Winnie Makes New Friends

From Monterey, MA, Winnie and I continued on our walk down Route 23 toward Great Barrington. At the entrance to the Appalachian Trail, we paused in the pouring rain for a photo of the sign. (The sign failed to mention that horses are not allowed on the Appalachian Trail.) Winnie behaved like a pro as we made our way through busy Great Barrington to take a break at the Berkshire Co-op. The kind manager there brought Winnie a bucket of water. Another kind woman brought tea and a cookie for Ann, much appreciated! Meanwhile, a reporter from the Berkshire Recorder interviewed Ann while Winnie entertained more fans and sampled the grass across the street from the Co-op.

We pushed on through town, and found ourselves in the country again. At one point a herd of more than a hundred young steers and heifers stampeded down a hill to get a look at Winnie. She stayed calm, and when we walked on, the whole herd followed us as far as the pasture fence would allow, mooing all the way. I told Winnie she'd achieved the rank of head mare for a whole herd of youngsters!

After 13 miles we arrived at our destination in North Egremont, to be hosted by sweet Elizabeth, her daughter and a barnyard full of new friends for Winnie. We thought she would like Belle the donkey best, but she seemed to take to Hazel the cow more, probably due to her earlier experience with the herd of youngsters. We had a lovely stay at Elizabeth's, helping Lila celebrate her 5th birthday with Elinor and her mom, Kristin. The next day, Anna from Blue Rider Stable stopped by to meet Winnie and I learned about the wonderful work they do there, using rescue horses for therapeutic riding.

Yesterday afternoon, Mister Albino came for a visit and took us to hunt down a front lift pad for Winnie's sawbuck. We got great service from Tim at Country Tack in Lanesboro, MA. Visit their web site at Country Tack.