The first rule of riding out, whether alone or in a group, is to always tell someone where you are going in case of any emergency. (By Harriet Kent pictured below)
No matter which livery yard I have ever chosen to keep a horse, the local bridleways and surrounding areas all seemed to have colourful nicknames.
The first rule of riding out, whether alone or in a group, is to always tell someone where you are going in case of any emergency.
With that in mind, it is so much easier to say “I’m just going around blah blah” than to give a detailed description of your route. Even though, these days, we have the wonders of mobile phones and What 3 Words, I for one, haven’t completely mastered that App yet.
I have to smile when I think of some of the names we would use for certain routes. One of them was “I’m just going to Colonel Hoolibars and back through the assault course (so called as it had five gates to encounter, one of which was tied up with binder string and not easy to open whilst on horseback), along the concrete path and then the second half of the railway line. I shouldn’t be long!” Anyone who was none the wiser might think that military manoeuvres were taking place.
Other routes come to mind, for instance, “I’m going around Millers, up through the Dark Alley, then back Over the Top”. To the uninitiated, this might sound like something to do with Dr Who, Trumpton or the First World War! But it would be perfectly understandable to another yard member.
We are blessed to have lots of bridleways and footpaths throughout the Island and they are all so incredibly beautiful and mostly accessible, particularly this time of year when many of the hedges are coming into leaf and the wildflowers are slowly waking up from their winter sleep, creating gorgeous swathes of colour and perfume.
So next time you hear a horse rider saying “I’m just off through the Rill, over the GreenTriangle and past Spooky Corner”, just remind yourself that it’s not a time traveller’s route and that it all makes perfect sense…honestly!