Everybody needs good neigh-bours
WILD horses couldn’t drag Martin Clunes away from this 10,000-mile island hopping adventure – in this case, quite literally. He’s on the East coast of America in Virginia, where he attends a unique world-famous event on the quiet backwater of Chincoteague.
On the last Wednesday of every July, the island is swamped by tens of thousands of visitors for the annual Chincoteague Pony Swim.
In an extraordinary sight, 40 local ‘saltwater cowboys’ round up a herd of wild ponies, ready to drive them into the water and across the channel. After the big swim the ponies are auctioned off to raise funds for the island’s voluntary fire service.
Horse lover Martin’s jaw drops wide open as he watches cowboy Roe Terry skilfully work to keep 50 wild animals all moving in the right direction, including one little straggler foal who gets into difficulty. He says: “Ponies are naturally good swimmers, but I’ve never been this close to so many all swimming at the same time.”
There’s more fun elsewhere as Martin has a go at Puerto Rico’s well-known tradition, salsa.
“I’m like a dancey sponge,” he tells teacher Tito Ortos, before deciding: “I knew I was going to be good at this.”
You can make your own minds up about that.
He also helps to pick West African red peas, fishes with villagers in a tiny community and sees first-hand how nature is recovering after the devastation of Hurricane Maria in 2017.
Martin says: “The rainforest is regrowing, and the good nature of the people never went away.”