Mannah Farm

After a devastating fire, the Smith family property at Mount Torrens has risen from the ashes. The stunning Mannah Farm, in South Australia, was nearly completely destroyed by the Cudlee Creek Bushfire in 2019, but luckily the home and one paddock was saved on the near 80-acre property.

Jessie Smith, a para rider, has chronic complex regional pain syndrome and has been left partially hemiplegic, but it doesn’t stop the showing and dressage rising star from achieving her lofty goals.

Her family purchased the property in 2018 after they had been looking for a suitable place for a long time. “Dad (Daniel) restores classic cars, so we needed sheds,” Jessie tells Horse Deals. “Mum and Dad had gone out to buy a tube of silicone, and Dad had sort of said, what is this property for sale up here? We fell in love with the land. The house needed a lot of work, but the land was perfect. It’s 76 acres and was previously a cattle farm; it had no equestrian facilities.”

Daniel built the stunning timber-lined stables and the arena, as well as all the paddocks with StockGuard fencing. “He planned and designed it all and then got started on the stables, which he designed and built himself. He is a precision engineer,” Jessie says.

“He said, ‘We are doing it once and doing it right’. It is so functional.”

The terrifying fire in 2019 saw plenty of hard work on the property reduced to ashes, but over the past five years, it has been rebuilt.

“The fire was going away from us, and then the wind changed, and it was coming straight for us,” Jessie recalls. “Apart from the paddock the horse was in; every centimetre was burnt. Five-and-a-half kilometres of fencing and all of our irrigation burnt, but the infrastructure miraculously survived thanks to strangers and neighbour’s in an unbelievable scenario.

“Since then, we have continued to add to it - the horse paddocks were fenced, and the sheds and stables were built. It’s a constant ongoing process of upgrading. We run Black Angus cattle; we are establishing a breeding herd at the moment. That’s an ongoing thing as you realise we need another runway or more paddocks divided.”

The stables are a highlight of the property. “Dad built them with wood panels that are all screwed in individually, so if they get broken, they can be replaced singularly rather than the entire panel,” Jessie says. “They have misters for hot weather, half-doors to open the tops, and hot and cold water, which is a luxury as I used to just have a hose in mud.

“Even having power is wonderful. There is a washing machine for the rugs and a sink in the tack room for boots and bits and all sorts. All of the stables’ nameplates have Storm in them after my Christmas present and much-loved horse Northern Storm. He is my best mate in the whole wide world, and after I acquired my disability he was there through everything; he saved my life. All the horses are named after him. And they will be forever.”

Article: Rachael Houlihan
Photos: PYT Equine Photography.

Read the Smith family's heart-wrenching story about Leaving Kiwi Behind during the bushfire that nearly destroyed their home in 2019.

The log holding the ‘Mannah Farm’ sign is part of the burning tree which fell in front of strangers as they raced to a neighbor's property during the 2019 Cudlee Creek bushfires. Trapped, they reversed up our driveway and ended up saving the house for us before neighbors arrived to save the sheds.

An aerial view of the 76-acre property.

The courtyard adjacent to the stables.

A historic hand waterpump feature in the courtyard.

Stable cat Barney.

Daniel, at the very beginning of the build of the stables.

The verandah allows for undercover float parking and easy loading, including outdoor lighting.

The stables were designed and hand-built by Jessie’s dad, Daniel. Each wooden plank is screwed in individually, meaning that if one was to be broken, it can be replaced separately instead of the entire panel. The rocking horse up by the window has been in the family for many years. The hanging baskets suspended from the roof add a pop of colour to the stables. Ceiling fans are installed down the centre for summer days.

Each box is 4m x 4m, with ½ rubber matting and ½ shavings covered concrete. The step-downs ensure no sawdust is lost. Each box has a top door, which can be opened & closed separately and removed entirely if required. The back walls of each box are insulated, as well as the roof, and each box is also fitted with a misting system, which is perfect in summer.

The wash bay is equipped with hot and cold water and a washing machine for rugs.

Each stable has an individual engraved nameplate. Storm is a very special horse, and each horse has ‘Storm’ in their show name to honour him.

Opposite the wash bay is the feed area, with a beautiful memory captured by PYT Equine Photography hanging in the centre.

The entrance to the tack room.

Everything in the tack room has a specific place, stored amongst repurposed bookcases.

Storm is now 27 years old, so his last pair of shoes sit in the tack room alongside the Horse Deals magazine from which we purchased Charlie in 2019.

The memory wall marks the start of the tack room. A repurposed sink from the house is useful for cleaning bits and boots. Extra heavy rugs and show rug bags are stored underneath.

Rugs are stored in size, style and material order on the bookcases.

The saddle racks were built from offcuts of wood left over from the stables. Storm’s old show rug has pride of place. The shelving storing the Horseware rugs has been repurposed from the house.

English Cocker-Spaniel twins George and Morris are regulars in the stable.

The mirrors mounted in both top corners of the arena were purchased for $90 on Facebook Marketplace and are a wonderful addition.

The viewing platform above the arena. Equipped with a solar-powered Uneek LED Light providing light for training at any hour of the day.

There are six StockGuard fenced horse paddocks, including a central raceway and an external raceway around the entire perimeter of the paddocks.

The paddocks have plenty of shelter.

Part of the Mannah Farm Black Angus breeding herd.

The StockGuard system is entirely solar-powered.

The property is full of beautiful old gum trees. The scars of the 2019 bush fi res are still evident.

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Mannah Farm

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