Brumbies in the Outback by Paula Boer

Author:Paula Boer [Boer, Paula]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781925496987
Publisher: IFWG Publishing Australia
Published: 2018-02-25T03:40:12+00:00

The rocking of the truck lulled Louise into a light doze. Her chin sunk on her chest and her eyes closed. The rumble of the engine provided background noise to her daydreams of jumping Honey and winning lots of rosettes to hang on her bedroom wall. She imagined receiving a trophy for best rider and people admiring her brumby mare.

A nudge in the ribs woke her from her reverie. Ben pointed out of the window. "Look!"

Blinking against the glare of the late afternoon sun, Louise tried to focus on what Ben had seen. "I can"t see anything."

"In the distance, about to go behind that clump of trees."

Louise stared harder. Suddenly her eyes adjusted and she spotted the outlines of three beasts lolling in single file, nose to tail. The camels" beige coats camouflaged them against the dry rocky landscape. "One"s got a baby!"

Almost as if the animals had heard her, the lead camel looked across at the slowing vehicle. Turning to her youngster, she chivvied it along and broke into a trot. The camels changed direction and headed away from the road.

"I didn"t believe Jacko when he told me about camels being out here. Do you think we"ll see the brumbies too?" Fully awake, Louise shifted on the seat to scan the surrounding country.

Graeme wound up his window to avoid the lingering dust. "I doubt they"ll be around here at this time of day. Wait till tomorrow. Simon has a plane that he spots them from."

Ben slid forward on his seat. "Do you think we"ll be able to go up with him?"

"That would be cool!" Louise had only flown in commercial jets before. The rare opportunity of seeing brumbies from the air overcame her concern about flying in a small prop plane.

As they talked about what the next few days might bring, the kilometres passed by. Dusk brought a cool evening as Graeme pulled the truck into the yard at Simon"s property.

The wrangler met them before the engine had even been turned off. "G"day. Glad you made it before it got too dark. We"re heading straight out again."

The long journey had made Louise tired despite the excitement. She didn"t feel like another drive. "Where to? Is there a problem?"

Simon must have heard the disappointment in her voice. "We don"t have to go, but the brumby researchers turned up yesterday. They"re going to dart a few stallions to fit them with tracking collars. I thought you"d all be interested."

"Awesome!" Louise remembered Simon mentioning the researchers when he visited Mirraburra in the summer. No-one had even hinted that they might be here at the same time.

Graeme climbed down from the cab. "That"s why Cooky left my guys to fend for themselves. He reckons a change of camp is as good as a holiday. He never goes into town."

Louise helped Ben lift out their bags. "What about Brandy and Splash?"

Simon took a saddle from Jacinta that she passed out of the truck. "The pony can be turned out with my riding horses. Brandy"ll have to go in a yard.

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