Sweet goodbyes

August 27th

The strange thing about travelling is that it always feels like you’ve been somewhere forever while at the same time it seems like just yesterday that you arrived. That’s how I feel now, it feels like time just flew by while I was in the USA while at the same time it seems like ages ago when I left New York. I am back at JFK airport now, waiting for my flight to Dublin (and then on to Amsterdam). I’ll arrive in Amsterdam Sunday morning around 10AM, after forty hours and five flights. I don’t know why I thought booking these flights was a good idea at the time, I am exhausted. At least I didn’t have to travel on my own for the first part of the journey. Jess, one of the other interns, was on the same flight to Salt Lake City as I was and in Salt Lake we saw Rosie and George, who had left Cody a couple hours before we did. It was so good to see them again even though they had only just left. I can’t believe how close I’ve gotten to all the people I’ve met on my travels and how much I’m gonna miss them. Thank you guys for making this an amazing summer and an experience I will never forget. It’s going to be quiet to be back home again and not constantly be surrounded by other people. I am already trying to figure out when and where I can go on my next trip. I always thought I wouldn’t be good at staying abroad for an extended period of time, I’d miss my family and friends (and horse!) too much. And I do miss them, but I also realised I love meeting new people and exploring new places and this is a good time in my life to do it. I must also admit I rather liked not having wifi and not constantly being in contact with everyone, it was nice and quiet.

This trip has made me realise I’m still a country girl at heart, even though I loved living in the city. There is no better feeling than riding through the middle of nowhere on your horse. The views in Wyoming were amazing, I don’t think they’ll ever get old. On every ride I was amazed by the mountains surrounding me. I love how the steep slopes that petrified me on my first day seemed easy during the third week. The feeling of trusting your horse to get you down safely is great. Even though I ride western back home and I am used to riding on a long rein (or without a bridle) this experience has thought me to just trust my horse to find it’s on way down a hill and not having to control everything. I got to ride a lot of different horses and learned a lot about training. I especially loved those training sessions. The methods they use are mostly in line with what I do back home but it’s amazing to see how much patience MaeCile has with the horses. Where others would have given up or would have gotten angry with the horse she just tries again. She also emphasizes the importance of taking small steps and giving the horse time to digest what it has learned. The amount of time she invests in ground work certainly pays off in the long run.

 

It was a weird last day as two of the interns had already left in the middle of the night. The rest of us got up at 5.30 to tack up for one final ride. Jess wanted to see the sunrise and we got to the top of the hill just in time. The second we arrived, the sun peeked out from behind the mountains. The colours were amazing, the sky was painted in shades of pink and purple. Even though it was freezing, it was one of the best rides of the holiday. When we rode back to the ranch over the mountains, we found the rest of the horses peacefully grazing up there. I’ve never seen them on top of the mountains and it was such an amazing sight, definitely my ‘gift’ for today.

After the ride, George took photos of me and Hazel. I love how great they turned out. I look like a real cowgirl. I did manage to lose my cowboy hat when loping around the arena and of course it fell on Hazel. She didn’t spook too badly though and I didn’t fall of this time ;) I wish I could take this horse home. She has been amazing, one of the sweetest horses I’ve ever ridden. She loved a good gallop but I never felt out of control and she was a true mountain goat! Unfortunately it was time to say goodbye to the other interns after that as their flight was around noon. It was really weird being at the ranch without them. Jess and I had lunch with Emelie and MaeCile and finished our packing. It was a struggle to get all my souvenirs (*cough* boots *cough*) in my bag but I did manage in the end. And like a true cowgirl I tied my rope to my bag with some bailing twine! With two carry-on bags instead of the one I came with, we boarded the plane in Cody. I was really sad to be leaving Wyoming and I hope I get to go back someday!