As promised and for Sparrow: Castles and hearses

[Thomas_1]

Commercial driving in the UK with a formal turnout for me often entails castles. We're blessed with castles here: Legacy of the borders conflict, we've got 15 within 20 miles. Castles are a big "ask" for driving horses....... and drivers and particularly for groom! Remember they were built to repel visitors!

Going up to Lindisfarne Castle at Holy Island:

My grooms in the main hate doing Lindisfarne Castle because it's a very steep and high path up just slightly wider than the carriage wheels with VERY airy views over the steep cliffs. It inclines the most hardened to vertigo! They draw straws to decide who is to go at the cliff side! Loser gets it! Winner has to clean the horse box out when we get back, no matter how late it is.

Heading on the way up the long drive to the castle:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/d8aa-11.jpg

Getting nearer:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0021.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0020.jpg

Note both are hanging on and not looking over the edge!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v258/flodden_edge/Driving/DSCF0019.jpg

Phew made it! coming back down:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0027.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/off.jpg

My personal favourite is Bamburgh Castle with is the most spectacular coastal castle ever.

Going to Bamburgh Castle:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v258/flodden_edge/Driving/DSCF0029-1.jpg

Again a very steep 1:3 hill which is metalled road until I get inside the castleated walls and then it's cobbles . At Bamburgh I put them into extended trot as we approach the road up and then once the carriage is moving freely ask for a canter and keep them in a brisk canter for about 1/2 a mile up the hill which switches into a couple of tight turns.

Then to very dark double gated entrances and including one with a steel portcullis and a wooden drawbridge where one groom always dismounts because she hates going over it on the carriage back step! :
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0065.jpg

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0068.jpg

Inside Bamburgh Castle:
There's a series of tight switch hairpin bends

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v258/flodden_edge/Driving/DSCF0042-1.jpg

We go into Bamburgh on the seaward side out of the walls on an ancient cliff road - again with airy views over the sea.

It's a very steep drive down too:

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0075.jpg
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0076.jpg

The girls are always pleased to be finished and this is me wheeling them back in and in perfect stride:
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0084.jpg

And of course because we're doing commercial work it's all got to look elegant and easy and graceful!

Nothing to it!!! :winkgrin: My American carriage driving friend who used to ride rodeo before he got ancient went up a few castles whilst he was here and on the box seat next to me and pronounced it dangerous and with a few American descriptives I couldn't say here!!

Hearse:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v258/flodden_edge/Driving/stallionsandfuneral.bmp

[TBMaggie]

What wonderful pictures Thomas!! I got vertigo just thinking about carriage wheels going off the edge of the cliff - you are a masterful driver, and have gorgeous horses:yes::yes: And very beautiful countryside too.

[tazz001]

Nice pics Thomas. Shared them with my daughter....she says you are so lucky (I think so too)

Thanks you for letting us see your world.

[goeslikestink]

thomas you know i just love your photos yum yum yum

lovely views - he he you look little against huge castle in background

[allpurpose]

Thomas, do you have room for another groom? I would ride cliffside to Lindisfarne AND muck out the horse box in the end just for a chance to ride those roads and see those castles. PLEASE? PRETTY PLEASE??

These pics are absolutely gorgeous!

[olehossgal]

Thanks for sharing the pictures with us all, Thomas...how totally COOL! You, horses, grooms, turnout, English countryside,castles---all just wonderful! Made my Sunday morning!

Margo in sunny but windy, chilly, New Mexico

[Tamara in TN]

well we don't have many castles but we did have a big ole funeral not far off from here:

RIP Popcorn

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20091025/NEWS01/910250347/1001/NEWS

best

[DebbieB]

Thank you Thomas!!!
This one is my favorite: http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0076.jpg

[Yip]

Totally awesome pictures, Thomas! The massive size of the castles is unbelieveable to me, who has never seen pics like these, much less been up close to one.

I do get vertigo easily nowadays, so the cliffs would not be for me either. Hope the grooms are well paid for that one trip!

Of course your commercial turnout is impeccable. Your horses are just awesome!

Thanks for inviting us on the tour!

Yip

[MySparrow]

Yep, that's the imagery I remember from our earlier discussion! Thanks, Thomas. I won't lose them this time. Beautiful!

[hitchinmygetalong]

Yikes! That'll keep you on your toes. A true test of a driver's faith in his horses.

Thanks for the photos, Thomas!

