Horse riders saddled up to retrace the routes of the notorious Border Reivers as part of celebrations marking Kielder Forest’s centenary.
Between the 14th and 17th centuries, the remote borderlands were the territory of mounted raiders from Scottish and English families who stole livestock, waged feuds, demanded protection money and took hostages.
Now the British Horse Society and Forestry England have staged a ride through the Northumberland forest, following historic routes once used by raiders, traders and coal carriers.
Riders were offered two routes – 25km to the Scottish border and back, or a shorter 12.5km ride.
The event took in Lewis Burn bridge and the historic Bloody Bush road, an old droving and coal transport route which earned its name following a clash between Northumberland Reivers returning from a raid in Liddesdale and pursuing Scots.
The road between Lewisburn in Tynedale and Dinlabyre in Liddesdale was once a major thoroughfare, carrying coal from Northumberland collieries to the woollen mills of the Scottish Borders until the arrival of the railways in the 1860s.
The Bloody Bush pillar still bears an inscription recording the tolls charged for horses, cattle and sheep using the road in the early 1800s.
Alex MacLennan, Forestry England’s Northumberland recreation and public affairs manager, said: “This has been wonderful seeing all those horses in Kielder Forest and recreating how the border was crossed on the Bloody Bush route which runs through the heart of the forest.
“We forget that the horse was the mode of transport and Kielder Forest was actually first established and timber extracted using horse, so there has been so much linked to the heritage of the area.”
Claire Maddison, British Horse Society regional development manager North, and Reanne Benson, BHS access field officer, said: “The ride raised money for our Ride Out fund, which helps organisations and authorities to improve equestrian access with projects like the mounting blocks planned for Kielder car parks.
“It also gave us the opportunity to tell more about the Reiver Trails network, alongside advising on more general equestrian access and safety.
“Our forests allow us fantastic opportunities for access to green spaces that improves both human and equestrian wellbeing in a country that offers only 22% of its off-road routes to horse riders and just 6% for carriage drivers.
“We look forward to many more events in Kielder in the future.”
