How good is your hacking?

[canteron]

We used to have really lovely hacking - but the farmer ploughed over the lovely strips when the subsidies ended and now, I am still lucky I can ride for about 45 mins without having to ride on a road, but in comparison it’s just. ‘Ok’.

And your hacking, how many people can never really ride out safely!

 

[SantaVera]

Mainly road.

 

[fidleyspromise]

Brilliant - I waited 5 years to move to a yard where you cross the roads into a woods which is a 45 minute loop mainly walk with some trot or cross another road and be out a further 3+ hours.
Crossing both roads you can be to the beach in 25 minutes just walking.

 

[Flowerofthefen]

I used to be at a sole use yard and I could go out for hours off road after walking down a tiny bit of road. Now my hacking is straight on to a road then mainly foads with small bits and pieces of rough tracks!!

 

[stormox]

All roads

 

[Sasana Skye]

We are very spoilt and have direct access to the Mendips from the yard with tens of thousands of acres of off-road riding without needing to touch a road Only problems I have with it are trying to not get lost or lose my horse to the herd of wild Exmoor ponies that we sometimes bump into

 

[SEL]

I used to ride straight from the yard onto Cannock chase and I didn't appreciate it until I moved down to the SE. Now I'm out onto what was once a quiet road until HS2 meant Google maps diverted everyone down it

 

[The Xmas Furry]

Am fortunate in some respects as all off road for a 45 to 50 min medium active ride with no roads and just an unmade lane linking a few residential properties and a farm. I often use the track in winter.

Otherwise out of my gate and turn left for glorious scenery of mixed woodland, pinewood and open heather.
Down side is it's very close to town so many others sharing on foot, cycles, dogs etc so it's rare to get a canter of more than 40 metres...
Best time to ride is dawn break, we actually got 15 mins uninterrupted trotting this morning.

Can use a bridleway to go further afield on a lollipop ride, but involves 100 yards of a very abusive A road so it's rare I go that way unless on a Sunday morning.

 

[Mrs B]

I'm very lucky - miles of quiet lanes/roads or forestry tracks straight from the yard.

There are DIY yards closer to me (this one's 7 miles away) and even one I could walk to, but the hacking here is single track Devon lanes, with high banks and blind bends.
And a few numpties who round those bends at Mach 6.
And a couple who think leaning on the horn while they do so means that's enough warning to find refuge ...

The only thing I miss is open fields for a good blast, but on balance ... very lucky.

 

[Spotherisk]

In theory it’s great as I’m on the edge of Dartmoor but it would be a 45 minute road hack to get off road. There is a stony byway and small common less than a mile away. I don’t have any horses now but if I did I’d say the hacking is mainly roads because an hour is about my physical pain limit.

 

[smolmaus]

All roads here too. And not great ones either. the quieter routes are across a 60mph A road too!

Tbh tho cars aren't the problem, it's cows so we make do.

 

[cauda equina]

Not too bad at the mo, because there's stubble
Usually it's fairly rubbish - much worse than when we moved here 20 years ago, because the traffic is worse

After Brexit I really hoped that farm subsidies would include money for permissive access again

 

[Snow Falcon]

I cross a quiet road and then don't touch another til I cross it again to get back to the field. All open forest & enclosures to be lucky enough to ride on and through.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

We have a small wood directly opposite and can ride round some crop fields so quite a few routes but if you go further a field like to Heartwood forest you have to cross a few roads one is really busy, but at least I don't have to ride along roads if i don't want to.

 

[palo1]

It's not everyone's cup of tea and in fact, loads of our horsey neighbours never set foot on the open hill but my hacking is now almost entirely open country; commons, Welsh mountains (small ones lol!) and woodland/forestry. I can hack on quiet lanes to reach a large private estate where local riders have free access over 1000 acres too so I think it is absolutely perfect. The downside, if people want to hear that, is that it is miles and miles of very winding lanes and hours to get to any sort of competitive equestrian venue! So realistically I have to love the hacking or be rather grumpy lol.

 

[Griffin]

Brilliant! We have a very quiet lane from the yard which if you ride up if for about 100m, you can then access miles of bridleways with a choice of field or forest rides. Hacking on the road is also excellent because it is all very quiet lanes with 30mph limits around the village. I have been on yards with awful hacking, so I am not leaving this one!

