I just received the first package from the boys. It contains journal pages and photographs which will be posted on the gallery page. Jane Hubbard
They write:
Day 1.
The first day was a little bit crazy. All of us, humans and horses were a bit nervous. We made about 15 kilometres and we found a nice place to spend the night. We put our tarp up and used our saddles for pillows. Then the storm came, complete with pounding rain, thunder and lightening. Well, we are not too concerned as we are close to Coldwater, Ontario.
Day 2.
We were on the road by 8:00 am. It was an absolutely brutal day. We stayed in the saddle for 10 hours and ended up near Severn Park, which incidentally is the blackfly capital of the world! There was trouble finding a place to bed down as it is all cottage country in the area. When we did find a place to rest, we thought it made sense to leave quite early, but take it easy so as to not over-tire the horses. We are all adjusting to life on the trail. We have met some wonderful people along the way (www.naturalhorse.com)

Of course, it started to rain in the middle of the night and because the skies looked clear, we hadn’t put our tarp up. We took the tarp, covered our saddles and bags and stayed with the horses till first light. Lesson learned? Always put up the tarp!
Day 3.
At first light, we saddled up and got going. The problem today was that in the middle of the bush, there’s not much for the horses to eat. We gave them water and they grazed on the grass at the side of the road. Our plan for today was to go through “Big Chute” towards highway 400. We realized that the area we were in was perfect for survival practice, but not for horses. It became clear that we needed to find a farm where we could buy some hay. The horses were getting hungry, just like cranky babies they were getting touchy and unnerved by little things…such as a frog. Roo (Paul’s horse) was getting stubborn and was getting to the point that he didn’t want to walk anymore.
We stopped in Big Chute to ask directions to the nearest farm and the horses were under some trees. Suddenly Roo got spooked and took off which caused Chevy (Dirk’s horse) to do the same! A car stopped and Paul jumped in and they drove 2 kilometres down the road where a woman had found the horses and was holding them both.
In the meantime I was kept busy collecting my belongings off of the road as my drybag had ripped in half and my saddlebag had opened spilling its contents far and wide!
We had been told that we could not travel along highway 69 so we bypassed the area. We found ourselves at a farm just north of Sudbury where everyone was able to have a good rest. I had my saddlebags repaired.
It is much colder here than it was in Toronto and on Saturday (May 8), they were calling for snow! The nights are definitely cold and as we are not allowed to have a fire we are sleeping with the horses in order to keep warm. We are keeping warm with two pullovers, a duster and a blanket each.
So we are now moving towards Lively, Ontario. We thought that taking a mining road as a shortcut would be a good idea. After travelling for 16 km, we were told we’d have to turn around and go back as they were starting to blast. We had to go back the same way we came for the whole 16 km as there was no other route.
We came off of the mining road, got a bale of hay and put up our camp.
Day 6.
We took off early and made it to Nairn. It was snowing like crazy and when we arrived in Nairn, we stopped at a horse farm. We were totally covered in snow and we were all so very tired so that night we slept with the horses.
Day 7.
We left early this morning (Sunday…it’s been a week) and from Espanola, Ontario, took the Old Webbwood Road towards our friend Hans Hansen’s place (www.infinitywoodcraftcreations.ca).
Day 8.
We were hell-bent to make it to Hans’ place in order for us all to have a good rest. It is only 10 km along the highway, but we took the backand bush roads and so it was actually a 25 km journey. We are really happy to give the horses a good rest and Hans’ wife Ange has been so helpful with the horses. She’s well experienced, having horses of her own. We are planning to get up early on Wednesday morning with the sun again and hit the open road… Please stay tuned, meet us along the way and share your thoughts on our grand adventure.
Dirk and Paul.