ABOVE: Pony Tales

Equine Adventure

A white horse stands, alone on a snowy mountainside. He stares into the distance, toward the high peaks of the Pyrénées. His body is rigid with concentration, a stark silhouette against the blue sky. All is silent.

And then another horse whinnies, a high-pitched call telling the laggard to rejoin the herd. He moves on command – he can’t afford to be left behind. This, he knows, is no ordinary herd: it is a gang of 75 horses moving in a sweaty, jostling river from the mountains to a valley 160 kilometres to the north.

This is a unique event in France: an equine transhumance. Of course, transhumance itself is nothing new; the seasonal movement of livestock from lowlands to mountains and back again, has happened for hundreds of years. The difference here is that it involves horses.

Thirty years ago, Pierre Enoff arrived in the granite village of Porta. A clutch of houses wedged between Spain, France and Andorra, it became the perfect place to cultivate his relationship with horses. He let a disparate group loose in 2,000 hectares, studied them, let them breed and live freely. As time went on, he realised certain truths: these animals could survive freezing winters and broiling heat without extra blankets or special food; they could cover difficult terrain without man-made shoes; they would work for him without bits in their mouths, with flexible saddles on their backs. It was about cooperation and mutual respect, and it worked. News of Pierre and his Equi Libre, or free horse, herd spread. People were fascinated by his so-called ‘bare-foot’ techniques, with modern horses living in a traditional manner.

Then, 12 years ago, the French authorities built the Puymorens tunnel under Pierre’s mountains. It provided a winter road link between Andorra, France and Spain and motorists loved it. So did the horses: the black road was warm and often salted. They would lie on the tarmac and lick it, oblivious to the thundering trucks and cars. Pierre built fences to keep the horses off the road, but after a few snowfalls the fences were buried and so the danger grew.

Read the full article on pages 52-58 of this months issue.

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