Did my title pull you in?
Sorry to disappoint if you thought I meant an extra-marital fling—in fact, I was literally thrown by a panicking Haflinger pony during a horseback ride in Croatia. That unexpected tumble was my wake-up call to the importance of travel insurance.
My travel fairy godmother was watching over me that day, but it made me realize how vulnerable we truly are when traveling abroad, far from home and medical support.
So I beg your indulgence for my cheeky clickbait title. Now, let’s get to the story: a stop at a delightful winery the day before that horseback ride and my near-disastrous accident in Croatia.
Date of Visit: September 22, 2022
Heading South, Goodbye Istria
At 9 am sharp, our driver, Frane, picked Chris and me up in Rovinj to take us to Plitvice Lakes National Park, four hours away. We planned a pit stop in the seaside town of Opatija. There would be little time to linger because we had booked a 3 pm ride at a stable near Plitvice. We’d hike the lakes the following day and, with any luck, wouldn’t be saddle sore and weak-kneed.
We were six days into our two-week Croatia and Balkan trip, and this was already the trip of a lifetime. I’ve chronicled most of the journey, except for one highlight from the day before: a visit to Babos Wine, a charming family-run winery on the outskirts of Vodnjan, where we enjoyed a delicious lunch and wine pairing.
Respite at Babos Wine
You won’t find photos of Chris and me tucking into the mouthwatering charcuterie plate or sipping four of their beautiful wines in the cozy wine room.
Vanity precludes such sharing because my face, which had been itching mercilessly for days, had now swollen to balloon proportions.
Do you remember those sample sachets the kind lady in the Varaždin cosmetics store gave me when she learned I had lost all my toiletries in transit through Amsterdam?
Well, the previous night, it dawned on me that the terrible itch hounding me for four days was an allergic reaction to those samples. It would take a few days for my face to unballoon.
But let’s look on the bright side. I looked five years younger (if somewhat deformed).
Now let’s fast-forward to my fateful horseback ride near Plitvice Lakes.
The Fateful Horseback Ride
We arrived a few minutes late for our 3 pm ride. I guess we enjoyed Opatija a little too much on the way. We signed waivers and put on hard hats. We hurried over to the saddled horses lined up in a narrow barn, apologizing profusely to the five other riders.
Nonetheless, they greeted us warmly in English. One couple was from the Netherlands, one was from Germany, and the trail guide was from Austria. All were beginners except for the trail guide and myself. Chris has gamely accompanied me on many rides but was still a novice.
The Little Haflinger
I was assigned a pretty Haflinger named Betty. She had the Austrian breed’s standard light-gold chestnut coat, flaxen mane, tail, and small stature.
The Haflinger is considered a small horse, but let’s be honest, she was a pony who stood just over 13 hands. Her diminutive size, and the hard hat I didn’t want to wear, would prove advantageous, but I didn’t know that then.
Betty was calm as a toad in the sun as I mounted her. She belonged to the lead rider, who was new at the stable. When I learned Betty often carried children on trail rides, I wished I had requested a friskier horse in advance.
I planned to stay at the end of the line hoping to sneak in a canter or two. That proved impossible because Betty was hot-fired to keep up with the other horses. I enjoyed a couple of trots in the open fields when I could coax Betty into dropping far enough behind Chris and his large mount.
A border collie accompanied us as we followed the lead rider through the woods and fields for an hour.
In An Instant, Everything Changed
It was a quiet ride great for taking photos, but something spooked little Betty as we returned to the barn along a dirt road. Was it the dog? Had an insect bitten her? Or did she sense a predator? I will never know.
She launched like an equine cannonball while I desperately tried to gather the dangling reins. I pulled hard to slow her, and then she made an unexpected and ill-advised 90-degree turn through the narrow pedestrian gate at full gallop.
The sudden swerve left me hanging off Betty’s side. I heard a loud ping and remember thinking, “This is not good.” I’ve always been a master of understatement. I could tell the top of my hard hat (head still inside) had hit the fence post. That’s the only thought I remember having before I was scraped off the saddle and landed hard on the ground.
A mini-stampede ensued. The beginners desperately clung to their mounts, scattering left and right through the field as their horses panicked.
A Voice From Above
I was on the ground trying to catch my breath and martial my thoughts when I heard a voice high above me:
“What happened? Can you get up?”
The lead rider had been so far ahead that she had no idea what had happened until the other horses broke out of line in a chain reaction of terror. Now she and her horse were standing over me. She held Betty, who had run to the front of the line. The little vixen stood placidly as if nothing unusual had happened. Fortunately, the other horses were at ease too.
Chris called out worriedly to see if I was alright. He was trying to turn his horse around. That’s when I realized how much worse this could have been if the other horses had bolted to the barn.
Of course, the irony was that with all my years of riding, I was the one on the ground.
Horse Whisperer
I could stand, but my body was too weak to remount. I walked “Bad Betty” to the barn and had a little talk with her. She listened but gave nothing away. I was happy she was okay, but I had bloody scratches on my hand and back, so I was anxious to get to the hotel.
Thanks to the riding hat (the one I didn’t want to wear), my head was in working order, if a little fragile. No comments from the Peanut Gallery, please.
I didn’t realize until later that my right leg had swollen to twice its size and turned a deep black and blue. Now I had both a puffy face and leg. My face would return to normal after I threw away the French cosmetics, but that gimpy leg would carry me up many a winding castle turret and cathedral bell tower in the coming days. I would go to bed each night with it raised high on pillows. Weeks after returning to the US, I would have eight X-rays that would find no breaks.
I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I had a brain injury, broken neck, or back after that horseback ride in Croatia. I would be at the local hospital’s mercy.
Medical Evacuation Insurance
As I end this cautionary tale, this is an excellent place to mention an online talk I listened to in March 2023, months after my riding accident.
Sheri Howell of Medjet, a global air medical transport and travel security membership program for travelers in the US, addressed a group of travel bloggers who listened intently. I realized there are many horror stories of travel accidents far worse than mine.
I learned that day that in addition to flight insurance to cover trip delays and interruptions, lost luggage, and basic medical needs, companies like Medjet will evacuate travelers on private jets to their doctors back home for a few hundred dollars in membership fees.
It’s something to think about. Many of us, myself included, tend to have a false sense of security when we travel, but sometimes things don’t go as planned.
If you need proof, look at Medjet’s map of a few recent medical transports and listen to the testimonials. Scary.
This article is the 11th in my 19-part Balkan series, which began with Road Tripping on the Balkan Peninsula in September 2023. There, you will find our itinerary to help you plan your trip.
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