[leslie645]

Cool pics Thomas1...thanks for sharing:)

Just curious...what breed of horse is that pulling the hearse? Are they Friesens with their feathers shaved ?

[Cartfall]

:)

We don;t have many castles in Florida or cliffs for that matter.

Thomas,

what kind of traction do you have your their shoes? Going up and down hard roads with regular shoes would be slippery I bet.

[Tamara in TN]

[QUOTE=Tamara in TN;4459548]well we don't have many castles but we did have a big ole funeral not far off from here:

RIP Popcorn

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20091025/NEWS01/910250347/1001/NEWS

and from the local paper:

http://newportplaintalk.com/story/30453

[Thomas_1]

Over here it's also a tradition in Gangland East End of London to use horse drawn hearses for funerals.

[Tamara in TN]

Over here it's also a tradition in Gangland East End of London to use horse drawn hearses for funerals.


a little OT but the East part reminded me

what do Brits mean when they talk about "The West Country" ? is it a district or a place ??

thanks

[Janet]

a little OT but the East part reminded me

what do Brits mean when they talk about "The West Country" ? is it a district or a place ??

thanks
Devon and Cornwall, Dorset and Somerset.

The southwest corner.

My Gunn ancestors moved from the northeast corner of Scotland (Wick) to the West Country (Bridport) in 1815, during the Highland Clearances.

[birdsong]

Thank you Thomas!!!
This one is my favorite: http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a205/classic_carriages/driving/DSCF0076.jpg


Oh mine too!! Really gives you a feel for just how massive the castle is.
And your horses are lovely!! What are they? And what type of shoe do they wear for the road work?

[Thomas_1]

These ones are full brothers and purpose bred with the intention of producing a pair of driving horses. Welsh section D (Dam) x Connemara (sire)

Just short of 16 hands. They're ride and drive and in true pairs driving naming tradition called Gilbert & Sullivan

I use 3/4 fullered shoes which have a groove around 3/4 of the shoe into which the nail holes are punched. Fullering keeps the shoe slightly lighter and gives grip. I also personally use 2 road nails (tungsten) in the hinds.

A lot of folks don't use britching on pairs horses when there's a brake on the carriage but because I'm driving some serious hills I have both disk brakes on the carriage to keep the weight of the vehicle and passengers off the horses but also britching as a sort of "belt and braces" fail safe approach.

When I was very first asked by Lady Armstrong to drive Bamburgh Castle and went to take a reconnaissance walk I just couldn't figure how on earth horses drawn vehicles ever went up there. Of course nowadays the road up is a metalled road. That's for about 1/2 a mile. So going up I pull off the road and then put them into canter. But then there's a tight turn - and I mean VERY tight and through a REALLY steep hill inside the castle walls and with a series of tight switch turns and so you can't maintain a canter. I said straight away that it couldn't be done with horses and Lady Armstrong was insistent that of course it must have been at some time and I was pontificating and asking if they'd changed the road etc when one of her staff said "what about the old Coach Road".

duhhhhhhh the clue will be in the name! That goes through a separate portcullis gate at the top of the first canter up and stays on the outside of the castle perimeter walls on the sea ward side and then through another portcullis gate into the castle perimeter and then still up switchback turns but at least they're ones you can maintain the canter in with a pair.

You have to have at least a pair to get up though.

[goeslikestink]

love the names thomas and really suits the boys well
castles and catherals localish to me
look here http://www.britainexpress.com/Where_to_go_in_Britain/Maps/South_East_England.htm

hever castle and leeds castle are only 20mins away from me

and just to keep it horsey some place listed above hold major events in driving trials dressage x/c and showjumping

as do many big estates
for exsample borde hill, firle place, winsor knole park chilham park etc
we are very fortunate that these places also offer clinics and shows etc to compete at and in various levels

[winfieldfarm]

Wow... just.....wow. Thomas you will die a blessed man to live in such heavenly and enchanted country. Visiting you before I die has just been added to my bucket list.

What kind of vehicle are you driving in the castle pics? Ive never seen such a geometric body as that. Is it considered a Victoria?

[Thomas_1]

It's a Box or Sefton Landau.

I built it.

[winfieldfarm]

show off!! wink wink!!

[moonriverfarm]

Thomas, for those of us who have never had the opportunity to fly over the pond, THANK YOU for sharing these. I realized looking at the one of teeny you in front of that massive structure that I never realized inside castle walls is a little city....this was a wonderful geography lesson!

[citydog]

Lovely on all counts, and what a gorgeous pair. Thanks for posting!