Work weekend at Sprucelands



Snow is gone! Trees have leaves. Plastic is down on the barn. Cats are waiting!

If you have any open time this weekend and would like to lend a hand getting camp ready for the summer, then we want you! If you want firewood for your home, then bring your chain saw and help yourself. If you want some time walking our trails and wouldn't mind moving downed branches, then this is the place for you!

Does this sound like an ad? Yup! I'll take any help I can get. If only for a few hours, then your help is appreciated because otherwise it's me. When you pitch in for the basic projects, then my staff and I can work away at things between now and camp.

We need to open cabins, get cobwebs out of the barn, clear trails, and have some fun in the process.  I think we're all going to have to be a bit forgiving this year what with our weather challenges. Work around camp has been very slow. Even mowing our grounds has been frustrating. The upside? I don't think anyone will have draught problems across the summer.

Anyway, if you can make it here for a bit of your weekend, I'd love to see you. Sounds like we may actually see the sunshine on Sunday and Monday. For me, that sparks hope for better days coming. I'm crossing my fingers that summer will begin to happen soon.

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Busy clinic weekend at Sprucelands

New friends become old friends very quickly at Sprucelands.

Last Friday my sister and her husband from Indianapolis arrived at camp along with my niece, her three college friends, all my clinic helpers and a scout troop with 15 riders. Shall I continue writing this post? It was needless to say a busy weekend.

My niece – Julie – and her friends from Ball State University were in the Buffalo area to dance at the Rock Harbor Yard on Tonawanda Street from 9 p.m. – 1 a.m. on Saturday. Donna and Matt were here as support. So the whole bunch of them fit in around the business of our riding clinic.

I was impressed with this group of Girl Scouts. I say that after each one of my clinics. I can't help it! It’s just amazing how the girls arrive on Friday evening, go through the safety rules and then move into Saturday with a calmness about them that allows them to seriously learn about horses and riding.


Trust builds easily as clinic helpers, scouts and horses connect.

At first, these enthusiastic fourth graders had a bit of trouble listening. I think they were pretty excited and a little nervous about all the horse stuff. On Saturday however they worked closely with the clinic helpers, learning how to feed, groom, tack up and lead their horses. They caught the spirit of 'horse stuff' and soon realized our horse clinic is quite a remarkable experience.

I love watching how the scouts connect with the clinic helpers. It’s pretty awesome actually. They talk directly to each other and in no time at all, there is a shared trust that builds across the weekend, a trust for  helpers and the horses. We are on a first name basis, exchanging favorite colors, accomplishments, and where we live. The end of the weekend comes all too soon. Saying goodbye feels very much as if we have known each other for much longer.


Honey is queen of Sprucelands and a very good friend to new riders.

Attachments were made this weekend to horses. One scout was very afraid to even sit on her horse, and yet she allowed herself to confront her fear. With Honey as her new equine friend, finding trust was relatively easy. Honey is after all the queen of Sprucelands. She accepts every rider for who they are and quietly teaches them that horses are really okay. So a new friendship happened while a fearful rider learned to balance, move to riding rhythms, and steer.

Well, to make a long story short, the dance performance in Buffalo came off without a hitch. Donna and Matt stayed until Monday morning so we had a little time to visit. The clinic helpers did an awesome job of supervising, giving directions and teaching. And the scouts were exceptional: enthusiastic, friendly and very warm. With the added perk of sunshiny weather, we thoroughly enjoyed every bit of our time together. Now we all feel like old friends. So...life is good.

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Wettest weekend clinic in Sprucelands history.

Dark and wet...these horses did what make sense. Awesome!

Last Friday afternoon I drove home from school in pouring rain. Buckets of pouring rain! I went directly to our camp lodge. Did not stop at the house. I knew I had to put the finishing touches on the lodge so it was in order for our weekend clinic group of Girl Scouts.

When the rains were so heavy and I was certain I would get soaked to the skin, I waited. I backed out of the lodge driveway and drove to the barn. I wanted to see how the horses were handling the thunder, lightning and downpours.

