South West Meet Up

[Murphs]

Ok - a few people have "taken over" Steve R's thread and expfressed an interest in a South west meet up. I know Mossy tried this before and everyone said yep great, til it actually came down to it:( (still Mossy, Ros and myself enjoyed ourselves:D )

So realistically how many people in South West would want to meet up - and where, it's quite a big place! Also when, i'm not sure that before Christmas is genuinely feasible due to people's other commitments - let's see what we can generate on this thread and then take it from there.

[Mossy]

Great idea. Keep me posted!

[LindaAd]

I like the idea, Murphs, but I don't think I'd fancy a trailer ride to Dartmoor this weather. I'm in E Dorset. Most people seem to be either further west, or further east, in the New Forest/Hampshire area. I could do the New Forest, but I don't expect that's what you are thinking of....?

[Laetitia]

Being in Wilts, an hour or so any way would be fine with me.Agree before Christmas is too soon, Any time after. Week end better for me as have really early starts. Cheers. L

[Sarah]

Fabbo!

How about south Somerset/N Devon as that would work for Murphs, Mossy, Ros and me and maybe Laetitia?

What do you all reckon?

bye!

[Blossom]

Never noticed this thread before - can I come too?

I am in South Devon.

Blossom

[Murphs]

Somerset/Devon Border looks good - lets get xmas/new year out the way and see what we can organise. LindaAd - wasn't intending to take own neds - but maybe we could or we could arrange a ride out at some establishment (that's what Mossy Ros and I did this year)

[ros]

I'd love to bring Fat Boy but he hasn't travelled distances yet and I've so far managed to avoid learning to drive the lorry so poor Mark would have to sit and wait for me! But I'm up for a ride somewhere!

[Kerry's Partner]

Would you welcome a SCentral intruder? It's probably the only way I'll ever get to meet that Sarah since she's moved - and I'm so jealous because I wish I could move down there too!!

If I could make it I'd love to come.

Sandra

[ros]

Weeelll - if you promise faithfully not to laugh at our funny accents or call us all Cornish Pasties :p

LOVE you to come, Sandra! Anyone who can get here/there/wherever it turns out to be. The more the merrier. In fact we were hoping Wally would get down to the last one, but she had to cancel at the last minute :( .

[Kerry's Partner]

Thank you Ros. I promise not to call you Cornish Pasties. In fact I'll regenerate my Geordie accent - IF you promise not to call me "thick".

Just hope we'll be able to "communicate" - joking of course. I've never had any problem before. In fact "communication" is something I think we Geordies and SW folks actually are really good at!!!!!!!!

Sandra

[ros]

You're a Geordie? Oh, well that's all right, then! Actually, every Geordie bloke I've ever met has had wonderful eyes. (Not sure about the women - I never took much notice ;) )

[Kerry's Partner]

My eyes - don't even know what they look like. But I expect whatever they did look like they're a bit too "old" to attract even the worst male Geordie eyes. Ha ha.

[Murphs]

good good - looks like we may have a few people this time then. Once xmas/new year out the way i'll resurface and see what i can arrange that suits us all. have a good one everyone:D

[Blossom]

Is it okay for me to tag along?

Blossom

[Murphs]

but of course Blossom - the more the merrier:)

[Sarah]

hello!

Right, what we need is for someone to take command here (and I'm not volunteering!).

Setting a date would be fairly easy, but has anyone got any good ideas about setting a meeting place? Date-wise, how does Sunday 23 Feb sound?

I challenge someone to come up with a good location where we can park lorries/trailers and have a good ride. Mind you, Stewart and I are trying somewhere in the Quantocks tomorrow, but seeign as that is to the West of Taunton, I'm not sure it would be too handy for everyone!

bye!

[Kerry's Partner]

The date seems fine - but I can't bring Kerry so I'll have to see you all off and welcome you all back.

Sandra

[Laetitia]

Takes me roughly 3hrs to get to Tiverton, is that near Tauton ?Would love to bring nag, but not very brave so if you don't go to fast...! L

[Mossy]

Great idea. I'd love to bring the Sherman Tank but need to scrounge a lift for us.

[Murphs]

how bout we do what we did last year - ie. go to a riding stables and hire horses for a ride - saves the hassle of everyone trying to transport their own horses. I don't mind organising - but need to know which area suiits most people best - Exmoor or Dartmoor perhaps?


Sarah - where you going on the Quantocks - ramscombe? Fantastic riding there - did a fun ride last May hoping to do the rides this year as well:)

[Sue Carnell]

Well I think you're all nuts wanting to go riding on Exmoor or Dartmoor in the middle of winter. This is the 'mature riders' forum isn't it? ;)

Sue Carnell
sue@eclipse.co.uk

[Mossy]

Dartmoor in Mid winter is truly beautiful - as long as it is not raining and you are well wrapped up! Beautiful views. clean air, and room to move with no idiots asking "Where can we go to feed the ponies?" Answer, Nowhere! as well as being extremely stupid, it is illegal!