 

[Gallop_Away]

We have amazing hacking where we are in South Wales. You do need to ride a short distance on the road to get to it, but once off the road you can go for miles across forestry, fields and mountains.

 

[GinaGeo]

From home. It’s utterly appalling. Roads only, about four bridleways in hacking distance. But they aren’t really worth bothering with and absolutely aren’t connected in anyway shape or form If we do venture out we stick to a short loop round a housing estate, it’s the quietest route.

However, we do have excellent and varied hacking a short drive away.

If we box up for 20 mins then we have an excellent forestry network in one direction that can be used for fast work all year round. Regardless of how wet or dry everywhere is.

And in the other we can get to bridleway networks connecting country parks and railways. Which is great for the steadier conditioning and hill work.

And if we go a bit further afield we’ve got loads of longer rides that I have mapped out using bridleways.

I do wish we had great hacking on our doorstep. But not having it does mean we get to ride in different places really regularly.

 

[nagblagger]

I cross a quiet road and then don't touch another til I cross it again to get back to the field. All open forest & enclosures to be lucky enough to ride on and through.

That's why i going to box my mule to you for a ride - not embarrassed are you?

Mainly roads where i am.

 

[Snow Falcon]

Nope!

 

[wiglet]

We have brilliant hacking. Straight out of yard onto a bridle path which leads to woodlands and fields with access paths that we are allowed to use. No roadwork necessary.

 

[nagblagger]

I think they should add a jealousy emoji !

 

[smolmaus]

I hope all of you with even an hour of bridleways try and hold a bit of gratitude in your heart for us road work only folks. Reading this thread is causing me mental damage

 

[Jambarissa]

When I moved to my yard it was great, could ride the boundaries of all the farm fields. Now it's been fenced off so we have 10 mins on a 30 main commuter road to get to the village and the maybe 1 mile of off road riding.

I want to move but it's all bad around me so really would need to have them about 30-45 mins away and so would need part livery.

I bought transport, but it's a faff and a 90 min ride takes at 4 hours.

Only solution is to move house. Really not that practical!

 

[smolmaus]

I bought transport, but it's a faff and a 90 min ride takes at 4 hours.

Oh don't tell me that, I am determined I will have a box by Christmas so I can go out to the woods once a week

 

[Identityincrisis]

I’m so lucky, i livery on a private Estate, I could be out hours without doing anything other than crossing the odd road. If I don’t have a decent canter2-3 times per ride I feel hard done to! When I have met friends who claim to have great hacking from their yards i’m reminded how lucky I am.

The rest leaves a lot to be desired but the hacking keeps me there

 

[SussexbytheXmasTree]

Hacking is amazing. Short lane to woods and then the south downs. I can ride for several hours without needing to go on a road.

 

[Surbie]

I have to do some roadwork to get to the hacking (30mph but it's a bit of a rat run) and a lot of the bridleways have been surfaced for cyclists and walkers so it's mainly walk for a good 40 minutes. There's a private estate you can buy a key for, and some commons, but they are increasingly busy with cyclists and dog walkers. That said, going early you can have the place to yourself, and it is by no means as bad as others have described theirs to be.

I can box to other hacking easily, and if I ever move yards quiet off-road hacking would be on my essentials list.

My yard is putting in a 1/2 mile grass canter track which would be a big bonus - though possibly only useable for half the year.

 

[gryff]

I've got thousands of acres of open mountain side straight from my door step. Forestry wothin 20 minutes walk theough the village. Then within 15 mins walk is the entire Brecon Beacons. I could ride for days if i wanted to without encountering roads. But as @palo1 said, open country riding isn't for everyone. We're only 25 minutes box from the beaches, too.

 

[Time for Tea]

I am lucky living in the New Forest. Short stretch of quiet road then miles of off road hacking. It is shared with masses of dog walkers, mountain bikers, walkers, joggers, kite flyers etc, though! Not to mention stampeding ponies and scary donkeys, then pigs in the autumn. And adders. My dog was bitten by an adder the other day, causing hurried trip to vet.
Pretty busy area now, too, traffic wise, if you want to get anywhere to compete.