An early start
3 October 2010 23:04![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
glenatronThis weekend was forecast for relentless rain from midday Saturday. This coincided unfortunately with our local A-road being closed nearby for some necessary tree felling. This road is one of the hard limits on where we can ride as it's constantly busy and effectively uncrossable.
The outcome of this combination was me getting up ahead of dawn on Saturday to go for a ride over the empty road for a brief explore of trails the other side, which take us up to the top of the highest hill in the area.
Zorro didn't appear that surprised to see me so early and as the sun came up I was brushing him down and we were saddling up. He was quite sluggish at first but once we'd had a conversation about the significance of my leg he picked up a whole lot and life got a lot easier. There was a workman at the top of the trail where we joined the road to say we couldn't ride up the hill or up the route I was planning to take so we went a slightly lower route around the side of the hill.
This came around the flank of the hill a few hundred metres above where they are blasting out a tunnel to make way for the light of learning. Or possibly to put the road through, but I prefer the Ritter explanation. The massive earthworks were just visible through the trees to our left. Zorro was interested but not bothered by the sounds coming from beside us.
Riding through the woods.
We moved along the trail then hit a crossroads where we prepared to go up the hill. At this point Zorro got very anxious about something, possibly a tree. During our day's ride we passed a field with cattle stampeding around it, massive earthworks, passed through a group of ponies and even passed a pig but the only thing that really bothered him was that tree. Rather than have to struggle past, I hopped off and lead for a few hundred yards, then got back on to climb to the top of the hill.
The landscape was largely covered in mist, with hills poking through like islands in a white sea, it was quite an impressive sight and brought out how high up we are.
Zorro generously provides some foreground.
The edges of the mist on the fields below the hill.
It was odd crossing back over the main road and then going through the nearly empty National Trust car park before we trotted off down the valley. We passed the Exmoor ponies, and walked through a massive flock of small crested birds, finches or similar. In the distance a massive flock of rooks circled along the opposite ridge of the valley.
All in all it was a very pleasant ride.
We rugged up the ponies at midday and moments later the rain began and stayed in until this evening.
The outcome of this combination was me getting up ahead of dawn on Saturday to go for a ride over the empty road for a brief explore of trails the other side, which take us up to the top of the highest hill in the area.
Zorro didn't appear that surprised to see me so early and as the sun came up I was brushing him down and we were saddling up. He was quite sluggish at first but once we'd had a conversation about the significance of my leg he picked up a whole lot and life got a lot easier. There was a workman at the top of the trail where we joined the road to say we couldn't ride up the hill or up the route I was planning to take so we went a slightly lower route around the side of the hill.
This came around the flank of the hill a few hundred metres above where they are blasting out a tunnel to make way for the light of learning. Or possibly to put the road through, but I prefer the Ritter explanation. The massive earthworks were just visible through the trees to our left. Zorro was interested but not bothered by the sounds coming from beside us.
Riding through the woods.
We moved along the trail then hit a crossroads where we prepared to go up the hill. At this point Zorro got very anxious about something, possibly a tree. During our day's ride we passed a field with cattle stampeding around it, massive earthworks, passed through a group of ponies and even passed a pig but the only thing that really bothered him was that tree. Rather than have to struggle past, I hopped off and lead for a few hundred yards, then got back on to climb to the top of the hill.
The landscape was largely covered in mist, with hills poking through like islands in a white sea, it was quite an impressive sight and brought out how high up we are.
Zorro generously provides some foreground.
The edges of the mist on the fields below the hill.
It was odd crossing back over the main road and then going through the nearly empty National Trust car park before we trotted off down the valley. We passed the Exmoor ponies, and walked through a massive flock of small crested birds, finches or similar. In the distance a massive flock of rooks circled along the opposite ridge of the valley.
All in all it was a very pleasant ride.
We rugged up the ponies at midday and moments later the rain began and stayed in until this evening.
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Date: 3 Oct 2010 23:43 (UTC)no subject
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