General News
4 August, 2025
Saddle Up: American adventurer crosses Australia
For 24-year-old Pennsylvanian Gin Szagola, the adage "success is a journey, not a destination" rings true.
She's undertaking a 4000km adventure across Australia, from Tathra, NSW, to Perth, WA.
While many might expect a young solo traveller to embark on a road trip in a campervan, Ms Szagola has a unique companion: Fable, a Brumby once wild in the Snowy Mountains.
As wet weather drenched the Wimmera, she stopped in Warracknabeal for the weekend, allowing the travel partners to rest and recover.
"We started this journey on May 21 from Tathra, which is on the south coast near Bega," she said.
"While it might not be the normal place people start a cross-country adventure, I wanted to take Fable over the Snowy Mountains."
Gin met Fable, a five-year-old gelding from near Mount Kosciuszko, at the Victorian Brumby Association in Glenlogie, just south of Elmhurst.
"We had about 90 days together before we started the ride," Ms Szagola said.
"At first, I just said 'Don't kill me', but we soon developed a strong bond."
Despite her young age, Ms Szagola is no stranger to cross-country adventures.
She walked across America at the age of 18, becoming the youngest person to traverse the country solo.
At 20, she crossed the country again, this time on a bicycle.
Then, across two years, she embarked on a 5800km trek with Finley, a formerly wild six-year-old mustang gelding, from New Jersey to Oregon.
"I only learned how to ride a horse a few months before we started," she said.
"I knew I was in over my head, but we both got there in the end."
Her adventure saw her accepted into the Long Riders Guild, an international association for 'equestrian explorers' who ride for more than 1000 miles.
Ms Szagola and Fable rode out of Warracknabeal on Sunday, en route to Antwerp, Nhill and Kaniva, before crossing into South Australia.
"I'm really looking forward to riding across the Nullabor," she said.
"I've always wanted to go over."
You can follow Gin and Fable's journey via www.ginandfaith.com.
