WILD AND FREE: Passing of an icon, the Brooms Head Brumby
THE brumby stood for everything that was independent and proud, and captured the hearts and minds of people far beyond his home of Yuraygir National Park
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HE WASN'T just any wild horse. Brumby, as he was affectionately known among his many names, was part of the community of Brooms Head and the greater Clarence Valley.
His story captured the hearts and minds of people far and wide, a lone soldier who defied the odds and went on to live his life the way he wanted, free to come and go as he pleased in the place he knew as home, Yuraygir National Park.
While he cut a lonely figure out there after his mob was killed in the 2000 bushfires, he was never too far from fellow members of the animal kingdom, kangaroos and birds frequently keeping company with the roguish piebald pony.
Of course he did all of this under the watchful eye of villagers and visitors, Brumby's curiosity and desire to graze on domesticated pastures as well as what nature provided in the park meant you never quite knew where he might pop up.
Whether it was on the scrubby horizon or in the lake, outside a backyard fence or on the grounds of the local bowling club or sports ground, Brumby was a wild horse who had an air of sociability about him.
With that in mind, the grounds of the local bowling club that embraced his presence, is where Brumby was laid to rest on Wednesday.
After declining health over recent months culminated in a decision to ensure his suffering didn't amount to cruelty, a team of professionals and supportive locals monitored Brumby until their last goodbyes were exchanged this week.
The story of the Brooms Head brumby has been featured in the pages of The Daily Examiner over the years, from the devastating fires that robbed him of his family to the time he enjoyed the company of a mare released into the national park as a well-intentioned gesture.
That union produced an offspring but Brumby's taste of family life ended abruptly when it was decided the potential for another pack of horses in the national park was not a good idea.
Again he mourned, his cries of protest softening as the weeks passed, he soon fell silent again, and was back in charge of his domain.
This solo surveyor of the park, the inquisitive stallion who watched its comings and goings for more more than two decades, left his post on Wednesday.
Now back with his pack, this free spirit will always remain a part of Yuraygir National Park and the village of Brooms Head.
Brumby is gone but his legend lives on.
Vale friend - January 16, 2019.
Originally published as WILD AND FREE: Passing of an icon, the Brooms Head Brumby
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