Mohaka River Farm: horse riding in 3 seasons - New Zealand

Having been in New Zealand since the end of August 2020, as soon as Schele and I had moved into our own place in Hastings, Hawke’s Bay I set about trying to find a regular horse to ride. I think having a reliable share back home in England (Joy), I was hoping to find the same sort of deal, but this was a lot more difficult in New Zealand for a number of reasons. Firstly, most people in NZ own their own horse and keep it on their own land, as opposed to livery yards back home in England where lots of people keep their horses and pay for them to be looked after or come up to do it themselves.

So, my regular riding became a combination of hacking up at Mohaka River farm every few weeks and learning natural horsemanship with Sara Jurca.

I found Mohaka River Farm by looking at a leaflet that I saw in Napier i-Site visitor centre. I enquired and I found them really friendly, so I booked a ride and went up for the first time on December 13th 2020. This is summertime in New Zealand but because of the altitude and weather conditions it was a little bit chilly.

The drive is about an hour from Hastings, but is along a pretty straightforward road which goes from Hastings to Napier and then up State Highway 5 towards Taupo. The drive is scenic and I always enjoyed the route there and back, passing nature, cafes and wineries in Eskdale.

When I arrived at Mohaka River Farm, I was greeted warmly at reception then headed over to the outside area where the horses were being tacked up. I was introduced to a charming lady called Fleur. This started the beginning of a really strong friendship between myself and Fleur, as well as her family. She wore a modest long skirt and had her hair tied back in a bun. She explained to me once we became more acquainted that this was part of how she adheres to the modesty set out by her Christian faith. I admired this so much, and I felt so comfortable being there.

It was so unusual for me to meet someone else who was so proudly wearing their religious attire unashamedly and she was also a very skilled rider. She was incredible, she could easily mount from the ground effortlessly and she had the kind of demeanour that makes you feel safe when you’re out on a ride together on a horse that you’ve never ridden before.

We shared intimate conversations about faith, and the joy of riding and how spiritual the experience can be. I think that going up to Mohaka was probably one of the most blessed parts of my experience in New Zealand. We openly praised God and I felt so understood and my heart was full of elation by being in their presence. There was something about the place that felt special to me, and this quickly began to mean much more to me than just riding, it was a kind of spiritual experience for me. I think that Fleur and her family realised that this connection was special too, as they shared a lot more with me than with people who just came to ride out on the trails for an hour or two. I was and still am very grateful for that closeness.

The first horse that I tried when I came to Mohaka was Jet, and I always stuck with him.

I remember having the discussion with Fleur when I started riding Jet, that it always takes a bit of time to learn the way that the horse you are riding ‘does things’. What I mean to say is that, riding multiple different horses you pick up a certain ‘sense’ for what that horse finds acceptable or not, for example, do they get agitated with having very short reins and become irritable, or do they not listen at all if your reins are too loose, for example. Just like people, every horse has their own personality and just as how you treat everyone you know in a slightly different way based on how you know them to be, this holds true with horses also.

Jet made a lot of faces, (as you can see in these photos) and he often pinned his ears back at the slightest thing but he would quickly relax. I learned to trust him and love his canter which had a lot of power considering his somewhat slender and elegant frame. He sort of lolloped, it wasn’t a rounded movement, it had a certain jagged quality to it but after that first ride I understood it and learned to sit myself into it.

The whole area surrounding Mohaka River Farm was just gorgeous, there was such serenity and tranquility in the land. The way the mist settled on the hills around the farm was so peaceful and hearing the birdsong was just beautiful.

Post ride, looking quite brown in the summer light. He looks a bit sort of scrawny here, but it does fool, as he actually packs a lot of power and does not get breathless or tired easily.

I carried on riding up at Mohaka, and before long summer had passed, and it was autumn, around May-time. In total I rode at Mohaka six times during my time in NZ.

This is the road up the hill towards Mohaka River Farm. It passes over a beautiful river which goes directly through the farm. I swam in this river on a hot day which was a really nice experience. Well, actually what happened was, on one the rides, Fleur asked me whether I would like to try one of their new horses, called Spice. I said of course I would. We were having a nice ride out and we were walking the track by the valley edge which looks over the river, where there is quite a steep drop. I think we must have trodden on a wasp’s nest because before I knew it, I saw a wasp on my forearm stinging me!

I screamed really loudly* and this scared Spice, and she bolted. I fell off the back off her and onto some nettles and just lay there for a moment. I lay there and thought that I might have died. Anyway thank God I was fine alhamdulilah (praise be to God) and thankfully I always am whenever I’ve fallen off. My arm swelled up over the following week and was about double its normal size. Schele and I looked at it every day and wondered if I was going to develop cellulitis and need antibiotics, but thankfully it settled on it’s own. So the end of the story was that after I had that wasp sting, I went for a swim in the river to cool down my arm, and despite all the drama, it was still an absolutely gorgeous memory for me on a hot summers day up at Mohaka.

*basically I have a very loud scream/ make this sort of screeching noise, which my supervising consultant told me not to change, as he said that if I was considering doing Psychiatry long term it would be a useful advantage to stun people with in case of an attack (God forbid) lol.

