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Wild Coast Recce: the start

November, 2012 | 1 Comment

We are riding a recce of our newly launched Wild Coast Adventure Trail, a 200km skedaddle down this magnificent coast from Port St Johns to Kei Mouth. We rode this stretch of coast on our charity ride Into the Unknown and knew that we had to share it with the world as a commercial trail, so that other people could get a taste of the incredible things that we have been so privileged to experience.

As Joe and I left Durban for Port St Johns the rain started and by the time we reached the somewhat scrappy but charming little town the rain was thundering down. We had planned to camp for the night but needed to revise this as we are simply not cut out for a drenched night in a small polyester bag held up by some fancy whippy sticks!

We dealt with the most pressing issue first: where to watch the Springboks beat England in the last rugby test match of the year. We did our bit for national pride, found a bar, drank beer and swore loudly at the utterly incompetent referee who clearly wanted England to win. He almost had his way but our boys, struggling under his competence as England’s sixteenth man, just managed to magic a win. First problem of the afternoon was sorted!

The second problem was quickly solved when one of our beer swilling bar buddies suggested the Jungle Monkey backpackers just up the road. The place was full: it was Saturday night and it was live music night! This could be good we thought and we were right; a band of local youngsters blew us away and we rolled into bed late happy and with much wine in the system!

The drums were still playing in my head when I woke in the morning but there was no time to dawdle; our horses, crew and client were on the road from Kei Mouth and we needed to make sure that arrangements were in place for their arrival. We had a well laid plan but once again realized that it was…well…a rubbish plan, and scrabbled around to make a better one with the horses accommodated in an impromptu paddock at a picnic site overlooking the beach next to our start point, Umngazi River Bungalows.

I got that little trill of excitement when Julie-Anne Gower, our partner, in this little caper rolled in with two horse boxes carrying Tara, Tenna-sea, Reign and Tamzin. She also had with her our brave client Irishman Victor Kee, who will hopefully be getting the ride of his life over the next week, and Nicky Hoseck, who guides trails for our partners Wild Coast Horseback Adventures.

Having suffered the considerable charms of Umngazi River Bungalows for the night, we loaded the back-up vehicle, saddled up, set off, and crossed the shallow Umngazi River to canter down the hard sand of the beach beyond with everyone still on board by the end: the perfect way to start our 200 km journey!

We hit the Umngazana River after a few kilometres of trotting through the evergreen Wild Coast hills; this short but deep swim was a great way to introduce everyone to the bigger swims ahead.

Day one of this trail is short, just 20km, but the terrain en route to The Kraal, our overnight venue at the idyllic settlement of Mpande, is challenging. This horseback ride is an adventure, and the negotiating the tracks on the steep wooded hills and valleys after coming off the beach makes you feel like an old world explorer. The reward at the end is taking in the spectacular view of Mpande from high up on a headland, before plunging down through a tunnel of beautiful coastal forest to a ridiculously beautiful river mouth direct from the set of Blue Lagoon, just without the topless Brooke Shields unfortunately!

On arrival at The Kraal, after settling the hoses into their paddock, we sloped up to the shabeen to get a cold beer; salty and thirsty having just had a quick swim in the lagoon. The beer which had came out of a freezer was, as you would expect, icy cold and we spent an hour sitting around drinking beer and chatting to the locals before wandering back down the road, extra quarts of beer swinging from our hands, to prepare ourselves for our dinner of a delicious local fish curry. My tent called soon after dinner and I gave up on a fabulous day to get the rest I needed for our challenging second day.

Read the next instalment here

For more information on The Ride’s Wild Coast Adventure Trail go to: http://www.barryarmitage.com/expeditions/wild-coast-adventure-trail

Labels// adventure, horses, ride, riding, the ride, trails, travel

Spring has sprung - literally with lots of rain!

by Nicky Hoseck (Trail guide at Wild Coast Horse Trails)

Well, the weather has done it’s best to curtail our work at Wild Coast Horse Trails but we have soldiered on in pouring rain with all the enthusiasm of those who love their vocation and have the privilege to work with amazing equine companions.

Our two clients from Johannesburg, Bronwyn and Simmy, endured three days’ of rain – determined not to miss a minute’s riding during their weekend farm stay. The whole experience was quite a challenge for two ladies who had rarely ridden outside of the arena before, but they coped admirably with the difficult conditions, helped along by our sympathetic and steady horses.

Another wet few days saw Klara Webb introducing the team to Ttouch and Ride with your mind techniques. The results were astonishing and we saw some incredible improvements in our horses after just one short session. Our minds have been opened to a whole new way of approaching our work with the horses and we are looking forward to sharing this new knowledge with our clients on the Natural Horsemanship Week programme we are developing.

We are also discovering the benefits of riding in a lighter seat and encouraging the horses’ backs to come up underneath us. Doing so much fast beach work inevitably leads to our horses tending towards the forehand. This new way of riding is helping to combat that and we saw some great results, especially from Roz and Geronimo. Geronimo was a stock horse before coming to us so has never been the easiest horse in the schooling arena. However, Roz’s riding, assisted by Klara and Ttouch bandaging, brought him into a beautiful outline and had him extending through the neck and rounding his back like a dressage horse!

