The herd of The Prairie, Icelandic horses and Shetland ponies in the Dunes, Terschelling, NL 2023

 2 — 5 March 2023  

The herd was wintering in the dunes, in the area along the cycle path near Formerum. They stay here from about October to April, depending on how much there is to eat. A varied herd, Icelandic horses, Shetland ponies and some mixed breeds, geldings and mares of different ages.

It is a quiet place. Two small dune lakes sit in the area, and there are always birds living around them. The horses move through the dunes in small groups, sometimes a single mare apart from the rest. I would set out to find them and sometimes end up walking right past, only to discover I had circled around a dune hollow and they were on the other side the whole time. Sometimes the groups had split, and when they found each other again they called back and forth, enthusiastic, almost relieved. Some horses were a little surprised to find me lying in the dunes and had to come and figure out what the strange human was doing, before deciding I was just a friendly photographer.

At the dune lake the horses came to the edge to sleep, to drink, to rub themselves against the small trees that grow there. The birds carried on with their own lives a little further out on the water. At the end of the session it was sometimes hard to leave, but the light was going and I still had to find my bike in the dunes. I'm not at my finest wandering around in the dark.

Marleen and Anne, thank you for letting me photograph your herd. Thank you for your trust.