caught in the deluge

I grew up in the Cotswold region of the UK, where random rainshowers are more or less everyday occurrences. I remember when I was a kid, my mum had a tea party in the back garden and we were out enjoying the sun, tiny tea sandwiches and ornate china tea cups set up around quaint tables, when all of a sudden, the skies opened up and it was pouring. Our British friends quickly and efficiently swept up the food and the china and moved the party indoors, and life continued as if nothing was awry.

The weather here has been very similar to British weather lately. One minute it's raining. Then it's sunny. Then it's raining AND sunny! Then back to rain. Black clouds fill the sky, then they're gone and the sun is out again.

It has been like this all week.

Lauren and I decided to go for a trail ride today. The weather called for sun in the morning and early afternoon, then rain toward the evening. We met at the barn at noon and it was sunny, warm (almost hot), and there wasn't a dark cloud to be found. She tacked up Lucy and I tacked up Brantley, and we headed out with Cairo alongside us. It was a gorgeous day and we were in high spirits.

Brantley is doing very well on his trail rides, but we had done mostly walking and just tiny bits of trotting. Today I decided we'd trot some more, and maybe even try a little canter if he behaved. We trotted the whole way out and were about 2 miles from the barn, exploring some small trails off the main field, when I felt a few drops of rain. I looked up and the sky was BLACK.

Cairo watches the rain roll in.

Both Lauren and I were like, where did this come from? Lucy is not a fan of rain, my dog refuses to go outside if she detects even the smallest drop, and I had no idea what Brantley was going to be like. We tried to wait it out in the forest but it started raining so hard that even the trees weren't stopping the drops from splashing down on us. We decided we had better start moving toward home before the horses got upset, so we went through the woods as far as we could, then through the field a bit, then back on the main trail toward home. Lucy and Lauren trotted ahead of Brantley and I, but Lucy's trot is so huge that Brantley picked up a little canter, and he was great! We ended up cantering most of the way home. Lucy was on her BEST behaviour and was really great about the rain, even though I know she doesn't like it. Cairo happily loped alongside the horses and didn't seem too bothered by the weather, though she did have a "let's just make it home in one piece" look of determination on her little face.

We trotted right up to the barn as it rained harder and harder, dismounted, got inside, and the sun came out.

Both horses looked at us like, REALLY?!

They got lots of carrots, a good rub down, and then they went outside in the sunshine to have some hay in their paddocks.

shelter from the storm! wait, what storm? it's sunny!

Brantley and I celebrating our survival! Haha.

We were soaking wet but both Lauren and I were like, that was AWESOME. Cantering down the entire length of the trail through the deluge, the horses hooves splashing through the accumulating puddles and their heads down against the rain was really, really cool.