The Riding

When you book your holiday you can choose the riding itinerary to suit you and what you enjoy best. The list is indeed endless as there are so many routes to explore in the area and over Exmoor, however, here’s a few suggestions, but you can ring and talk to Zana personally to put together the holiday of your dreams.

Lessons

 All lessons are delivered in a relaxed style, very much driven by you the rider and also by the horse. With Zana’s intuitive way of coaching you’ll discover the sensitivity of the horse and understand your own body and the effects it can have on our four legged friend in possibly ways you have never experienced in your lessons at home. Lessons can be added into your stay to compliment the holiday and can cover flat work, cross country riding, jumping and Trec. The learning environment should be fun for both rider and horse and so this underpins all of the lessons, making sure that you are just as entertained as you would be on the treks and trails out and about. The aim is that the horse remains fresh throughout the session, enjoying it too and NEVER feeling stale. There is a choice of 2 covered schooling areas to work in, so even the weather can’t spoil things!

To get the best out of the horses whilst on your holiday, we recommend at least an introductory lesson on your first day. This way you’ll understand the approach that we use with the horses here at West Steart Farm. It teams up well with a short ride around the farm or nearby woods.

 

The Rides

 Stoodleigh, Woodland and Oakford (routes from 1hr to 4hrs riding time)

There’s some great short and half day rides through Stoodleigh and around the local tracks and bws. One of the best routes is through local woods packed with wildlife and very quiet. We can take numerous different tracks and wind our way up to the village of Oakford which has a pub at which we could find a little refreshment. We could return via a different route, not retracing our steps once to return to the farm.

The Gallops

This is a fantastic experience and as you’ll have watched the race horses going up the gallops every morning whilst getting the Dales ponies ready (the gallop borders the farm on 2 sides) you’ll be keen  to get a  feel it for yourself, but safe in the knowledge you’re on a steady Dales pony. We start the experience with some race riding tuition; jockey’s position, bridging reins, changing hands and pulling your whip. We talk you through gallop rules and what to expect. Then when you’re ready we’ll walk down to the start, you’ll be told to put your goggles down, bridge your reins and then deep breath, and up we go. It’s a great long uphill pull on beautifully maintained woodchip surface giving one of the most consistent rides in the country. It’s a clear track, wide enough to work 2 abreast comfortably, running railed in good sections and gives a wonderful safe but exciting feel. There aren’t many places you can gallop like this as an amateur and you’re sure to feel special. If you’re lucky/or unlucky depending on how you feel about being exposed to film, Jim will be able to film you up the gallops to music of your choice, follow this link to You Tube to get inspired; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tVlDLX4rJgk   The hire charge for the gallops is an additional £10, which can be paid direct to the trainer or through Devon Riding Holidays.

Day ride to Knightshayes (approx 5hrs riding time)

We stay in the Exe valley and experience its quiet charm and wonderful wildlife of deer, birds of prey, wild flowers and plunging valley sides of woodland and farmland. The ride follows a quiet lane down to Cove through blue bell woods, crosses the road to Dulverton and Exmoor and then climbs up through the village. Here we pick up a bridleway across fields, cross a stream and then enter Bickleigh Woods picking up various tracks as we climb the valley side. We then cross 2 farms to pick up the private Estate track which takes you into the parkland of Knightshayes court. This is a National Trust property which has the Estate hall and gardens to wander round. It also has a gift shop and tea rooms. We can hitch up the horses, look round and have lunch whilst they’re resting, and then pick our way back again diverting slightly to experience some different routes through the woods. It’s a really pleasant ride and each stretch is only about 2hrs so not too long in the saddle and gives plenty of time for sightseeing. If you fancy this one, we need to book us in for lunch for which you’ll need a bit of pocket money and let the Estate office know we’ll be travelling through. (we’re the only horses to be given permission to ride through, so quite special really!)

Tarr Steps Day ride (approx 4 to 6hrs riding time depending on route chosen)

This is Zana’s favorite ride. If we have back up, it’s a linear route across southern Exmoor, from East Anstey to Winsford, without back up we ride a circular route from Winsford. This ride has it all; beautiful woodland, vast open moorland with far reaching views, stunning villages, cute Exmoor ponies roaming wild, river crossings, optional fallen logs to jump, optional drop steps to negotiate, optional gallop stretches, rolling foothills, historical landmarks and of course the pub, the Tarr Farm Inn and the magical clapper bridge of Tarr Steps. The ride can be challenging or easier paths can be chosen and whichever ways we follow, the day promises to be special.

Wimbleball to Dunster (approx 6hrs riding time)

Wonderful journey from Wimbleball Lake through woods and fording streams, across amazing farmland with long canters, to join through quiet woodland tracks once again before resting at The Royal Oak, Luxborough. After refreshment, continue on through the majestic Crown Estate climbing high through woods to view the Bristol Channel and Wales before being met by the horsebox at a woodland car park just outside Dunster, medieval village.

Wimbleball Lake Circular (approx 4hrs riding time)

Box to Wimbleball and ride around the reservoir. Beautiful scenery, Exmoor ponies and bird life. Plenty of canter stretches and quiet lanes make up this ride which roughly follows the lake shore. Finish through the woods and past the impressive damn.

Beach and Dunes ride

Braunton Burrows is a magical place. So magical that in fact it is Britain’s first UNESCO biosphere reserve, a world heritage site and is the largest area of sand dunes in England. It has over 400 different wild flowers and 33 species of butterflies all living within the constantly changing landscape. Reportedly there is also an old chapel buried somewhere under the dunes, but not even the rabbits have found it. In more recent history the American troops practiced here for the Normandy landings and the MoD still practise today in the dunes. Luckily live firing is indicated by red flags, but pack your body protectors just in case! We box the horses to a car park halfway down the dune system. A bridleway and tracks take you along the coast down to the beach just North of Crow point, from here miles of beach stretch out in front of you and lovely clean water to splash about in. We can pack a picnic and spend a few hours enjoying the coast.

Badger Watch

A short but enchanting ride away is East Stoodleigh Barton where owners Anne and Kevin can amaze you with their knowledge of all things nature and especially the badgers. We ride over through farmland and woods arriving at the farm in time to release the ponies in a yarded area before learning about what Badgers face in order to survive in modern Britain. Then Anne and Kevin take you down to the badger hide in their woods and you see the badgers come out to snuffle about right in front of your eyes. It’s a magical experience and afterwards we make our way back, sometimes by moonlight having the experience of a night ride by Dales pony. The badger watch is an additional £10 which you need to take in your pocket with you.

Exmoor

Numerous rides across Exmoor. Depending on whether we’ve a box driver we can be dropped off and picked up or can ride to Exmoor and into the park from here at the farm and then be boxed back. If no box driver, it’s still a lovely ride over to Wimbleball Lake and back again in a large circular ride, travelling through woods and along green lanes, using quiet country lanes to link the routes together. You’ll be sure to come across red deer and at the lake a herd of Exmoor ponies do roam, so keep your eye’s peeled!