[ros]

Merlin hasn't travelled any great distances yet and I don't drive the lorry, so I'd prefer a ride from a yard somewhere - anywhere, any time, I'm happy to go with the flow. (Just so long as I don't have to mount from behind the horse's tail and do one-rein stops, that is :rolleyes: ).

[Laetitia]

Whichever. L

[Murphs]

Sue - i guess you chance the weather any time of year in this country. Last Year we went early March had an absolutely beautiful day even though the weather the few days before had been so bad the centre weren't sure if the ride would go ahead or not.

Can people let me know if they want a 2hr hack or a days pub ride - i'll have a look at a few websites and see what's about. Also on cost - what are people willing to spend - prices range from£25 to £40 for 2 hr hacks on the couple of sites i've looked at.

I presume i'm looking at roughly 8 or 9 of us (me, Ros, Mossy, Laetitia, Blossom, Kerry's Partner, Sarah, Horseybabe and Sue?)
and for 23rd Feb.

I'll report back when i've done some more research.

[Sue Carnell]

Well I would, but my arthritis wouldn't let me to be honest. I have enough trouble walking down the stairs this time of the year, until I've taken my medication, so riding on the moor for a couple of hours would be out of the question really. :( I don't tend to mention it, hence the flippant replies and my not making a decision until the last minute last year, but I thought I better say something, before everyone thinks I'm a terrible wimp. ;) I'm afraid cold and especially cold and wet, tends to seize up my fingers and knees in particular, so I keep any athleticism I have left for filling water buckets and mucking out, or my two would suffer and I can't have that. :D

If it's nice and I can make a last minute decision again, then I'd love to join in though.

Sue
sue@eclipse.co.uk

[Laetitia]

Quite fancy a pub ride, but not fussy. L

[Blossom]

Oooh quite looking forward to it now! I don't have any trasport for bringing Ebony with me so a place where we could all go out on a hack on hired horses would be good for me. Unless if you do decide to take own horses - someone passes by me and have got space for a little 14.2hh!

LOL

Blossom

[chapsi]

I ought to confess that I am a bit "green" of you guys having the chance to meet and to do a ride together. I miss the wonderful trails in the SW country, as I lived in Avon and South Gloustershire, as well as socialising with a good bunch. I know that part of the country so well, my heart goes out to it, I left behind very good memories.
I wish you luck, plenty of fun and a safe ride. I'll be with you on my thoughts, together with my horse.
Kerry's Partner, I didn't know you were a Geordie. My ex was Geordie, so were lots of our friends, many living in the SW too. In fact, I lived a few months in Newcastle and I used to spend lots of time with friends in Northumberland. For a foreigner, coping with Geordie accent was no problem; at our school, my colleagues used to find it funny that I could understand better than them some comedies on tele! :cool:

[Sarah]

hello!

We had a FANTASTIC day yesterday on the Qunatocks - we started at the north end nr West Quantoxhead if that means anything to anyone. We mainly just walked with a few trotettes as we didn't know the area at all. In the future is anyone wants to come along on a BYOH (bring your own horse) ride, then lets arrange one!

Anyway, back to our NR ride. It may well be better to hire horses and go from a centre as transporting our nags to a 'central' point may be tricky. One thing is that we need to make sure we know the place and that care is taken of the horses and that our 'guide' isn't a gallop-mad 14 year old girlie. Does anyone know of any place like that?

Well done for volunteering to find a place Murphs!

It may be that a 2 hr ride may we fine, but we meet in a pub beforehand for a spot of lunch and photo showing, etc - that way we get the best of both worlds - a pub lunch and a cheaper ride out (maybe). What do you all reckon?

bye!

PS Can I add my husband Stewart to the ride list (so long as you aren't all out for galloping non stop, if you are then he can stay at home!)

bye!

PS Kerry's Partner (Sandra) if we aren't going with our hosses, does that mean that you may be able to come?

[Horsey Bird]

Hi Sarah
Your idea sounds great. Unfortunately I'm not familiar enough with the area to suggest a location...sorry.

Murphs, I'm just confirming that I'm still interested!
thanks
M.

[Kerry's Partner]

Sarah,

Thanks a million. Yes that does mean I may be able to come. I might pinch Stewart actually (not literally and I am safe) and walk, trot because I'm still a bit of a coward.

I'm not from the area I know but try looking up "Brake" or some other spelling of it in your area 'phone books - it may well be totally unsuitable but this is the brother of Nic Brake who was on the Olympic team several years ago (and broke his neck but is local to me here and got me back riding again after I was quite sick a few years ago). Nic's brother's place I went to twice a few years ago and it's about 8 mile's from Tiverton I think.

Sandra

[Murphs]

Hello all

I've contacted the following riding centres re arranging our meet - when i have some info from them i'll post back - in the meantime if there are any here that you know of that are definite no-no's let me know.

