Livery yards in Bristol

[ecarylloh]

Hello all,

First-time-poster, long-time-reader here!

I'm moving to Bristol in August and am looking for a livery yard for my lovely 22 year old mare. I am currently very lucky as I keep her with my retired riding teacher for £100 per month full livery, so I know I'll never get anything near that good elsewhere.

However, I'm now going freelance so I should be able to do DIY/part livery, and hopefully save some money that way. I've really got a maximum budget of £200 per month. I'll be living in Clifton, and I'd ideally love to place her somewhere that's fairly lively, because I don't know anyone in Bristol and it would be a great way of meeting like-minded people!

I've been scouring these pages and t'internet for a few weeks and have some options - namely Oak Tree and Leyland Court - but they're not answering my phone calls or emails, so I was wondering if anyone had any personal recommendations?

All help much appreciated!

Holly

 

[smellsofhorse]

If you are living in clifton then the best places are in failand and portbury.

I keep my herd at a nice place in Failand.

PM me for more details

 

[annaellie]

Hinton is a lovely yard I think there website is dressage hinton I could not recommend them more they were fab with me and the facilities are excellent. There is also a nice little yard called grove farm that has a very good social side to the yard and the lady who owns it is lovely thats DIY but she does feed turnout and do livery days at a small price. I dont know of any yards on the other side of Bristol. Leyland court is a really nice yard though Ive not been stabled on it so can not comment on what the yard is like to be on.

 

[SpottedCat]

Leyland Court is completely the wrong side of Bristol for Clifton - it would be a nightmare to get to through traffic. There are loads of yards in the Failand/Portbury area - easy to get to from Clifton - but none have websites. For £200 a month you'll easily get DIY livery round that area. The best part livery yard is rather more than that though! Dressage Hinton will be a nightmare to get to from Clifton, as will any of the yards in the Bath direction, any of the yards north of Bristol/north of the M4 and any down the A38 direction.

Traffic is going to be your biggest problem, not lack of yards! The brilliant thing about stabling in Failand is being able to hack into Ashton Court - invaluable for getting my eventer fit!

 

[SpottedCat]

Double posted - odd!

 

[miss_c]

I'm at Grove Farm, but anything out that way like Grove and Hinton etc are going to be too far from Clifton really when you think about rush hour traffic. Def look out Failand way, and Kingsweston perhaps which is near Blaise Castle. There's LOADS of yards, like SpottedCat has said the worst thing will be the traffic!

 

[annaellie]

I'm at Grove Farm,

Has she still got the little welsh pony Ellie?

 

[miss_c]

Yes she has!

 

[annaellie]

Yes she has!

How she doing she was my pony bless her I bought her mum and lets just say I got 2 for the price of 1 sorry to hijack you post OP

 

[miss_c]

She's doing fantastically. Has been backed and is taking everything in her stride!

 

[Double_choc_lab]

Definiately agree with staying failand side of Bristol.

SC- where do you park for Ashton Court or are you close enough to hack.

 

[SpottedCat]

I'm close enough to hack, but they have put in a massive car park now which is free for boxes and trailers to use. I do risk losing kneecaps on the gate I go in by though as it is a real squeeze past the wall and gatepost job - I'm about to lobby for a horse gate to be put in.

If you go down the B3128 from Failand towards the A370, then as you get to the bottom of the hill there is a slip-road on the left which would take you onto the road into Bristol through the Cumberland Basin and over the bridge onto the Portway - take that and just before the Dovecote Pub on your left there is a new big set of double gates into Ashton Court which leads to a big gravel carparking area suitable for lorries and trailers. Cars park there too, but since they shut the carpark which you got to from the suspension bridge road, it is the best place to park as the golf course bit is always too rammed for boxes/trailers and the other car park is all marked out with bays and is too tight to turn in. The one by the Dovecote is perfect, and the waymarked riding trails link up with it (if you are actually following them ). To then get back up onto that road you have to negotiate the slip road towards Bristol and the wierd bit of road by Ashton Gate which takes you back up onto the A370 - it's a bit spaghetti junction but once you have it figured out it is v easy, and better than going towards Bristol coming off at the same slip road and going up the hill past the police dog/horse unit as that puts you at the other end of Beggar Bush Lane and the hill is much steeper.

