Pale ale rider

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This was published 15 years ago

Pale ale rider

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Owen Thomson meets his inner jackeroo - and he can't wait for a beer at the end of a sometimes bumpy ride.

It's a little after high noon and I'm sitting high in the saddle, trusty mount beneath me, dreaming of beer. And of the moment my bum stops aching. I'm about two hours into the Bellrowan Valley pub ride, a 26-kilometre, two-day adventure in the foothills west of Port Macquarie.

It's an outing that caters for riders of all abilities, which is just as well because this is only my second time on a horse. My first experience, more than 15 years ago, was a white-knuckle, near-death experience.

On this day, Bob Marley has been entrusted with ensuring I don't come to grief. An enormous six-year-old gelding, Bob appears to have little in common with his famous namesake. He has four legs, doesn't appear to know the words to any reggae classics and is so large that I need to stand on a tree stump to climb aboard. Head guide Mark Ennor assures me that Bob is the perfect companion: gentle, accommodating and used to riders of my inability.

Our group of 10 includes Ennor and two more guides. We ride single-file along a bush trail, flanked by a forest of tall strong-scented eucalypts, as king parrots, currawongs and kookaburras sound off overhead.

Succumbing to overconfidence, I think I might have this horse riding thing sorted - until we have to up the tempo. Responding to a slight prodding, Bob instantly quickens his pace to a trot.

Suddenly, it feels as though my pelvis is about to undergo a forced relocation - to the area surrounding my throat. It's all about timing and rhythm. Evidently I have none.

Mercifully, Ennor moves me to the front of the line for some special tuition. There are a few ways to master the rise trot, he says. Some riders use the sound of the horses' hooves as their reference point; others skilfully read the movement of the shoulders. For now I'm content to respond to his repeated sallies of "up, down, up, down". Miraculously, I sort of get it. It's a triumphant moment in which I finally placate my inner Marlboro Man.

We settle down to a more manageable pace, emerging from thick forest to be greeted by rolling green hills and the far-off Bago Bluff. A cool breeze suddenly hits us, giving respite from the heat of the day.

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Far off, on the next ridge, we spot four kangaroos resting in the shade of an enormous gum. We move on, towards a well-earned beer.

After four hours in the saddle, the much-anticipated Beechwood Hotel finally looms large. With mounts tethered to a hitching rail outside we stampede inside and I order my first schooner. It disappears like water in a drought-stricken creek bed.

With a replacement ale, I head out to the veranda to watch the sun set, a palette of ever-changing pinks, reds and blues.

After a classic country-pub dinner, we wander to Beechwood Cellars and Post Office for a spot of port tasting. We meet the proprietor, who serves small samples of locally blended ports, sherries and muscats, all bearing enticingly original monikers such as Brown Rat and Rambo Rummy Port. It's a tragedy that all of Australia's post offices can't also double as fine liquor repositories.

Horses resting in a paddock out the back of the pub, Ennor's partner, Julie, drives us back to our starting point, the couple's secluded 320-hectare bushland spread. I opt to sleep under the stars and a near-full moon, bushman-style, in a canvas swag as an evening mist gives the scene a dream-like quality. Thoughts of claustrophobic city life couldn't be further away.

The next day begins with all the barbecued bacon, sausages and toad-in-the-hole I can eat. We return to the pub to start our return leg. We head off, above us an open sky and ahead of us an open trail and the promise of a damper and a tea break after an hour. I'll never look at horsepower quite the same way again.

Owen Thomson travelled courtesy of Greater Port Macquarie Tourism.

FAST FACTS

Getting there

Bellrowan Valley is 40 minutes' drive west of Port Macquarie and about 4 1/2 hours' drive from Sydney. QantasLink and Virgin Blue fly daily from Sydney to Port Macquarie. Phone Qantas on 131 313 or see http://www.qantas.com.au or phone Virgin Blue on 136 789 or see http://www.virginblue.com.au. Bellrowan Valley itself is a 30-minute drive from the town's airport. Contact 1st Class Rentals (1stclassrentals@gmail.com) to arrange hire-car pick-up from the airport.

Bookings

Phone Bellrowan Valley Horse Riding on 6587 5227 or see http://www.bellrowanvalley.com.au. As a special offer, book before December 1 and you will receive $50 off a couple - just mention Rambo Rummy Port. Conditions apply, phone for details.

More information

Phone 1300 303 155 or see http://www.portmacquarieinfo.com.au.

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