The new year finally brings colder weather

January began with a couple of days of cold weather, then unusually warm weather occurred and the grass was visible. The past two nights have been very cold with temperatures of -15 and -20 yesterday and today. Yesterday's high was +1! Tomorrow's forecast is for 38 degrees. The poor horses don't know what to expect next. Fortunately, they are receiving lots of good hay to stay warm. Commensurate with that, their water intake has increased considerably, in the range of 10-15 gallons per mature horse per day. Their coats are nice and thick and their shelters are seeing lots of use as they get out of the wind. Our prevailing winter wind is from the north and northwest, so all of our shelters are positioned accordingly. A side benefit is that they get full sun this time of year when the sun is low in the sky which also helps the horses stay warm while getting out of the wind. Our windchill has been well below zero for the past two days so we don't spend a lot of time outdoors although I did take some runs on the snowmobile to pack our trails this past weekend. Packing the trails makes it possible to walk on top of the snow without snowshoes and also good for cross country skiing which our neighbors have been enjoying. We see our neighbors more in the winter out on the trails in our woods than we do during the summer! The horses are all doing well despite the cold and without any blankets. Nature's blanket and plenty of hay keeps them toasty warm and is so efficient that snow on their backs doesn't melt. The days are getting longer and warmer weather will be here in no time. In the meantime we all (horses and humans) are enjoying some time off from riding and training.