Taktur is possibly the most handsome and nicest stallion to currently live at Thordale.  He is a gentleman.

Taktur is wearing a thin rainsheet because yr.no (a usually accurate Norwegian weather forecast site) promised it would rain today – so of course it didn’t.  I mean do they even know where Shetland is? I am beginning to have my doubts. </rant>

So, just before the imaginery rain began, I went out with my camera to take some Handsome Prince photos.

At night, Kappi and Taktur live inside and, after breakfast, they go out into their field.

Sometimes, while Kappi is busy stuffing his face with as much silage as he can physically fit in, Taktur goes off to talk to the neighbours.

And quite often there is a neighbour lying in wait.

Today it was Son-but-not-heir, Hjalti.

These two have never actually met without a fence between them but they know each other well.

The meeting will happen soon, however, as we intend to put all the boys together for the summer.

And I mean all – Minions, mini-minions and the Icelandics in one big field.

Our theory being that, as Taktur is not running with any mares this summer, he will be annoyed to distraction with every Minion or Icelandic colt and 2 year old gelding hanging off him!

And then he won’t miss the ladies.

Well, that is the theory.

It may or may not work.

Albie hopefully won’t miss Tor if he is busy playing, escaping or being sat on!  He and Newt have been in with the big boys before so they know the score.

If it all goes horribly wrong, we will rethink our summer strategy and split them all up.

I think, if it is a success, there will be some lovely games.

The ladies are large and lovely

I tell them that they are “cooking” their foals and, to make Brá feel a bit better about being pregnant, I always turn up with a present – an apple or carrot.

Brá would like to be feral if she could but a) she hasn’t the strength now and b) she only does it if I bring a stranger into her field and then all bets are off.  I never realised that I take our friendship for granted until I took someone she didn’t know into the field and then she wouldn’t talk to any of us.  It is all about trust with her and she is much worse when she is pregnant.   I don’t indulge it. If I want to talk to her than I jolly well will and I lecture her endlessly about no one actually dying having their eyes cleaned and if she wants this carrot, then she will have to “suck it up, Princess” and be nice.

They are both getting very huge and they are carrying their foals in very different ways.

Hetja is just large.

But they love their field and most of all, being together.  They are good friends and great support for each other.

Can’t wait. I just can’t wait!

BeAnne had her check-up at the vet’s this morning.  Everything was fine and well.  She is making very good progress.

Afterwards, armed with pre-prepared apples, we dropped by Lyradale to see the ponies who live there.

I have been neglecting my little chaps because it has been busy at home.

OH has very kindly walking Loki there and checking on them but of course it is not the same as Muzzah!

I found the preggie ladies but I could not see the little ones anywhere.

Lyradale is a big croft – two fields, basically, of about 50 acres in total so off we set.

I shouted and shouted and eventually, after a good ten minutes, a little head popped up!

So I rattled my bag of apples and kept shouting.

After a while another appeared (I think they look like an album cover!)

And eventually they all came down the hill at a mad something to see me and my apples.

Except for Vitamin, so I threw her apple up to her.

After lots of hellos, hugging (mostly Storm because he is speshul) and bum-scratching (that would be Tiddles) and explaining why I had been absent, I left them grazing.

I think Fivla is finally looking almost good.  The hard neck crest has nearly vanished and there is now a glimpse of a normal sized pony in there.

The herd love Lyradale and seem to be travelling far more now rather than just hovering about in the same place.

There is miles to explore.

We are worried about Klængur. He is not his usual self  He was found waiting at the bottom of the hill when everyone else was eating their silage.

When Flossie rode him this morning, he seemed very sluggish and off his tölt.  Most odd.

So, Flossie brought Klængur up, to be around the house. I have wormed him (and the others in his herd) plus fed him a probiotic and some hard food.

Klængur is not off his food, so he can’t be that ill.  Tonight, he is spending the night indoors with Kappi and Taktur too.

It could be just be the change of silage or something else…..  Let’s hope it is spring appearing.  It can affect some horses.

Meanwhile, the little peoples are all fine.

Newt is delicious.

Albie is divine.

Delia is going very well.  Much better than previous winters.

Darling Tor is always the same.  A darling.

Standard and mini Shetland ponies – each have their uses.

Meanwhile, Klængur is working his way through every feed bowl he can find.  Lambie et al are less than impressed.

It was our hard-working Icelandic horse trainer’s, Egill Þórarinsson, last day – he is on tonight’s boat south for a connecting flight back home to Iceland – so today we took him down to the south end to see a different part of Shetland.

Yesterday was the spectacular cliffs of Eshaness, in the north of the mainland, but I was not the driver.

First stop, Fladdabister – an unusual Shetland settlement, with apparent Dutch influence created from very different Shetland stone and method.

I love this little hamlet in Shetland.  So very different from everywhere else.

(someone’s rhubarb is about to start – note-to-self, must check on mine – roll on the crumble!)

Then a diversion to the beautiful sandy St Ninian beach.

This tombolo leads to St Ninian’s Isle home of the famous St. Ninian’s chapel.  ~Twenty eight Pictish silver and silver-gilt objects, all decorated and made during the second half of the eighth century, were found in 1958 by a school boy. They were found in a wooden box buried under a cross-marked slab close to the altar along with a fragment of the jaw bone of a porpoise.  The silver is on display at the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.  It should be in Shetland where it came from, in my opinion, not a copy.

And so on to Sumburgh Head.

Always a bit jaw-droppingly impressive, any time of the year.

The puffins are not back yet but the seabirds were around in their masses.  I think these are razorbills.

We walked around the outside of the lighthouse.  It was all closed until the tourist season officially begins after Easter.

I haven’t been down to the south end this time of year and it was nice to have it to ourselves.  Soon the migrant birds will flock in to nest, as will the twitching tourists.