time. Megan had fresh coconut waters waiting for us and it tasted delicious after our ride in the sun. I fed Duke a slice of fresh bread out of my hand and he gobbled it up in a second.
I had an absolutely amazing time and would recommend anyone visiting Santo to take one of Megan's tours. Megan is specially kind to first timers and the horses are very gentle, so have no fear and have a great time. I can't wait for next time I visit them again.
Megan dropped us back at the resort and we just realised that we were famished. The vegetarian burgers prepared with chips were especially tasty. We heard from the other guests that they had seen a turtle in waters close to the beach. Off we went into the water snorkelling to look for sea grass as the turtles liked to eat them. We didn't have any luck and I was disappointed as I really wanted to see a turtle in a natural setting. We took the kayak out again in search of turtles and sea grass. Alas, no luck again.
By the time we got back, we had given up on finding turtles and sat down with our novels on the cosy beach recliners. It was very peaceful to read in this setting and we let our minds wander in the books till it was too dark to read. We trooped to the restaurant for dinner. Everyone of the staff wanted to ask about my first horse ride and I was eager to share my experience. It had been a good day and I look forward to riding a horse the next time.
Megan owned Lope Lope Adventure Lodge, which was located in the middle of a forest with a lot of coconut trees. The ground had beach sand and everywhere there were holes made by crabs, big enough for the horse legs to get trapped in. We were driven straight to the stables which had just four horses. Megan explained that she owned about 28 horses and most of them were rescued from abuse. I felt an instant love for these beautiful horses.
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| Horses in the stable |
I was extremely nervous as I had never been this close to a horse before. Megan was very encouraging and gave me a lot of tips on how to hold on to my horse 'Duke'. When I approached him, he seemed calm and relaxed. As it was my first time, Megan got out a mounting step for me which made it extremely easy to climb onto the saddle. I felt taller looking down and felt more nervous. I was instructed on how to sit, hold the ropes, ride and change directions. I tried to make Duke move once I felt a little comfortable. Being a gentle and lazy horse, he just stood there yawning.
Once everybody was on a horse, we started moving towards the forest trails slowly. Duke was a follower and so there we were, walking slowly through the path, avoiding the spiders. It was a sunny day and Megan had made sure we had riding hats on, incase of any falling coconuts. She kept up a steady chatter about the plantation, the horses, the villages, the history and the tamanu trees. Tamanu oil is extremely beneficial to the skin and grows easily in this beautiful island.
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Banyan tree in the forest
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| Blue hole |
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| Duke in the blue hole |
For the first time I heard what the books call the 'clippity clop of a horse'. It was a distinctive and mesmerising sound. Before I could gather my thoughts, we were back inside the forest and into another blue hole. After a little more walking and much more yawning from Duke, we reached the beach and the water was a beautiful shade of blue shining in the bright sun. The horses were at ease in the water and there were no coral reefs here. We rode in the calm waters whilst admiring the magnificence of the waters. Everything was perfect, the weather, the breeze, the endless water. I didn't ever want to leave.
Eventually we got to the end of the path on the beach and Duke got out of the water. The walk back home seemed to have given Duke new energy and he trotted happily first in line. Once we were back at the stables, the mounting steps were brought out again and I was happy to be on solid ground. The trip took about an hour and half and was entirely worth the experience. My legs hurt a little and was told this was normal the first time. Megan had fresh coconut waters waiting for us and it tasted delicious after our ride in the sun. I fed Duke a slice of fresh bread out of my hand and he gobbled it up in a second.
I had an absolutely amazing time and would recommend anyone visiting Santo to take one of Megan's tours. Megan is specially kind to first timers and the horses are very gentle, so have no fear and have a great time. I can't wait for next time I visit them again.
Megan dropped us back at the resort and we just realised that we were famished. The vegetarian burgers prepared with chips were especially tasty. We heard from the other guests that they had seen a turtle in waters close to the beach. Off we went into the water snorkelling to look for sea grass as the turtles liked to eat them. We didn't have any luck and I was disappointed as I really wanted to see a turtle in a natural setting. We took the kayak out again in search of turtles and sea grass. Alas, no luck again.
By the time we got back, we had given up on finding turtles and sat down with our novels on the cosy beach recliners. It was very peaceful to read in this setting and we let our minds wander in the books till it was too dark to read. We trooped to the restaurant for dinner. Everyone of the staff wanted to ask about my first horse ride and I was eager to share my experience. It had been a good day and I look forward to riding a horse the next time.
No hour of life is wasted that is spent in the saddle. ~Winston ChurchillTo ride a horse is to ride the sky
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