September saw the launch of several new trails and holidays at Wild Coast Horse Trails. Our new seven- night beach trail is a fantastic 140km adventure along the Wild Coast which Nicky lead for the first time with clients Claudia and Volker Weber. Although Volker’s shirt suffered a few casualties after trying to bundu bash our way through a small section of forest, the rest of the trail went smoothly and painlessly. Our furthest destination is the Kob Inn, situated right on the rocks overlooking the sea; this is stunning spot and proved excellent for dolphin spotting. The riding is as exciting and varied as ever and our horses gobbled up the additional kilometres without batting an eyelid. Troy proved, once again, what a solid trail horse he is despite his youth. After a long morning’s ride through to Mazeppa Bay, he had a long drink and then promptly dozed off – truly nothing unsettles this loveable boy even at his tender age of six!

Last week Nicky and Roz headed out into the rain once again with clients from Sweden, Germany and the UK. The rain did nothing to dampen spirits and the four-day beach trail proved to be an enjoyable adventure for all. The rivers were surprisingly shallow and calm which made for easy crossings for both horses and riders. Roz, however, was on Time Warp who is not always sure how many legs he has or where they are at any given time. As a result, they ended up swimming the Kobanqaba River while the smaller horses all managed to wade through quite comfortably. The dips and undulations in the river bed are not always easy to read and Time, sadly, misjudged it and ended up in a deep section, casually soaking Roz along the way! Our Swedish and German clients then headed off to Dinaka where, hopefully, the weather cleared enough to give them a wonderful game riding experience.

Torstone Tasara

Torstone Tommy

Torstone Astro

The past couple of months have been busy with the births of this years’ first crop of foals. Astro is the first foal out of Tic Tac and our first pinto baby. He’s already looking tall and strong so shows potential to follow in his grandmother’s (Tenna Sea) hoof steps as a great a trail horse. Tommy is the progeny of our Percheron stallion Bobby and has the same mischievous personality as his brother Trevor. Our filly (Tasara) is the first foal from our Anglo Arab stallion, Tashbah, and one of the few chestnuts we have produced. In her first couple of weeks, she had all the flightiness and action of her Arab bloodline but now, as she fills out, her mother’s Percheron genes are starting to show themselves. And, last but not least, is our Thoroughbred/Percheron cross colt. Born jet black with a white star, his grey hairs are already starting to come through.

Back on the farm, there has been lots of activity, as The Loft accommodation for clients on our working riding holiday programme has enjoyed something of a revamp. A deep clean and a fresh coat of paint has given it a new look, although the rain has forced us to delay repainting the exterior so we are hoping for some dry days in order to complete the project.

Ida and Phillippa, from Sweden, have just headed south to experience some of the adrenaline adventure highlights of the Eastern Cape. First stop is a skydive in Grahamstown and then they are headed down to Stormsriver to throw themselves off the Bloukrans Bridge. Crazy or adventurous – what do you think?

Over the month ahead, we are looking forward to furthering our Ttouch work and also to starting two youngster, Twain and Taitum. Both Anglo Arabs, we are really looking forward to seeing how these youngsters shape up under saddle with the intention of them joining our trail team in the years to come.

Till next time.....

http://www.wildcoasthorsebackadventures.com

Horse happenings

The past 6 months or so have rolled together in a blur of activity. How does one recap and explain what has gone on when the days just seem to roll into one another? So I am not going to - in any case, my Facebook page keeps a running score of our daily activity, so I dont think it is necessary to say everything again - do you?

So where are we now? It is mid winter here in South Africa. Compared to much of the country, we are green and enjoy a mild climate - there has been some serious snow on the mountains the last week or two and we can feel it in the wind!!
Thank goodness the drought is over (for now!) we had good rain and good grass growth this past summer, but it will take another season to fully recover properly.
The horses are all looking fat, fluffy, fit and healthy and are being well looked after by our current group of working riding holiday guest! Some of the girls even braved a freezing swim in the dam last week....needless to say, Roz and Amanda played camera man and opted out....ha ha...they knew how cold the water was.....the screams of shock and laughter got me out of the office....!!!

I am very excited to see how our young up and coming horses are going to do over the next few months. Roz has been working hard starting all the youngsters...Spritzer and Cataba (two 4 year old TB fillies that were given to us) are going to be super trail horses. Then there is Tullani, Twain, Dasher, and Tic Tak - they are all working nicely and will be ready to go down and do some beach work soon. Tatum still needs to be done and Ashley says that he wants to start Taz Man himself.
I am falling in love with Tic Tak - and think that he might be "the one".....he talks to me and there is definitely a connection between us, I have missed not having my own horse - and I think that he might just be my next partner. I love riding Tara, and she is my working partner and lead horse, but being a mare she is very Independent and does not need to have a human best friend....

At the beginning of July, I went up to Fauresmith to support Ashley and the Perseverance team. Sadly not a good ride for them, but a great (and cold) week for me, catching up with friends and just being away for a few days. It was also great spending time with Barry and Joe again!! We have some exciting plans up our sleeves, so stay tuned - you might want to be part of this next adventure!

