Best place for hacking in England?

cadefan

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Hi all
Where can I find endless peaceful hacking with beautiful views? Hope to be retired from work, so remote is not a problem. Planning the next house move....
 

Abi90

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Northumberland. Not many people about, fabulous rides over beaches and the hills. Some good livery yards too and competition venues if you fancy that as well.

Also one of the driest counties in England
 

Sussexbythesea

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South Downs - lots of people at weekends but mostly quiet and wonderful views with loads of bridle paths. On the other hand, mega expensive houses.

I’ve got great hacking lots of varied circular routes with no or very little roadwork. Weather pretty much some of the best in the country. Beach too but you’d need to box 10 minutes down the road for that. Its pretty expensive though and traffic is pants.
 

Keith_Beef

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Northumberland. Not many people about, fabulous rides over beaches and the hills. Some good livery yards too and competition venues if you fancy that as well.

Also one of the driest counties in England

OK, East of the Pennines is always going to be drier than Cumbria or Lancashire... But Northumberland in the winter... I seem to remember dawn being at something like 08h30 and dusk at 15h45...
 

MotherOfChickens

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[QUOTE="Keith_Beef, post: 13964134,.. But Northumberland in the winter... I seem to remember dawn being at something like 08h30 and dusk at 15h45...[/QUOTE]

worse in Scotland-you just have to make the most of the longer summer nights.

South Downs is fine but then you have to live in Sussex with all the others and all the traffic (and I stayed there for two years). Plus, packs and packs of ramblers.
 

tankgirl1

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We're in The Peak District and have lots of beautiful hacking, close enough to Manchester and Sheffield if you work in the city or whatever, but miles and miles of countryside too
 

windand rain

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East coast wherever you go as it is drier and has more hours of sunshine We live in the Lincolnshire wolds which is beautiful and has lots of bridle ways and competition venues
 

phizz4

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Dartmoor, as wild and remote as you want it to be or stick to the fringes for less remoteness. Wonderful views. Exmoor, slightly less wild and remote than parts of Dartmoor, more great views. Quantocks, more pastoral and a bit overrun with mountain bikes at times. Long Mynd, not a huge area but great, open, grassy rides with more great views.
 

GTRJazz

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Basildon miles of Bridleways and a large public park you can ride in Thorndon. Many other rides a short box trip away
 

Abi90

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OK, East of the Pennines is always going to be drier than Cumbria or Lancashire... But Northumberland in the winter... I seem to remember dawn being at something like 08h30 and dusk at 15h45...

Try sunset at 1530 never mind dusk! But in the summer it never really gets dark so it’s worth it
 

awelshandawarmblood

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My friend moved to Wales, however although the hacking looks good around her bridleways have been blocked or are very poor and the local council aren't bothered about it.

Living here I can agree with this. Very few bridleways & mostly road work unless you go to specific places or horse friendly beaches, I was very luckily on a yard last summer for a few months with fantastic forestry hacking but never been anywhere else I can really go off road. Most tracks are footpaths only & the small amount of bridleways are either blocked or over grown as the councils don't see it as a priority. If you did fancy Wales the Gower is amazing for riding! England I've always love Cirencester Park.
 

PapaverFollis

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Cumbria is nice for walkers but many of the "bridleways" in the actual lake district are far too steep and rocky for anything but a surefooted fell pony, if that. It's a stunning place and if you picked you location carefully you'd get good hacking... the East part of Cumbria around Penrith is probably quite good. But I'd look at Northumberland and the Penines first. What about Norfolk?

I do think good hacking is much more about micro location than macro! You can have brilliant hacking in one place and 2 miles down the road can't get off the yard...
 

pistolpete

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I have a barefoot pony so Southdowns is way too stony. Something else to consider as we are planning to relocate too.
 
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