All the moors that eye can see

The rural area in Wicklow near Dublin Dara Stables covers a country-romantic stable, lots of field sheds, fields, big riding arena and spectacular country trails. The land is far away from the crowd but the nearest village is about twenty minutes away. There is a stable called Storycroft Stables on the other side of the village covering the basic needs and we do a lot of co-operation with them.

The idyllic weathered stable has recently been renovated and in a well-lit aisle it is easy to move. Ten boxes are all spacious and the barred windows occasionally brings in natural light. The elements are made of dark wood and they are decorated with black painted bars. Apart from the food and water pots, the boxes have salt licks and high quality litter. At the end of stable there is feed stock and next to it there is a spacious tack room which you can walk through to the cozy little "living room".

The grooms kingdom called the living room is cozy, warm and rustic small space. There are lockers for grooms, mocha pot, stove and some other kitchen equipments. An old beautiful record player and a pair of dark brown leather sofas are also an important part of the room's look. The room with a rather dark furniture and carpet is comfortably crepuscular and it is a good place to warm up and take breaks. Steep spiral stairs at the doorstep of the stable lead into the attic, where the hay and any unnecessary but interesting stuff are kept.

A bit further apart from the rest is a new stable of five that we call stallion barn. As the name suggests our stallions live there. A small stable does not have a tack room or anything else, just boxes. Boxes themselves are luxury, since there are access to individual stretching areas from every box.

Next to the car park in stable yard, there is a large riding arena. In a slightly flattened shed next to the arena we keep dressage fences, obstacles and carriages. The big arena fits well in organising competitions. There is no indoor arena at all in Dara Stables.

Of all the main element of the Dara Stables yard, however, is scenic cross-country trails. Moors, cliffs, mountains, sea and rivers – that and much more is the breathtaking nature of Ireland. The farm itself owns a large and varied area that covers the shortest treks and the horses' pastures. Longer treks have a good framework even outside the fenced plot and many taverns are glad to have us over for breaks or overnight stays.

There stands big and old oak tree in the stable yard. The stable is named after it, darach or dara means oak in Gaelic.

Random gang

Vicki Maguire, the loyal leader of Dara Stables, has very motherly nature. She is only in her thirties. Vicki took a big risk when buying the old ramshackle farm. Most of the time Vicki justifies her reckless decisions often by saying "can not know unless you try". In the stable there are often horse-like rescued creatures, ambitious campaigns and who knows what - spontaneous and good-hearted Vicki leaves no one cold. Vicki is cheerful and she have dark and weird sense of humour, she is always doing something and will probaly find something to do for you too. Emphathic and happy Vicki loves everyone and she is a kind of mother figure for many of the grooms, or according to the grooms' own words, a mother lion. Even though she is very cheery and energetic she is not unnatural or pretentious, she is more of a profound type. She is very interested in astronomy and astrology, Tarot, energies and other nonsense and supernatural things.

Plate sized green eyes and long dark eyelashes are eye-catchers. The dainty face is framed by fluffy, long hair, which are naturally light but dyed black with henna. Vicki is a very slender, almost underweight, long-legged woman who is only 160cm tall. Vicki's dark eye make up makes her eyes even bigger than they already are. She's dressing style varies slightly every day, but the keyword is often black. Black skinny jeans or harem pants are the most common to see on Vicki, but everything is possible. Often she is wearing a fleece or a lemon-yellow raincoat. In cold weather Vicki usually wears a wine-red leather jacket or dark green parka jacket. In her feet she has black combat boots in every season and weather. Vicki's snakebites and tongue decorated with jewellery can frighten the most innocent people. When riding Vicki uses black riding breeches and black jodhpur boots. Vicki also owns black riding boots but they rarely find their way to a woman's feet. However, instead of riding equipment, Vicki often uses her normal clothes and combat boots. Usually a black light helmet is always on her head when riding, but do not be surprised if you see her without it - just don't learn from bad example! If it's really terribly cold, then a black overall may end up on Vicki.

Alexis Moore, A 170cm tall womanizer with muscles and all. Hardly 18-years old Alexis works in the stables as a kind of Jack-of-all-trades, he does stable work and if necessary ride horses. He's a bit of daredevil, if it's boring in the stables, he'll find a solution to that. Alexis is very talkative and too often gets stuck talking to someone, he also smiles without exception. The redhead is fun to be with and frisky Alexis is attached to the small hocus-pocus. Vicki often gets to chase young man back to work, but you can not be angry with that lad. Though Alexis seems to a no-brainer, he is fundamentally sweet and thoughtful.

Nora O'Hara, dark-haired middle-aged woman. This beautiful woman is very positive and smiling, albeit a bit less talkative than Alexis and Vicki. Nora helps with paperwork and stable tasks and guides treks. Nora is calm and patient, she doesn't startle easily. She had a horse at Dara but after it injured seriously Nora had to make the hard decision. Nowadays Nora competes with Dara's horses every now and then and trains regular customers. As a flexible and good-natured Nora is a good employee and a wonderful friend.

Freya Moore, Alexis's 15-year-old redhead little sister hangs out at the stables every day. She helps with stable tasks and exercising horses, Freya is brisk and energetic but not as happy-go-lucky as her brother. Actually Freya is quite serious in comparison to her brother and her age. A no-nonsense young lady has earned a place in the stable's staff with exemplary behavior, impeccable work and glorious horse handling skills. Freya is quite serious with her hobby and has already talked to Vicki about future work placements, Freya is like daughter to Vicki. The girl has long natural ginger hair, a vivid look on her face and she is always ready for any work.