English edition

"My first horse ride in Yatsugatake turned out to be an incredible experience!"

Will today be a day of light rain?

Yesterday, I was finally able to experience the long-desired Yatsugatake trail ride. I'm reminded to be grateful for having returned home safely.

With my horse-loving friend driving, we embarked on a mini-trip to our destination early in the morning.

"Ai-chan, take a day of rest today."

With the navigation system in my friend's car malfunctioning, we drove along the outer ring road, took breaks at service areas, and used mobile navigation to check our route. I had no idea where or how we were going.

Nevertheless, when I saw the majestic Yatsugatake Mountain range stretching out in the distance, I was deeply moved. Yatsugatake, although silent, existed there with a magnificent grandeur. The wonderful mountains of the Yatsugatake and South Alps ranges were laid out before my eyes. And at the foot of these mountains were scattered clusters of houses. After this, we finally reached our destination.

We checked in, were recommended a local shop, and had a curry with fresh summer vegetables. Despite having no spiciness, we enjoyed the salad and took our time preparing for the ride at 2 pm. According to the veteran instructor, there had been a terrible rain in the morning, so to reach the spring water course we had requested, we would have to take an alternative route, as the normal path was deemed impassable due to the mud.

By the time we began riding, the rain had stopped, and occasional sunny spells made for ideal conditions. Leading the way was the instructor, followed by me as the eldest, then my horse-loving friend, and finally a woman who looked to be in her 30s and a skilled rider, making us a group of four setting out on the trail ride.

We passed through the public roads, heading deeper and deeper into the forest. Given the considerable amount of rain in the morning, we walked between the trees to avoid the mud as much as possible, crossed over fallen branches and tree trunks, climbed and descended slopes, and dashed through brooks.

"On your command, let's break into a trot," said the instructor. And with that, our four horses all started running at once, tearing through the wind in the forest. The path was not maintained like the ones at the riding club, and there were small stones here and there.

I was surprised by the intensity of the ride, and thought that perhaps people might be enchanted by the wildness of trail riding. Although the route ended up being different from the one I had originally hoped for, the horses skillfully walked the narrow path which was close to a cliff on the right side.

"We're going to cross the river, but make sure you don't look down. The horses know where to cross. Look into the distance and try not to interfere with the horses' movements," everyone was told.

The trail ride seemed to be progressing smoothly with us trotting several times. However, an incident occurred...

The horse ridden by the young woman at the end suddenly threw her off. The riderless horse sprinted away at a fierce speed. The instructor checked if the fallen woman could get up, and whether there were any abnormalities or injuries. During this, we turned our horses' heads towards the forest to calm them down, repeating "whoa, whoa."

After what seemed like an eternity, the riderless horse charged back towards us at a furious speed. I carefully watched the horse while ensuring that my own horse didn't see what was happening. Then, the horse slipped in the mud and fell. It slid on its side for a few meters before stopping.

Our final trot was canceled. The instructor rode the horse that had fallen, the woman who had fallen off rode the horse originally ridden by the instructor, and I and my friend followed in that order. We slowly made our way back home.

The instructor said that such occurrences were rare and speculated that a horsefly or bee might have stung the horse's hindquarters after the rain, causing it to bolt and throw off its rider. Thankfully, she wasn't seriously injured, which was a relief among the unfortunate events. It was also a relief to see that the horse that had fallen wasn't hurt, despite the spectacle. What was supposed to be a 2-hour course from 2 pm ended near 5 pm when we finally returned to the club...

Since we were in Yamanashi, we bought some local produce like peaches at a roadside station and had Hoto noodles before starting our journey home.

How is my body doing? A great deal of fatigue has accumulated. I need to take good care of myself!

-English edition