Pony Trekking!

[Abserd]

Hiya all,

just a quick post as i'm madly packing and trying to find a suitable waterproof bag for my riding hat as it's a monsoon outside (i'm sure a lot of you have the same soggy conditions!). Going to Isle of Arran tomorrow and have booked for a pony trek on Tues - i know i'll probably get soaked but i don't care, i've wanted to go pony trekking since i was a little kid, reading about treks in my horse books. Maybe i'm regressing :p but i'm really looking forward to it, especially no roadwork (hopefully). Been riding one and half years so maybe i'm not strictly a new rider, but it's all still new to me! I did a hack in the rain on wednesday evening and loved it. Am definitely reliving my childhood dreams except this time it's real, hurrah! Will let you know how it goes, maybe even with photos, as my OH and friends we're going with are too chicken to ride with me, will be my personal photographers and then they'll be waiting in the pub :D

[Gruntfuttock]

Lucky you ! Have a great time fulfilling your pony dream, and just being on Arran anyway - its beautiful. You might find trekking a bit sedate if you've ridden for a while, because normally they just walk and sometimes trot, but its nice simply on horseback, and having nothing much expected of you, and there is no shortage of incredible scenery to amble past !

PS. Just wrap your riding hat in a Tescos bag, or something....

[Abserd]

Thanks Gruntfuttock! found a plastic zip up that will do just fine!

i know i may just be ambling along but i'm actually looking forward to that, no pressure to canter, just to be able to watch the beautiful scenery and wildlife, especially knowing there'll be a pint waiting for me at the end ;)

May need windscreen wipers on my hat if this rain continues :rolleyes:

2 hours on a soggy saddle, only you lot can understand the attraction, my friends think i'm a little nutty!!

[Trewsers]

Hey, hope you have a great time - nothing wrong with re living your childhood dreams! Your OH and friends will be most envious when you come back from your trek, full of tales of adventure!!!! hehehe, enjoy!

[Abserd]

Yay, thanks Trewsers! getting excited now..setting off tomorrow morning for Consett, Co. Durham where our friends and their big furry dog live, then we set of for bonnie Scotland on Sunday - canna wait! Will post stories for sure, and hopefully photos too :p xx

[Floob]

The weather in scotland has been fine these last few days. Make sure you take lots of fly reppellent as midgy season is upon us.

HAve a great time, but after 2 years of ride leading I definitely do not see the attraction of going out in the pouring rain for 2 hours anymore!

[bexj]

Arran looks gorgeous - I was up that way this time last year :D You'll love trekking - it is sooo nice to be out in the fresh air, riding along with not a care in the world:D

[Abserd]

Worry not Floob, we've packed all manner of midgey repellent stuffs! Including a cd of Rod Stewart LOL (no offence meant, that was OH's attempt at wit!!) Aaah, the heady of summer - what us Northerners have to put up with eh!?! ;) Soggy adventures here i come :D

[Abserd]

Hellooo all! Well my trek was fab and the holiday to Arran was wonderful.:D I feel totally recharged, wish i was still there though as one week just is not enough! The weather was absolutely fantastic, i got a tan without burning, a first for me and we were just so lucky, it only rained a bit and at night. I managed to only get 3 midge bites, unlike my OH and a friend who were obviously more tasty than me!

The 2 hour trek i went on seemed like half an hour, there was just me and the girl who was leading the trek, Katie. We chatted most of the time as she was an art student (like i used to be in the olden days!) and because it was only me we cantered twice, one in the hills and then....on the beach!! I was buzzing! It was only a short canter as it was very pebbly and she said if the beach was more sandy we'd have done more but it didn't matter - another dream come true yay!! :p It was totally unexpected and i guess if i'd have gone in busier months i'd never have got such a personal trek. It was just lovely. I rode a very wide grey highland called Arran (his previous owners weren't very imaginative it seems!) and he was great, i felt totally safe even on the uneven ground. Saw a grass snake! No problem for the ponies. My canter was more a case of hold on and follow but never mind, i stayed on, albeit with occasional grabs of the saddle - no neck strap! It was over far too soon. The rest of the week involved lots of walking, mainly to tire the dog out, lots of eating and drinking (Arran beer of course) and sleeping ;)

Oh, yes apart from climbing Goat Fell, highest mountain on Arran, a mere 2866ft (874m) ouch! Legs, i'm sorry :D Views were incredible though. Can't wait to go back, will definitely ride there again. We only crossed 2 roads and both of those had someone waiting to make sure we crossed safely, nothing like reality here in soggy Leeds.

We did get texts from friends telling us how bad the weather was and coming home the weather was atrocious. We could hardly see on the motorway between Durham and Leeds, we even got bumped at some lights when the car behind us didn't stop quick enough - no damage though luckily :rolleyes:

I'm so sorry for all you guys suffereing from the wet, really hope it dries up soon so your equine friends can chill out in the fields, instead of literally being chilled.

Here is a photo of me on Arran just before we got started. It's not like i'm trying to hide my identity, it's just that my OH isn't used to the digital camera - this was the best shot! The few others were very fuzzy shots of Arran's legs!! We're waiting for some better photos taken by my friend with her posh camera :o

SORRY!! photo hasn't worked, i don't know what i've done but you can only see a corner of the barn - can't figure out how to delete it either :o:o Really got to go to work now ooops, will try to sort this out later :confused:

[Abserd]

Looks like i have deleted the mess i made after all...my head is still beside the seaside :)

[Trewsers]

Glad to hear you've had such a lovely holiday! Doesn't time fly?! Seems like only yesterday when you posted to say you were going! Glad it was everything you thought it would be - how lovely, a canter on the beach! You are very brave, last time I went trekking on holiday even tho I have my own horse - I was wary of cantering so I told the group leader - she said ok we wouldn't canter but the horse had other ideas! It was great tho - I felt safe cos it was a lovely chunky cob type.
Ah well, back to reality now..........!!!
Loook forward to seeing the pic.