We had our first big New England snow storm of the year! I snowed for an entire day and gave the horses some wonderful footing in the paddock! The horses were playful with each other in the snow and almost all of them rolled around giving themselves ‘snow baths’ as Alicia likes to call them. The snow is fluffy still because we are going through a bit of a cold snap. Very early to have this type of weather but we certainly don’t mind it. We, and the horses, much prefer snow to rain.
When we have big jobs on the farm to complete, we rely heavily on our campers to help us complete these projects. We got some new stones for in between the dorms (a full dump truck!) and we needed to even them out across the path between the dorms. We taught our campers how to kneel down and look across the gravel to see the low spots and the high spots. Using the metal rakes, our campers leveled out the stones and filled in the lower areas by taking stones from the higher areas. We are proud of our campers for taking such great care of the farm and for working to keep it beautiful.
Finally, our favorite time of year. The air at Road’s End Farm is filled with laughter and the horses are getting brushed, scratched, and loved by campers. The beginning of camp is always an exciting time for our horses, our staff, and our campers. Our 12 summer staff members are doing a wonderful job teaching the new campers how the Road’s End Farm program operates. We have some qualified and talented counselors who will be instructing riding lessons for our campers on their favorite horses. Sometimes, when you ride your favorite horse, you can’t help but laugh. We have heard laughter throughout the trails and occasionally during the riding lessons in our rings. The horses are more than happy to be getting scratched and loved by girls who love them unconditionally.
June has come to Road’s End Farm, bringing sunny skies, a pleasant breeze, and a new supply of lush grass for the horses. The herd was moved toWheelocks yesterday, and the horses cantered across the road in excitement as the replenished fields came into view. Back at the barn, brushes, buckets, and bridles are being organized and dusted off in preparation for the arrival of campers. Other buildings like the recreation room and the arts and crafts center are being swept out and spruced up in order to provide optimal activity options to the girls who are coming for the summer of 2017. As far as personnel, the counselors are slowly arriving, preparing to learn about each horse along with the ins and outs of life here on the farm.
Jack has been wandering around up by the barn, itching himself on every available tree and munching on the grass around the house. As one of the elder members of the herd, Jack stayed behind during crossover, and though he misses some of the excitement, he enjoys a lot of scratches and love from anybody who walks through the yard. As horses begin to get older, they receive extra love from campers and staff and enjoy deluxe
benefits. Jack has been befriending an Icelandic horse, Prímus, who will be here for the summer.
As the weather warms up, activity increases and people flock to the premises to contribute to the farm and enjoy the herd. The upcoming three months are what we look forward to as a summer horseback-riding camp. We can’t wait to welcome campers new and old this summer, and share the farm with them again!
The horses were finally released into the grassy pasture on May 20 and they could not have been happier to get back out onto the fresh grass! There was lots of galloping and then after the mad dash, the horses continued frolicking around the top of the hill across from Wheelocks. We posted about the big release on Facebook and had about 40-50 people show up to watch. It was wonderful to be able to share the beauty of the herd of horses with others. As soon as the fields dried out and were safe enough for the horses to run without slipping or creating holes, we scheduled the event! This was the first year we have ‘advertised’ this event, which Tom named ‘The Great Escape,’ and we hope that everyone who came had a wonderful time! Enjoy watching a video of the running below! 🙂
P.O. Box 197, Jackson Hill Road
Chesterfield, New Hampshire 03443-0197
Telephone: 603/363-4900
Email: director@roadsendfarm.com