Interestingly, all the geldings had grouped together for support, heads down; they stood in the lowest part of the pasture. I had to snap a photo. This was so amazing to me: to think the horses knew enough to gather low together in the rolling hills. Now I know you can’t tell the rain is so heavy in this picture but believe me, it was gushing in the window of my car.


The girls practiced their steering in a victory lap at the end of their lesson.

I did succeed in getting the lodge readied for our group. Lights were turned on. Refrigerator plugged in. By 8 p.m., clinic helpers were instructing all 22 enthusiastic, energetic ten-eleven year old riders on the safety rules they would need for Saturday and Sunday.

This Girl Scout troop was dedicated to their interest in horses. They walked back and forth all weekend between the lodge and the barn in their raincoats. In fact, it rained all weekend, sometimes softly, sometimes so hard we couldn’t hear each other speak. Yet the girls kept on moving forward. Their enthusiasm never wavered.

I need to take a minute also to applaud the scout leaders and supervising moms who accompanied the group. They encouraged independence in their girls, never once stepping in to take over. These 10-11 year olds fully participated in the whole horse experience, learning how to feed, groom, tack up and ride on their own.


Sprucelands forever! Yes! Yes! Yes!

For a few hours on Saturday afternoon, we had the opportunity to teach and ride outside in ring #1. It was a pleasant ride in the mud. The girls learned how to steer on their own, practicing their new found expertise in victory laps around the arena. Then the skies opened again and we were under a roof the rest of the weekend.

I have welcomed many groups to Sprucelands in the 30 years we have run weekend clinics. There have been all kinds of adventures as we connected horses and riders under the Girl Scout umbrella.

This particular group with all its enthusiasm kept telling us this was the best experience ever. I was amazed they were having such a good time. So we hope we see them again someday. My guess is they will one day look back, smile, and say, “Remember the time we went horseback riding and it rained all weekend?” Those of us who ran the clinic want to congratulate these girls because they learned that when you work with horses, you keep on going no matter what.

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Sunshine and smiling faces at Sprucelands.

This troop was from the Hamburg, New York area.

Now that those torrential rains are behind us, or seem to be behind us, we are moving forward. All that rain about paralyzed us for a while. But nothing holds us down for too long. Onward!

This last weekend we had a wonderfully enthusiastic and energetic group of girl scouts and moms. It was Mother's Day weekend all the way around, even here during the clinic. I do believe there were as many moms as girls. It was such fun to watch them together.

Everyone seemed to relax and enjoy their time in the sun. I was impressed that the moms allowed their girls to be independent and involved in the experience. Sometimes when moms are present, the girls back off and let mom do the work for them. Not so this weekend. The girls pitched right in, learning about horse care and riding skills as they went. It was terrific.


It's so much fun to have a horse friend.

I also loved watching how the girls connected with their horses. As you all know, connection is my thing. I stress it at every turn because if anyone is going to own a horse or work with horses, they must learn first and foremost how to value their horse as a living, feeling being, not a machine.

These girls seemed to treasure their horses, patting them frequently and praising them for their good work. When that happens, the horses will do almost anything to keep their riders safe. It is a lesson well learned.

As it turns out, most of the girls this weekend were brownies. I was impressed with their stamina. They really worked hard keeping up with the routines of the day, walking back and forth to the lodge, feeding, grooming, tacking up, and then riding. I heard one of the moms say they went to sleep much earlier the second night after they enjoyed a campfire out on the front lawn of the lodge. They looked so cozy there. It brought back memories of summer camp.


This was the Thunder team. Such smiling faces! ~ even Thunder!

Another plus from this weekend clinic was enjoying the teamwork these girls shared with one another. They worked in teams of three on Saturday; Sunday there were five of them together.

As we did the gymkhana on Sunday morning, some had an opportunity to know a second horse. In our safety rules, we call that the 'Z Element'. If you don't know what the 'Z Element' is, then I invite you to come to a clinic or summer camp. We are happy to explain. Hmmm...something to puzzle over.

Best of all this weekend, we saw the sun both days. That lifted everyone's spirits. It was so pleasant to sit and talk and take pictures, shades of spring and hints of the coming summer. Our clinic helpers certainly enjoyed the better weather and I know for a fact that they loved these girls.

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