ridecamp@endurance.net: Re: 1000 km trip on horseback

Re: 1000 km trip on horseback

Donna L O'Gara (dlogara@juno.com)
Tue, 04 Mar 1997 20:05:55 EST

That sounds like a wonderful adventure! As far as what you should take,
my experience is that money and a sleeping bag are all that's required,
as long as you aren't too far from civilization. Not much money is
required, though, because people will be generous when they hear what
you're doing.

My buddy and I had a similar adventure in Southern California, back in
1966, and all we brought was a box of cheerios, a pound of spaghetti,
tie out ropes for the horses, and a map. No food for the horses, no food
for the dog. We foraged as we went along. We camped at night where the
grass was good, and when we were hungry we found a place to sell us
something. A couple of nights we found ourselves at farms where they
offered to feed the horses and let us all sleep indoors.

The dog wouldn't have made it if he had had to walk the whole way, but
he enjoyed riding behind me, between me and my bedroll, with his head
sticking out one side, and his tail out the other.

It was a fantastic adventure, and you couldn't pay me enough to do it
again.

Donna -- 30 years older, and a little bit wiser
--------------------Snip-----------------------
From: Hanneke van Scheltinga 070-3792187
<J.M.C.VAN.SCHELTINGA@kab.agro.nl>
To: ridecamp@endurance.net (Reply requested)
Subject: 1000 km trip on horseback
Message-Id: <5204231504031997/A41097/KA4/11B323D70400*@MHS>
Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; CHARSET=US-ASCII
Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7BIT

In August we are planning to make a trip from a village in Holland to a
village
in the Dordogne in France. I will be about 1000 kilometers. Probably a
more.
The terrain will be flat (Holland and a part of Belgium) and hilly (part
of
Belgium and France), old routes of pilgrimages, etc.
We will be with three horses (2 mares and 1 stallion. All Arabians) and a
dog
(a Bauceron). No packing horse.
Whatever we need, will be in saddlebags on the horse. Of course we will
travel
as light as possible.
We are thinking of doing 40 to 50 km a day depending of course on the
terrain.
At night we will stay at farms, chateaus, etc.

We would very much like to receive advise on the following:
- How many km a day is advisable / reasonable;
- What do you realy need to bring with you on a trip like this (except of
course for a toothbrush etc);
- What sort of exercise/training should you give your horse (the horses
are all
'endurance-trained');
to make himher ready for such a trip;
- should you feed them during the trip electrolytes, etc;
- any other information we could use.
- willa dog be able to make such a trip (I'm thinking of his pads)

Thanks and we hope to hear from you

Hanneke and Aanis-al-Saltaneh
Tineke and Araf el-Makhlouf
Els and Aghili
-------------------------------------------Snip-----------------

Home Events Groups Rider Directory Market RideCamp Stuff