Invasion From The South

We were on duty today and just about to finish our rounds when I noticed new horses in the Oceanside campground. We turned our golf cart in to discover the arrival of Bayberry, a mahogany bay stallion, and his 10 mares. It appears Bayberry is a ladies man. I grabbed my camera and started methodically getting images of as many of these newcomers as I could. This sounds easy but the horses are constantly on the move, looking for the tastiest bits of grass. Then there is the makeup of this particular band. There are two reddish bay mares, three chestnut  mares and five pintos. This is an impressive band and Bayberry keeps a watchful eye on all of his ladies, all while smelling the air for approaching stallions and grabbing his share of the tender blades of grass between sites.

Whenever there is a band of horses in sight, no matter how large or small, people will gather. Pony patrol was on scene to help keep people safe and honest while we made sure cars parked safely. There are some campers who are here for the beach or fishing and could care less about the horses so we needed to be sure they could travel to their sites unimpeded.

Suddenly, Bayberry’s head came up, he stomped a hoof and blew his nose. And before I knew it, the entire band was on the move at a trot up over the dunes and onto the beach. Once they hit the hard packed sand, they were off at a canter, kicking up their heels, snorting and bucking. The only way to describe their actions would be to say they felt fine. The sun was warm, there was a cool breeze and maybe Bayberry felt he had gotten away with sneaking his mares onto the sweet grass of another stallion’s territory without being caught.