Hope that in some way makes sense?!

 

[smellsofhorse]

I'm close enough to hack, but they have put in a massive car park now which is free for boxes and trailers to use. I do risk losing kneecaps on the gate I go in by though as it is a real squeeze past the wall and gatepost job - I'm about to lobby for a horse gate to be put in.

Me too!

My 17.2hh warmblood only just fits through the gap.
I sometimes ride further down then go through the gap in the wall.

 

[tickety_boo]

Terri Hill's yard would be easy to get to from Clifton:

http://hilllivery.co.uk/

 

[smellsofhorse]

Terri Hill's yard would be easy to get to from Clifton:

http://hilllivery.co.uk/

Yes but it depends what you want from the yard.
Terri mainly does Full livery or they have the diy across the road, if you want to hack then her yard isnt for you!
But she is experienced and has a school.
Not too far from clifton cutting through Long Ashton.

 

[SpottedCat]

Me too!

My 17.2hh warmblood only just fits through the gap.
I sometimes ride further down then go through the gap in the wall.

See I won't go in through the hole in the wall off Beggar Bush Lane as I mountain bike a lot on Ashton Court too and a) I know how fast people fly past/up to there not expecting to see a horse (not surprisingly as that bit is a dedicated MTB trail) and b) I also know how much work the local bikers put in to building the Timberland Trail, and just how much horses hooves wreck it for biking on. I also live in fear for my life hacking any distance along Beggar Bush Lane and so prefer to get off it asap! I don't know any other 'holes' - where should I be hacking to instead?! I squeeze past that gate off Longwood Lane opposite the quarry currently, which takes you down past the big metal fencing by the other bit of the quarry. It wouldn't be hard to put a horse gate in there I reckon, just need to find out how to get it done. I've just volunteered to help the BHS rep in the area with access stuff (they were trying to get access to 50 acre wood too and got told they'd have to find 9K to resurface trails - I work with the Forestry Commission a lot and think someone somewhere is being sold a dummy so I want to see if I can help with that too - there is a perfectly good surfaced trail in 50 acre wood which would be a start in terms of access - I bike through there a lot too).

 

[Double_choc_lab]

SC - excellent description - I know exactly where you mean - went past this morning. Any jumpable logs in the wood???

 

[SpottedCat]

SC - excellent description - I know exactly where you mean - went past this morning. Any jumpable logs in the wood???

I spotted some the other day when out biking, but in general I think that a lot of it is too steep/not good enough footing for me to risk it....but I am probably being precious as my horse is working up to going intermediate eventing this season Put it this way, when I get my next youngster, I suspect I will find plenty to pop over.....

My most favourite thing though is to go down into the big meadow by the house and gallop up to the gatehouse - it's such a nice long stretch and so open the dog walkers can see you coming and everything is avoidable, which is such a change from my previous hacking! I think it's a brilliant facility we have available to us for free too, and so good at making them surefooted as there are so many hills and bits of rough ground to mess about on.

 

[smellsofhorse]

I am quite happy to ride down beggar bush lane.
But if not i just hack through the fields and bridle ways and come out by the rugby club so literally just have to cross the road in to Ashton court.
The bridle way in Ashton court goes right past the gap, yes the bike trail does too but i dont ride where im not allowed.

 

[SpottedCat]

I am quite happy to ride down beggar bush lane.
But if not i just hack through the fields and bridle ways and come out by the rugby club so literally just have to cross the road in to Ashton court.
The bridle way in Ashton court goes right past the gap, yes the bike trail does too but i dont ride where im not allowed.

Wasn't suggesting you did ride anywhere you're not allowed - I don't think anywhere is officially off limits on there. I just think there is a good chance of being rather surprised by a biker not expecting you to be there which I'd rather avoid! And like I say, I think there are plenty of places to go which don't cause any damage to areas used mainly by other users - at this time of year it's not going to make any difference but in the winter horses really destroy tracks and I like biking there too so I'd be cutting off my nose to spite my face if I rode across there!