I think that visiting Mohaka River Farm is beautiful in every season, as you can see, autumn is really stunning here but equally there is something to enjoy at any time during the year. The air is always so fresh and clean, I just felt such a deep sense of freedom and just writing this post is making me miss that environment so much. I would love to go back and visit them and ride around the land, it was just like being in a fantasy world. I’m editing this post straight after visiting Singapore as well, which is just a super heightened contrast given the hot muggy climate and tall bright skyscrapers that I had just been surrounded with on all sides (it was a fantastic trip, don’t get me wrong).

The gift shop is full of really unique handmade items.

On my first visit to Mohaka I bought some honey which was delicious. I am not sure if they are still doing the honey at the moment as there a lots of rules and regulations about it, but it was really nice. There are also lots of other handmade items in the gift shop made by the community, and they are of really high quality, very sustainable and natural and made thoughtfully.

Seeing these pumpkins on the side was so autumnal, it reminded me of October at home which is around my mum’s birthday, but obviously since the seasons are reversed I just ended up confused!

The beautiful view at the end of our ride.

Fleur and I enjoying an autumn ride out underneath this spectacular tree.

This view was just breath-taking every time, I feel that the photos don’t do it justice, in real life looking down into the open valley and seeing and hearing the river flow, was so special.

Fleur showed me her plants and the greenhouse which was very cute. I am working on manifesting this sort of vibe for myself where I can grow my own vegetables and try and live a more wholesome life. To be honest, I do enjoy the contrast of natural living and then visiting the city, I think it just makes you appreciate the diversity that God has created in the world, and I love that.

Just being around the horses was very peaceful, looking at the photos now while writing this post makes me feel calmer and I really feel grateful for the experiences that I had there. I had some videos somewhere that Fleur took, but because during my NZ trip this was before I trusted myself enough to get a decent phone, I had to rely on her to take photos and send them to me, and I think I lost the videos on my old phone somewhere.

This is me with Fleur’s horse Indigo, a real beauty and reliable sort, whom all the other horses trusted.

As you can see Jet does have a very long neck, it was definitely something I had to get used to especially with riding Joy back home who was more of a compact shape. But as I mentioned before, getting used to him made me really learn to appreciate his style.

He had quite an affectionate nature but didn’t like too much of a fuss. I think it’s always nice to appreciate the horse’s personality, as you essentially connect on a deeper level when you realise that they are a living creation with their own feelings and emotions, and it just makes me feel even more in awe that they even allow us to ride them. Just this concept alone is for me enough proof for divinity, call me basic but what more perfect a creature could be created to be ridden?

As you can see, the hacking / trail riding is great, there are so many tracks that Fleur knows, and the terrain is so varied. There’s an incredible zig zag chalk hill that you can canter up, making dust rise up behind you like you’re in a Western movie. There’s also a few canters along certain stretches which were all really nice and long. One is next to the river and is a beautiful view, and there’s another which is along a track through the fields which is just phenomenal. For me it depended on what Fleur and I were feeling on the day!

A ‘pukurau’ (Maori name) which is a type of fungus, Latin name ‘Ileodictyon cibarium.’

Okay, so this was a new thing that I learnt about. Where I was living in NZ this white fungus is known as a pukurau, and there is a place in central Hawke’s Bay called Waipukurau which means something like ‘the water next to where the pukurau grow.’ The following is from Wikipedia:

‘Ileodictyon cibarium is a saprobic species of fungus in the family Phallaceae. It is found in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, where it commonly known as the basket fungus or the white basket fungus, alluding to the fruiting bodies, that are shaped like a round or oval ball with interlaced or latticed branches. Although the immature volvae are edible, the mature fruit body is foul-smelling and covered with a slime layer containing spores on the inner surfaces.

The Māori people had 35 different names referring to I. cibarium. These included tutae kehua ("ghost droppings"), tūtae whatitiri, and whareatua ("house of the devil"), kōkirikiriwhetū, kōpurawhetū, korokorowhetū, wheterau, popowhaitiri, tikowhatitiri, paruwhatitiri, matakupenga, and tūtae whetū. Several of the names refer to Whaitiri, the atua and personification of thunder, this is because of I. cibarium fruiting bodies' appearances following thunderstorms.

In a 2018 poll, I. cibarium was ranked second by Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research for its pick as New Zealand's national fungus, being defeated by Entoloma hochstetteri.’

My 27th birthday celebrating with Jet, and the lovely families up at Mohaka River Farm.

I had the day off from work for my birthday, but Schele was working so I thought what better way to spend my day but by doing the things I love (going for a ride). On the way there I bought myself a donut from the petrol station for breakfast (it was my birthday, don’t judge me, lol) and then I ended up dropping it on my top and so I had to change into a dress that luckily I had in the boot of the car. So that is why my birthday pictures show me wearing a patterned hijab with a patterned dress - NOT something I would normally do, but I was having such a fun time that it didn’t really matter.

This was my birthday tea part post ride complete with cake made by Fleur’s daughter. I couldn’t have been blessed with a better day.

It was such a great day, celebrating my first ever birthday in the middle of winter (1st July is normally peak summertime at home) and I loved every minute of it.

Sending all my blessings and love from across the world to Mohaka River Farm. It holds a special place in my heart, and if you end up visiting one day, it will in yours too.