Horse swims 3km!

Thought you might be interested in this amazing news story of one horse's will to survive in the midst of panic. Horses can swim and in fact swimming is used as physiotherapy in many rehabilitation centres but they are not built to swim large distances. Off the coast of California, an emergency crew rescued a horse that became stranded in the ocean after it swam more than three kilometres out to sea. The seven-year-old white Arabian called William was spooked by the sound of breaking surf as the tide came in during a photo shoot on a Santa Barbara beach on Tuesday evening, prompting it to run into the ocean. The photographers tried unsuccessfully to coax it back to shore, but the horse swam even further out to sea. Here's a link to the full story

Marvellous Mexico

Exciting news from Lucia and Pepe at Finca Enyhe in the beautiful mountain town of Valle to Bravo. In addition to their HORSE RIDING HOLIDAYS they are now offering other themed options including A BIRDWATCHING HOLIDAY and A WEEK OF OUTDOOR ADVENTURE TRAVEL including hiking, kayaking and sailing and cycling. I can personally testify to the quality of holiday you are likely to get with Lucia and Pepe, having enjoyed two magnificent riding holidays myself. Pepe and Lucia are supremely experienced horse people and carefully match each rider to their well trained horse. The trail covers some 150 miles over the course of the week and the wonderful things is you get to combine the adventure of full days in the saddle and breathtaking scenery with the luxury of staying in luxury accommodation. (The horses are stalled on the trail while the riders are taken by bus back to the ranch). Finca Enyhe itself has been lovingly restored and is five-star quality, the cooking supreme and the village itself very charming. You can forget all the hype about Mexico being unsafe. Valle de Bravo is a small town lakeside town (a playground for the residents of Mexico City) where you can happily walk around, hail a cab and interact with the locals. In fact it's also a great base for a DIY holiday and if that's your preference, Finca Enyhe also operates as an INDEPENDENT HOTEL

Horseback Safari operator quits Kenya

A popular horseback safari operator is shipping out of Kenya due to the troubles there. Although the world recession has also played a part in their decision to close the business, Mark and Carla from Siruai Safaris say their failing faith in Kenya is the primary reason. We have seen the decline of the Mara with our own eyes," says Mark. "Our coalition government is utterly ineffective, and while they struggle to maintain law and order, wild life outside of National Parks/ Reserves stands no chance of being correctly protected. With 78 lions poisoned (that we know of) in the group ranches that we ride through there seems little point in offering a safari here."
The latest devastating events are the poisoning of the lions which looks to decimate the population of these proud, wonderful creatures. The problem stems from the cheap availability of highly toxic poison, a tiny amount of which can kill several lions. The method is the lacing of a carcass with the poison which the lions then feed on. The culprits? Some say it's maasai and pastoralists who are simply acting to protect their livelihood. When a lion kills a cow, it's a huge loss. The easiest, and cheapest way to keep the lions away is to poison them. Shocking but true. There is a scheme in place to compensate for cattle losses and negate the need for poisons but the areas where this is a problem are huge and the schemes are just beginning. There were calls to stop the selling of the poison, a bottle of which can be picked up very cheaply in most villages. Even with no new poison being brought in, remaining stocks will last a long time. Read more from:
Wildlife Direct: The Maasai are not poisoning the lions in the Mara Triangle
Living with Lions: Lion poisoning - an urgent issue
BBC: Insecticide 'killing Kenya lions

There are still operators offering horseback safaris in Africa and it remains an amazing experience - to spot wild game from horseback. See here for Horse Riding Holidays in South Africa, listed on www.findaridingholiday.com

UK holidays

You've got to praise the police/fbi for foiling such a devestating terror attack attempt.

With the resulting and understandable chaos at the UK airports and no telling how long it will last, it might be a good time to look at what holiday options there are on offer on our own shores.

In terms of riding country, the UK has some wonderful areas such as Yorkshire, the West Country, Northumberland, not to mention the outstanding scenery in Scotland and Wales.

There are a good range of options available on the site. Click here for UK riding holidays.

Italy's Medieval Horse Race

August is a wonderful time to visit Tuscany in Italy and why not time a riding holiday to co-ordinate with Siena's famous horse race and festival Il Palio. Held annually on July 2 and August 16, join 50,000 people who flock to watch this spectacular and totally unique horse race dating back to the middle ages. Read all about Il Palio on the official site and check out these operators running horse riding holidays in Italy

You've gotta love Latin America

So, I thought I'd tell you a little about a book that I'm contributing to. Due to be published soon, it's called Latin America and it's published by Livelist. It will be available on amazon sometime after August.
It's a great idea. Basically the whole book is excerpts from a diverse bunch of travellers, writers and photographers. So it's kind of community publishing. I can't wait to see the book. My contribution is about my wonderful riding holiday to Mexico. You can read the review here.

Cool off in Iceland

If the heat is getting too much for you in the UK, think about a riding holiday to Iceland. The summer is the best time to go for the best chance of good weather. It won't be anything as hot as the UK is right now and if you're unlucky (or lucky depending on how fed up with the heat you are), you might experience a fair bit of wind and rain too. While London is experiencing a heat wave with temperatures into the 80s farenheit, Iceland is lanquishing in the 60s. Whatever the weather, the scenery is spectacular and there's no better way to experience it than on top of one of the hardy native Icelandic horses. So, stop wilting and go after some adventure. Click this link to find riding holiday companies in Iceland