Knowle Manor - Exmoor
The Spirit of Exmoor
Porlock Vale - Exmoor
Liscombe Farm - Exmoor (my favourite from the website)
Collacott EC- Exmoor

Sue - fair point about your ailments - we'll play it by ear with you

Sarah - i see no reason why hubby can't join us. Glad you enjoyed the Quantocks - can you remember where you parked - i'll check it out on my maps - Quantock riding is definitely an option for me so i could meet you sometimes if i know where you are starting from.

Debbie

[Sarah]

Murphs,

We parked on a hilltop just south of West Quantoxhead - it is a large carpark near to Staple Plantation (if oyu have an OS map to look at). It is back on the north of the main spine bridlepath through the Quantcoks. Great place to ride, but I wouldn't recomend there as a starting point on a windy day as you are at the highest point of the hills! That would be great if we could meet up for a mini NR SW ride there sometime!

Well done on looking into the places to ride on Exmoor!

Sandra, Stewart was getting quite excited about you pinching him...

bye!

[Laetitia]

The only thing I know about Porlock is that it has a hill I've never been brave enough to drive a car up or down ! It goes to the Weir. There is a longer route, but my memory is dim.
Starting and ending at a pub sounds wonderful. L

[Kerry's Partner]

There is a place between Porlock Vale and Porlock Weir - maybe that's the Porlock one. I THINK they only cater for the "experienced" but may well be wrong. The countryside is brilliant - I've walked it several times. If we went to Porlock I could get some more Cowboy Magic for Kerry - it's unheard of around here yet it's so good.

I hate Porlock Hill too - when driving up it towing - eeeeek. We took the wrong road about 12 yrs ago.

"BRAKE'S" place is on/adjacent to the Quantocks I think.

[Sue Carnell]

Well now I know you're all mad. You want to drive snake pass in the middle of winter? :eek: I hope you've all got 4 x4's. How about arranging an early summer meet-up after this one?

Sue
sue@eclipse.co.uk

[Laetitia]

I'm all set- found my padded jods! L

[LouiseS]

Hello all

I would be keen to come to this - dates permitting. I love Exmoor and have been out riding there quite a bit - I go to a place called Huntscott House in a village of the same name near Wootton Courtenay near Minehead. Anyone know it?

Louise

[Murphs]

Louise - do they do group hacks there? Do you have any contact details- may be worth going somewhere that comes with a recommendation

Also, responses from my enquiries are a bit slow but question has been raised re height/weight/age - can you all PM me with the info - also level of experience ie. happy with cantering etc

DEbbie

[Mossy]

Could I also add plus one please or is that too cheeky?

[LouiseS]

Hi

Yes he does do groups. The telephone number is 01643 841272. It is not like a 'traditional' riding stable - he only does 2 hour hacks on the moor generally once a day in the winter but I have had a really pleasant time when I have been there. All the horses are TBs (failed racers from a Lambourne trainer) but they are all well behaved.

The guy who runs it is called Dave and he accompanies the hacks. If it is not too far from you I would try and visit because I feel you will either think 'yes, this is the place for me' or 'no, not my kind of place at all'. He is usually out 10 - 12 so I reckon 12.30 ish would be a good time. The horses are mostly in in the winter so you can see them as well.

See what you think!!

Louise

[LouiseS]

Forgot the personal details

Age 47 by then (AAAAAAAAAAAAAGH)
Weight 10st
Height 5' 7"

Experienced and happy at all paces.

Louise

[LouiseS]

Also meant to say last time I went to Huntscott (September 2002) 2 hour hack was 26.00

Louise (hopefully I wont think of anything else)

[Murphs]

Louise S - thanks i'll give them a call and perhaps visit next week.

Mossy - course it's ok to add one.

Porlock Vale is a no-no as they only cater for residents and then only want VERY experienced riders:rolleyes:

Hopefully i can get this sorted during next week (i'll have more time then to deal with it properly)

[Sarah]

hello!

Here's the lowdown on Stewart and me!

me 28, 10.5st (could be more, I'm trying to avoid scales after xmas), 5ft 8 - happy to do anything anywhere, but want to ride with Stewart, so lets say walk and trot!

Stewart - 31, 10.25st (git, how can he weigh less when we eat teh same?), 5ft9 - happy to walk, trot and maybe canter, but only for a short time in a setting he likes - ie uphill.

bye!

[Laetitia]

Oh dear, perhaps I'd better bow out, being rather a heavy person ?! 14st. There I've said it.
Capable of all paces, but funk it if I feel the pace is too fast, ie. nerves. L

[Murphs]

L - you should still be ok. Let me do some more research and get back to you before you hastily pull out:)

[Mossy]

Me 5'5" 8 1/2 stone reasonably experienced
and either hubby 14st 5'9" competent in all three paces or daughter. my build and height and happy on ponies of any shape or form but not done much on horses - it is along way up there Mum!