Contentment

It is difficult to put into words the sense of well being that is possible after a long day of physical adventure, a hot bath, a seat on the verandah – as opposed to a seat on a horse 🙂

We are in the Howqua Valley, the river in front of me; the sound of its strong flow mingling with so many birds roosting for the night. The sun is setting and the trees appear luminous as the last rays filter through them. And the daffodils watch on as they clearly have done season after season.

Strange name Howqua, with equally strange possible origins, after a Chinese tea very popular during the 19th Century, after a Chinese surveyor of the area, (Ah Kin Wowqua); a derivative of Mount Howitt, where the river rises, and aqua; or if you prefer, after John “Howka” Hunter (1820–68), a pastoralist. I am guessing any will do, but it is probably better known as the countryside where they filmed The Man From Snowy River.

Which brings me back to the ride…. well almost back to the ride. Firstly though, I must remind you that riding and taking photographs are almost mutually exclusive, and even more so when you are not riding alone and cannot just stop at will. So most of the photographs we tried to take ended up in the ‘trash’ bin – you will need to engage your imagination if you mean to capture even a fraction of this adventure.