Imagine spending five days riding horses, quads and motorbikes, fixing fences, mustering cattle and loads of other stuff. Besides that I got to spend the week with some awesome people, around a bonfire, gazing at the stars every night. I can honoustly say that I have had one of the best weeks ever.
Monday
Monday morning I boarded the train from Sydney to Mudgee and met up with the three other girls – Anne, Charlotte and Claudia – who were doing the course this week. After a super scenic journey through the Blue Mountains and New South Wales’ backcountry, our two instructors, Alice and Johan, picked us up in Mudgee.
I am so happy I got to meet these people, because they only made the course that much more fun. I can be a bit shy in a group of people I don’t really know, but there was absolutely no reason for feeling uncomfortable with them. We were a great combination of fun people who were eager to learn, and relaxed personalities with some silliness thrown into the mix. Also a shout-out to Jo, who was just fantastic, made me feel at home right away, and got us all jobs at farms in Queensland.
That evening we got introduced to the chickens who soon got names like Barbara and Jackson, we sat by the bonfire, and learned about the “shad-hat”. Remember not to do anything stupid like falling off an un-moving vehicle or tripping over a gate, because that will result in you feeling ridiculous in that rainbow colored hat
Tuesday
To get used to the farm life we got up at 6 in the morning, had breakfast and were out the door by 7, all ready to ride some horses. That morning we also met Neil, the all Australian cowboy who taught us loads of stuff about horses, mustering, cattle and general farm life in Australia. We took the horses out around the property for a relaxed morning ride through the woods and fields, with a very welcome tea break halfway. Just the feeling of riding in such a beautiful, open and vast landscape is amazing. I can’t help but feel so relaxed and happy. There is something soothing about riding through Australian fields in the early morning. Which was a very relaxing start of this action-packed day.
We seriously did a crazy amount of stuff this day. From making a fence to riding quads, and from learning some four-wheel-driving to tying perfect knots. But as you all know I love a little bit of adrenaline and the motorbikes sure got it running through my veins. I have always had this secret wish of riding a motorbike, but the bad accident my dad once had always kept me from doing it. Damn did I love it! Sorry mom…
Wednesday
So, our Wednesday was a bit different from a usual Wednesday, because we got to visit the annual AgQuip in Gunnadah. Seriously, today couldn’t feel more country. The terrain was filled with cowboys, boots, hats, equipment, cattle and some very heavy machinery. Us girls spend the day walking around the terrain, taking pictures of the cows, sitting in a car on a 45 degree iron hill, trying on hats, taking pictures with one huge koala and eating free samples.
Thursday
So you might think that farming is more a job for men than women, and I absolutely get why you would think that. Especially after this day filled with “men-stuff”. A couple of years ago I would’ve been so proud of myself when I did something simple like change a lightbulb or put together an Ikea bookcase. Now I can say that I can change a car tire and fix a barbwire fence. Improvement! After having our heads under the hood of a car or protected by a welding mask for most of the day it was, however, nice to go do some more girly stuff like lassoing and grooming two adorable Shetlands. This day we also learned that we all had gotten a job at a farm in Queensland, which called for a party! It’s been a long a time since I laughed that much playing games like drinking jenga and ring of fire.
Friday
As always, you have to end something amazing with a bang, and that is what we did on our last day. Anne and I loved riding the bikes and we really wanted to learn some more like shifting gears and riding off-road. Johan was kind of enough to get up early as well and give us an extra lesson which Charlotte also joined. After riding in the field for a while and shifting gear after gear after gear it was time to head down to Neil’s farm for some mustering and cattle handling. Instead of riding the quads there, Anne and I got to ride the bikes there. That was absolutely freaking awesome! Yes, there were some scary bits (gosh those rocks…) but it was seriously awesome with a crazy sense of freedom.
Then the mustering. I had seen it on TV so many times, and even though it was over so fast, I loved it. It is those moments that I realize that I truly am in Australia and it is just crazy that I get to do stuff like this. Once we had all the cows and calves (and one big bull) in the paddock we separated them to spray the cows with some liquid against lice. I didn’t realize cows could get that mental when trapped…damn! Doing stuff like that is just so country, so Australian, and it only makes me long for more. Ending the week underneath a star-filled sky made it even better. Great way to end an amazing week.
That being said. If you want to have a farm experience in Australia like this, join in with Xtreme. You’ll learn loads and an amazing time is guaranteed. Thanks so much to Jo, Neil, Johan and Alice. You guys were great teachers, but above that amazing company