There aren't any official bridleways in Ashton Court according to my OS map anyway - it's all permissive access I thought from the council, hence the white waymarkers with horseshoes not proper bridleway signs? All I was wondering was if there was another way in.

 

[ecarylloh]

Thanks guys for the recommendations. I'm quite a nervous hacker as Fleur spooks a lot out on hacks, particularly in areas she doesn't know, but the small part of the Ashton Court estate that I saw is so beautiful I really ought to get over this fear and help Fleur get over hers too!

I've emailed Hills Livery and Old Warren Farm to ask what their rates are and if they have spaces. Does anyone know how to contact all these other yards around Clifton that don't have websites? I'm stuck in Cambridge pretty much right up until I move, so coming to Bristol and just driving round til I find somewhere promising is going to be tricky...

It might be worth mentioning that I love dressage, although it's been a while since I've competed. In fact, I've pretty much been riding on my own for the last 7 years or so (I hasten to add that Fleur's been kept with other horses so she's not lonely!) so to be around other riders is going to be a pleasant culture shock

 

[smellsofhorse]

if you are a nervous hacker neither old warren farm or terri hills place will be good.
They are both on busy roads. You have to ride down them to get anywhere.
Unless you dont want to hack at all,that will be no concern then!
Old warren farm does have a small xc course.
I think you may be able to hack out the back route so ignore my first bit!

I can give you a couple of phone numbers if you want to know about the others

 

[ecarylloh]

I'm up for hacking, just definitely not on busy roads - a few friends were killed while out hacking many years ago and it totally put me off hacking in my area as cars just don't slow down for horses anymore here. Sounds like there are loads of bridleways and I might not have to go on roads at all really?...

 

[SpottedCat]

Terri Hill lets you hack through the back of her fields up onto that steep road to Dundry Beacon and Old Warren have a track right round their place and an agreement with the place next door which lets you get on to the quiet roads round Lower Failand. Arena-wise Old Warren's surface is better than Terri Hill's unless she's had it done recently. Last time I checked Terri was £75 a week and Old Warren only do part at something in the region of £325 a month. If you used the Old Warren Farm website to get contact details then you need to get new contact info I think - there's a new manager there now whose details I probably have somewhere! There is also Jane Billing's place on the same road as Old Warren and Portbury Stud in between the two. I've got phone numbers for a few too as I was in the same boat this time last year.

 

[jcagrove]

Yes but it depends what you want from the yard.
Terri mainly does Full livery or they have the diy across the road, if you want to hack then her yard isnt for you!

Morning! Just to let you know that I'm at Terri's and lots of us go hacking, it's not necessarily ideal to cross the A38, however we do do it and then you can easily hack over to Ashton Court, also, if we go the other direction we can get to Dundry and over to Felton Common for a blast. You can can also cross the A38 again to get over to the back of Backwell and Barrow Gurney and all the rest of the bridleways over that direction! and as SpottedCat says above, we are able to ride over the common without the need to even touch any roads!

I can't make any comment on Old Warren Farm, but I'm quite happy with both Arena's at Terri's.

 

[jcagrove]

I've just volunteered to help the BHS rep in the area with access stuff (they were trying to get access to 50 acre wood too and got told they'd have to find 9K to resurface trails - I work with the Forestry Commission a lot and think someone somewhere is being sold a dummy so I want to see if I can help with that too - there is a perfectly good surfaced trail in 50 acre wood which would be a start in terms of access - I bike through there a lot too).

It's great to find people who want to help out .. I'm a member of Woodspring Bridleways Association (they work with the BHS in the Bristol and North Somerset area for Horse access), we've recently managed to get a new track opened up around Tyntesfield with the help of the National Trust.

www.woodspringbridlewaysassociation.co.uk

 

[smellsofhorse]

It's great to find people who want to help out .. I'm a member of Woodspring Bridleways Association (they work with the BHS in the Bristol and North Somerset area for Horse access), we've recently managed to get a new track opened up around Tyntesfield with the help of the National Trust.

www.woodspringbridlewaysassociation.co.uk

Yes im just down the road, havent manages to ride there yet, too busy schooling but will soon!