A question to lake district riders/walkers, have you ever seen any horse riders using the bigger lakeland bridleway passes? Black sail, walna scar, stakes pass, high street etc?

Reason I ask is that from memory they’re pretty rough and I think that UK horse riders/(posh horses) have gone a bit soft when it comes proper mountain riding.

My wife wants to do a long distance horse ride next year for charity. I owe her support team tokens for a number of previous bike events. So have promised to be her pit bitch. she’s struggling to find decent information on long distance horsing on t’web. Pennine Bridleway springs to mind, but I was thinking of plotting her a coast to coast route.

Anyway her horse is sturdy and far from posh. And we’ve both ridden far rougher stuff in Chile, so wondered if it’s a disasterous idea or a great adventure for my wife and her steed?

http://www.horsebooks.co.uk/results.asp?code=11&page=2

3rd one down on the left. Saddle Tramp in the Lake District – Robert Orrell

One of my favourite books, might give you a clue as to what would be involved. Do-able for sure, but depends if the horse is used to that kind of terrain. If it’s never seen a steep, rocky Lakeland pass it might have other ideas.

What horseshoes for the Lakes????? 😀

Maxxis HighHorses, in supertacky.

I cant think of any instance where I have seen Horses on the High Lakeland Passes,High Street would be the better one to do, but climbing up from the troutbeck side could be worth checking out before you attempt it as a climb or decent.
Theres lots of stone pitching,and loose rock on the other Higher passes these days, weather a horse can cover this type of going,comfortably, I am not sure.

The book quoted above is a great read, but do remember it was written before the trails were worn/repaired to the state they are now. 😥

I hope it works out for you though,but do research the route first could be key 8)

I used to ride long distance and crew for part of the GB team and often wonder why we don’t see many horses when we are out on bikes in the lakes, it seems such a waste!

I’m sure you could come up with a great long distance route through the lakes – but unfortunately a lot of the bridleways up high have been stone pitched in a way that I just can’t imagine would be fun to ride on horses although they are great on bikes……..Black Sail being a prime example!

I tell you who may be able to help….Annie at Cumbrian Heavy Horses. They migrated the horses from Skye to where they are in the south lakes now.

http://www.cumbrianheavyhorses.com/html/ourhistory.html