Carneddau Ponies of Bickerton Hill

Every weekend now for the past 3 weeks I've been volunteering at Bickerton Hill, a National Trust nature reserve aiming to control birch growth on heathland (SSSI) via grazing. 8 Ponies have recently been introduced onto the 280+ acre site and are left to roam. My job is to work on foot to find these ponies and make sure they're fit and healthy...easier said than done!
For the past two weeks they've been in a paddock but now they're all loose again so it's pretty much trying to find a needle in a haystack, but it's much more fun hiking all over the heath than just taking a 5 minute walk to check on them.
Here they are:



Taff (Dominant male)




Shy (Mother of Sam)




Sam (Yearling male; only male that Taff hasn't yet excluded from the herd)





Fflach (My favourite; may be in foal!)

 


Mist




Ellie (Yearling female)




Colin (Grey) and Jack (Chestnut) two of the older males who have been pushed out of the main herd by Taff)

  The heathland is also grazed by cows and also provide habitats for a variety of plants and animals.



Bessie also enjoys walking with me while I check the ponies and fencing!

 I'm most likely working with the National Trust until I move back to Penrith in September so I'll keep you posted!