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A patient, honest, kindly friend,
The packhorse plodded down the years,
Content his humble life to spend
In toil to aid the pioneers.
Before the swagman and his load,
Before the wagon and the train,
He trampled out the dusty road
And trod the dry road in again.
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He bore the first prospector's pan,
The first surveyor's tent and gear;
With Sturt and Mitchell led the van
O'er plains of doubt , through scrubs of fear.
The danger-circled path he kept,
And bore the blankets on his back
Of watchful men who seldom slept.
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EQUIPMENT
The ILPH advises that a
pack horse can theoretically carry up to about 90 Kg, in two loads of
35Kg plus a top load. Mary has a lesser load - not least because she has
to lift the bags up to the necessary height to fit them to the
pack saddle!
At the start of any
‘leg’ the two packs weigh between 25kg and 30 kg each, with a top
load (shoeing stuff and electric fence posts) of about 12kg.
The total is of course less than the riding horse carries, by the
time he is shouldering not only Mary but also her lunch and her cameras
etc, but it is of course a dead weight and it does not get off and walk
going down hill!
For the horses:
Much of this is
purchased from The Saddlery Barn, Templeton
* Stock saddle – a Bates Kimberley Poley supplied by Weatherbeeta
Pack saddle and harness - supplied by Rob Stanley of Hurunui Horse
Treks
Numnahs and saddle blankets. Feed Mark (UK) has
supplied a 'Heather Moffatt' back protector for the riding horse. This
is made from a special slow-recovery foam which was designed for seating
in Nasa space flights!
*Station bridle made by Les Wilkins Saddlery in Harwarden, with snaffle
bit Light rope halters with
long lead ropes
Picket ropes, hobbles,
Spare reins, spare girth, spare stirrup leather, spare rope
*Leather mending kit - needles, twine, saddle soap
*Lightweight waterproof rugs supplied by Weatherbeeta
Grooming glove, hoof pick, hoof oil
Hard feed - a small supply of NRM sweetfeed mix for contingencies
Small plastic bucket
Saddle bag made by Les
Wilkins Saddlery in Harwarden
Pack bags, top load
straps
Scales : a 50 Kg spring balance is
essential as the two side pack bags MUST be equal weights.
Worm powders - supplied by Equest
*Homeopathic first aid kit supplied by Crossgates farm
Storm kettle supplied by the Eydon
Kettle Company
First Aid Kits - for the horses and for mary - supplied by Robinsons
Animal Health Care and VETPRO
including electrolytes
- Glide, chafe spray, Sun block, Insect Repellent for horses and for
Mary, *Shoeing Tools - spare
sets of shoes for both horses, hammer, rasp, buffer, pincers, assorted
nails, pliers,
A Very Sharp knife readily accessible in a sheath on the saddle, for
emergencies.
Cell phone, recharge kit
Irridium Satellite
Phone, provided by Leeds United football club
Mini Electric fence unit supplied by Gallagher Electric Fence
For Mary:
Alarm clock, head torch , Spare batteries
Maps - 1:50000 – many
printed out from TOPOMAP cd rom
Camera, binoculars
Water bottle with built in
filtration system, Billy
Plate, bowl, mug, knife, fork, spoon, frypan, etc, washing up
necessities
Cool bag
Dry bags
Thermarest, Sleeping bag wrapped in a canoe drybag supplied by HIGH
COUNTRY in Christchurch, lightweight camping
towel
Tent, tent pegs
Gas cooker + spare gas bottle, Gas light, candles, matches, fire
starters
Loo roll, trowel, mosquito coils, fly spray
, diary, sketch pad, watercolours
Clothing - full chaps, three Rohan shirts, swandri
Waterproof supplied by
BACKHOUSE
Hiking boots – not
riding boots as a good grip is essential when walking on rough ground or
down steep tussock slopes
Plus – of course!
Food – pasta, ‘pasta snacks’, cereals, dried goods, fruit and
nuts, tea, coffee,
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