On our day off this week we took Mr Mac (the grey horse Tanya has been riding recently) down to the water in Skinners Paddock. We rode bareback and took him for a swim in the water, it was so much fun. The water was warm, which was lovely when we fell in on our attempt to trot/canter without a saddle.
During the week we both had a ride in one of the helicopters used for mustering, which was incredible! We could only go up one at a time as it seats 2 people, and with no doors you wouldn’t want to squeeze any more in. Owen flew along the fence line, where he was dropped off to do some work. When he got back, Tanya jumped in for a quick spin around the homestead. We both loved every minute. After smoko, it was back to work and back down to the yards. We tagged and drafted cattle for a buyer who flew here in his own plane (which isn’t unusual in the outback). It’s a business trial where he purchases the cattle based on their weight now and then they stay on the property until they are ready to go to market. That way, people can invest in cattle without having to acquire land, while the farmer has extra cash for keeping the already purchased cattle on his property. So it’s a win win for both parties.
At the end of the week the men went into town to drop a worker off and run some errands, while the women were left to look after the station. Tanya had a quite few days, doing odd jobs such as cleaning, fencing and feeding the animals whilst also spending the evenings watching girly films with the others. Owen on the other hand had a busy and social few days, eating out and getting to know the local town whilst driving around looking for parts and dropping vehicles off. When we say driving around we don’t mean going from Carmarthen to Llanelli, it’s more like if Carmarthen doesn’t have the part let’s go to Bath and then back to Cardiff to reach the turn off for home! We’re still getting used to the distances is this country.
During the week we both had a ride in one of the helicopters used for mustering, which was incredible! We could only go up one at a time as it seats 2 people, and with no doors you wouldn’t want to squeeze any more in. Owen flew along the fence line, where he was dropped off to do some work. When he got back, Tanya jumped in for a quick spin around the homestead. We both loved every minute. After smoko, it was back to work and back down to the yards. We tagged and drafted cattle for a buyer who flew here in his own plane (which isn’t unusual in the outback). It’s a business trial where he purchases the cattle based on their weight now and then they stay on the property until they are ready to go to market. That way, people can invest in cattle without having to acquire land, while the farmer has extra cash for keeping the already purchased cattle on his property. So it’s a win win for both parties.
At the end of the week the men went into town to drop a worker off and run some errands, while the women were left to look after the station. Tanya had a quite few days, doing odd jobs such as cleaning, fencing and feeding the animals whilst also spending the evenings watching girly films with the others. Owen on the other hand had a busy and social few days, eating out and getting to know the local town whilst driving around looking for parts and dropping vehicles off. When we say driving around we don’t mean going from Carmarthen to Llanelli, it’s more like if Carmarthen doesn’t have the part let’s go to Bath and then back to Cardiff to reach the turn off for home! We’re still getting used to the distances is this country.