Bogong Horseback Adventures Tawonga Horse Riding

Get a little saddle grease on your trouser seat over the Labour day weekend. Join our three-day pack horse expedition and experience a truly Australian experience. Traveling in a time-honored way, you ride into the belly of the clouds to the 'mountain dreaming place' the High Country. The pack horse load will surprise you with the 'magic pudding' quality, delicious campfire meals served one after the other! We are proud to combine the heritage of the High Country Horse with modern comforts and cuisine. This expedition takes in Mount Fainter and Bogong Jack’s Hideout. An iconic short Australian break. We make it easy for the casual weekend rider or the beginner rider, by camping two nights at Bogong Jack’s Hideout camp. On Sunday you ride out over Mount Fainter and unload the lunch pack at Tawonga huts. After your billy boils and the cake washed down with billy tea it's out into Pretty Valley for a few good canters, let the wind blow out the cobwebs and stresses of your busy lives.
Bogong Horseback Adventures’ pack horse expedition program commences annually in the late spring when the peaks of the Victorian High Country shake off their winter snows and alpine life starts to stir. For thousands of years the Aboriginal peoples of the surrounding country embarked on their annual migration to the High Plains, and until recently the mountain cattlemen, following their time honored ways pushed their cattle up to the 'tops'. Along with gold seekers, bushrangers and early adventurers, they all helped create a rich heritage, woven into the rugged fabric of the High Country. Much of the High Country remains un-roaded today, and packhorse expeditions offer a traditional and practical means of exploring this vast landscape. The horses are a feature of this expedition, each of them our own bred and trained mountain horse, expertly matched to the rider. Each day the camp is packed up, loaded onto the packhorses and the journey continues. Riding is between 15 to 25km per day with opportunities for loping canters across open plains. Camps are selected for their beautiful settings, some in traditional stock camps featuring huts, but often secluded bush camps maintained by Bogong Horseback Adventures. With swags rolled out dinner is prepared and enjoyed around a warming fire, with a cold beer, a local wine and a meal prepared from local fresh produce on the coals. All expeditions include a night before and a night after at Spring Spur, where you can join the family for a meal and enjoy your comfortable en-suite room.
INCLUSIONS
Experienced, knowledgeable guides
Spring Spur accommodation before and after the expedition
All group camping equipment
Quality locally bred and trained horses
Quality Australian saddlery
All meals as per the itinerary
Beer and table wine with evening meal
Helmets and oilskin coats
National Park fees
First aid and emergency communications
Packing lists and travel information.
OPTIONS
Transfers to and from Albury NSW
ITINERARY
Day 1
Arrive at Spring Spur afternoon/evening
Evening Supper - Spring Spur Stay
Day 2
Pre-ride information, horsemanship basics in the yards at BHA and packing check. Ride up the Big Hill Cattle Track to camp at Bogong Jack’s hideout, on the North Fainter Spur.
B L D - Camping
Day 3
We leave camp set up, and climb up to the Summit of Mount Fainter with spectacular views across the deep cut of the West Kiewa Fiver to Mount Fainter. Lunch at Tawonga Huts and an afternoon visit to Pretty Valley and brumby country before returning to Jack’s.
B L D - Camping
Day 4
Return to Spring Spur via the Big Hill Cattle Track.
B L D - Spring Spur Stay
Day 5
Mid-morning checkout.