On Sunday morning, August 6, about 30 ponies and their riders made their way up Mount Kembla.
121 years ago, a similar number of ponies ponies were traipsing through Mount Kembla, however back then were underground.
Along with the 96 miners who died in Australia's worst industrial disaster, about 18 pit ponies also perished.
Roughly 30 ponies worked in the Mount Kembla mine and each year the Keira pony club remembers those hardworking animals with a ride from Farmborough Heights to the Windy Gully cemetery, where the horses were laid to rest.
Club secretary Virginia Lautrec said the lives of those animals were very far removed from horses today.
"It was a piece of machinery, a farm vehicle," she said.
This didn't stop many of those who worked alongside the creatures developing a bond.
"They had a pretty horrible life down there, but they were loved and you hear a lot of stories about people taking them home after their stint was done," Ms Lautrec said.
Ponies hauled carts filled with coal and equipment and Ms Lautrec said many club members had a connection with the mines.
"A lot of us had grandfathers or fathers that worked in the mines and told us stories about ponies and their life."
Today, the connection between humans and their equine companions remains just as strong, and after having to cancel the annual ride for two years due to COVID and wet weather, Ms Lautrec said it was important to resume the event.
"For mental health, riding through the bush is just invaluable," she said.
From Farmborough Heights Rural Fire Service station, riders made their way via the Mount Kembla ring track to Windy Gully cemetery. Riders observed a minute's silence before laying a wreath for the ponies, followed by a picnic lunch before making their way back down the mountain.
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