Pony rescuers stranded on island

By Will Davies

WHAT started off as a gen­tle canter along the beach turned into a 10-hour drama on Monday, when a pony and two women were forced to spend a night stranded on an island after being cut off by the tide.

Brigitte Chen and her 14-year-old son Auberi had travelled with their family to the Norfolk coast from their home in Park Corner near Nettlebed, for their annual holiday, riding on the beaches.

Auberi described his beloved 13.2-hand pony, Budd, as `the calmest horse around’. But when he took him onto Holkham Beach for the first time, a pack of 40 Pony Club riders stormed past, spooking 17-year-old Budd, who unseated his rider and bolted out to sea.

“He was a bit excited as he had never been on a beach before,” Auberi said.“He spun round. threw me off and cantered around us in circles about 15 times, before bolting three miles to an island off Wells in a flat-out gallop. I was very upset, as I am very fond of him.”

Budd finally ran out of steam in a salt marsh in the middle of a creek - the tide rapidly encroaching. Auberi added: “The water was only three foot deep when he went out there, but within half an hour the tide had swelled and where he had crossed would have been at least 20 ft deep.”

A canoeist on a Scout expedition found Budd tangled up in his reins and managed to cut him loose, but could not rescue the pony. The coast guard informed Auberi and worried mother Brigitte, a native of Norfolk who manages the stables at Ewelme Park, that Budd would have to remain on the island until the tide abated.

Mrs. Chen, along with friend Suzanna Marshall from Wallingford, heroically volunteered to be taken by lifeboat across to the island, where they found a shaken but healthy Budd. She said: “We stayed under the stars in overalls lent to us by the coast guard. We had to stay awake all night to keep an eye on Budd. We spent most of the time chatting and looking out for shooting stars.

“The worst bit was at around 4 a.m. when the tide went down and we had to lead Budd back to safety. Walking in the dark through the marshes, which are about five miles long and two miles wide, was so scary - it was awful.”

Suzanne Marshall said: “If it wasn’t for Alan Frarv, the coast guard, I’m not sure we would have made it. He was a tank of muscle and knew exactly which way to lead us back to avoid the quick sand.

“It’s a miracle Budd didn’t break his leg.”

Although shaken, Budd is unscathed and back in his field. “We’re going to take him back to Holkham Beach tomorrow.” Mrs. Chen added, “but he’ll be on a lunge rein and will not be going anywhere near the pony club.”