Till next time....
Happy riding

Equestrian Gap Year programmes

Brush up on your stable manners with an equestrian gap year programme

Posted: May 30, 2012 |By Nicky Hoseck|

After completing school or university many people decide to
take a year or so to explore new horizons and get a clearer
sense of themselves and their priorities before committing
to a career. For many, this is the opportunity to travel to
new countries and experience different cultures and people.
For horse- mad girls (why are they nearly always girls?),
this year is often a chance to rekindle an old passion.

Equestrian Gap Year Programmes are generally not free, but
they are often a lot more affordable than keeping a horse or
having regular riding lessons. The added benefit it that it
gives those involved the opportunity to learn about so much
more than just horses.

There are many different types of riding holidays available to
people on a gap year. Some might choose to assist with
teaching children to ride ponies, or even to lend a hand at a
riding for the disabled establishment. Some of the most
popular Equestrian Gap Year Programmes are those situated
in Africa. Not only does this give participants the opportunity
to discover a whole new world and lots of different cultures,
many of the opportunities also involve riding with game –
something that is not usually available outside this continent.

Many of the trail-riding companies in South Africa offer
Equestrian Gap Year Programmes and volunteer opportunities
to experienced riders. This often means that volunteers will
ride out with a guide and their guests, usually at the back of
the ride, to ensure the safety of the guests so a fairly
advanced level of horsemanship is generally required.

In many cases, Equestrian Gap Year Programmes will cover a
lot of different aspects of an equine business and volunteers
may find themselves involved with handling foals, brood mares
and stallions as well as riding horses. As with any volunteer
placement, there is a balance between the hard work and
the fun stuff. While you may end up cleaning tack for a
morning, the afternoon will probably be a great ride through
the African wilderness.

Very few Equestrian Gap Year Programmes will expect their
participants to muck out stables or do any other very heavy,
manual work. However, there re always disreputable companies
out there who are anxious to get their share of volunteer
labour, even if they are not really in a position to offer an
organised programme. To avoid wasting your time, it's
advisable to speak to previous volunteers to check out the
details of what they were expected to do and what their
experience was like. After all, it is a big investment in terms
of both time and money.

Once you secure your place at a reputable stable, be sure to
brush up on your riding before you get there – otherwise your
riding muscles might let you down over the first few days!

Working Riding Holidays at Sunray Farm with

Wild Coast Horseback Adventures

Learn to ride a horse when you are an adult.

The benefits of learning to ride as an adult

Published: June 12, 2012 by Nicky Hoseck

Learning to ride has many positive benefits

Source: Wild Coast Horse Trails

Learning to ride a horse is more than just physical

Looking for a new challenge – something that will keep you fit and provide with a new way to spend your leisure time? Why not learn to ride a horse? The relationship between human and horse has existed for centuries and the experience of riding a horse has a range of benefits for the rider – in physical, spiritual and emotional terms.

The first time on a horse’s back can be quite unnerving for some but, once in the rhythm of it, it can provide an exhilarating and empowering experience.

Obviously, for many adults, the idea of taking on a new pastime later in life is quite daunting, especially if it means joining a class full of children plodding around a ring on ponies. Fortunately, many horse-riding establishments are aware of this and offer alternatives specifically aimed at adult beginner riders. For example, some riding stables offer a two-week intensive course which caters for adults only and during which participants will learn to ride a horse as well as the basics of horse care, such as grooming and tacking up.

The benefit of packages such as this is, is not only the enjoyment factor, but also the variety of different aspects of horsemanship that are taught. Most packages will offer an arena-based lesson – often on a one-to-one basis – in the morning, followed by an out-ride or trail in the afternoon. This means that participants will be confident both in the arena and out in the countryside at the end of the course.

The physical benefits of horse-riding make it an attractive pastime for those who are seeking an outdoor pursuit that will burn calories as well as toning and strengthening muscles. Research indicates that riding a horse – even at a walk – improves balance and builds strong, flexible muscles as well as developing coordination. The work associated with horses, such as lifting bales of hay or mucking out a stable, also increases strength and fitness.

From a spiritual point of view, many adults that learn to ride a horse find it very calming, especially once they have built a bond with a particular equine companion. The experience of riding out on your beloved horse can prove a great way of relieving stress and winding down from the pressures of work.

Whether you are looking for a hobby that you can share with a close friend or family member, or whether you are seeking a more solitary pursuit, horse-riding can fulfil your needs. Some people prefer to ride in groups, while others are more content when it is just themselves and their equine friend.

Some of the benefits of going on an intensive course in order to learn to ride is that, not only will you gain a new skill and immerse yourself in all things equine, you will also meet friendly people, get to experience life in the countryside – maybe even in a foreign country – and have the opportunity to sample good, home-cooked food and farm-style hospitality.

An intensive riding course, especially one offered in an exotic location, gives you a complete break from your usual, day-to-day life and, with all your concentration focussed on developing your riding ability, it gives your mind a chance to unwind from the pressures of work and home.

Adult learn to ride holidays at Sunray Farm

Cantering About on The Wild Coast