As horse riders we are at our best getting out and about exploring the countryside and seeing spectacular sights — some that are occasionally so far out of the ordinary that anyone else would question if it was real.

We asked our #Hack1000Miles riders what the strangest/funniest thing is that they have seen while out hacking, and tales of naked people (several in the throes of passion), loose animals and other weird and wonderful encounters abound. Prepare to laugh (or gasp) as you read on!

Caught in the act

Sarah Blundell and her daughter once rode into a wooded area only to come across a couple “caught in the act”.

“As if that wasn’t bad enough, my mare decided that now was the time to stop and have a poo,” says Sarah. “I was desperately trying to kick her on while trying to get my daughter to look the other way as the couple scrambled around for their clothes. Everyone, bar my none-the-wiser daughter, had red faces.”

Gloria Turner was enjoying a gallop when she came across a loved-up couple in a similar predicament.

“Even my 17hh hunter came to a halt,” notes Gloria. “I said ‘good morning’, laughed and carried on.”

Naked people

Tammy Goldstein will never forget the day she rode past a couple bathing in a field’s water trough — complete with bubbles and shampoo!

Nor will Miranda Foster forget the time she was riding across sand dunes and encountered a naked man with his hands on his hips.

“I rode quickly past, without looking at him,” she says. “I wanted to cover my eyes and my horse’s eyes too.”

While we on the topic of scantily clad people, I should also mention Lara-Jane Fuller, who once thought she’d found a dead body — but it was actually a man trying to do push-ups.

Risqué drawing

While enjoying a beach ride, Lea Skyes and her mare, Spirit, confidently passed children playing with buckets and spades and dinghies, but became unstuck by a drawing in the sand.

“We’d just started to canter when we came across a large drawing of the male anatomy,” says Lea. “Spirit stopped, threw me over her head and refused to move until I’d rubbed it out. She was mortified! ”

A fake gun

Perhaps one the most frightening encounter to feature on this list, Rachel Louise was riding in a country park when a walker asked to pat her horse, only to then start using his walking stick as a fake gun and pretending to shoot at them.

“It was the most bizarre encounter ever,” states Rachel. “My horse was a saint and just trotted away calmly.”

Don’t be a…

Brenda Young passed a field belonging to someone who was apparently fed up (understandably) with rubbish being left on their land. A sign read: “Don’t be a D***. Take your empty bottle home”!

Loose pigs

Livestock also feature frequently in hacking adventures, and a loose pig almost led to the undoing of Lindsay Warner when it appeared while she was riding along a narrow path.

“A large pig started walking towards us, coming out of nowhere,” says Lindsay. “It looked at my horse, Nessie, briefly, and she looked at it, and then they passed each other as though it was the most normal thing in the world.

“Nessie often leaps out of her skin if she sees a ‘scary’ branch or low-hanging piece of bracken, and yet she was fine with a pig.”

Chicken on a bike

Shanagh Brown and Clare Raven had a light-hearted encounter when some bikes came speeding around a corner, with the last cyclist dressed as a chicken.

“I was on my faithful, quiet cob George and Clare was on her Arab, Floyd. George’s eyes almost popped out of his head; he turned around and he was off,” says Shanagh. “Floyd stood there as though it’s quite normal to see a chicken riding a bike!”

In a similar vein, Sally Lawless came across a large turkey loose on the road while hacking with a friend, causing both horses to “have a meltdown”.

Plane spotting

Kate Duffield was hacking past her local airport at the same time as a plane was taxiing for departure.

“The passengers were waving at me as they went down the runway. I waved back, of course,” says Kate.

Stuck on a gate post

Becky Clare found herself hanging upside down after her riding boot got caught on a gate catch. It would have been a very strange sight — had anyone been there to witness it (and to offer help).

“It wasn’t even sharp, but [the gate catch] went through my boot,” says Becky. “I was dragged backwards, over Red’s bottom and I ended up suspended upside down, hanging from my boot. It was the most ridiculous, silly situation I’ve ever ended up in and it took forever to unhitch myself.

“Normally there are lots of dog walkers and runners on that track, but when I actually needed someone to help, there wasn’t a soul in sight.”

(Nearly) lost at sea

A trio of hacking buddies were caught out by the incoming tide after enjoying a canter on a beach, and they momentarily lost the smallest member of their group in the sea.

“We went through an estuary and my 16hh boy was fine, and so was the 14.1hh pony we were with,” remembers Pam Gibson. “But it was deep and the poor 13 hander disappeared. When pony and rider re-emerged, they were a bit shocked, but no harm was done, and we laugh about it now.”

(Ed note: There’s an important lesson to learn here — always check tide times when you plan a beach ride and keep an eye on your watch when you’re there.)

Discarded wheelchair

Terrin Mitchell discovered an abandoned wheelchair, dismounted, and sat in it, with her horse towing it along, in order to return it to the path entrance.

Sitting on a sheep

My own strange encounter involved a sheep that had got its head stuck in a wire fence. I got off my horse, headed the reins to my companion, climbed over the gate to help, only to be charged by a ram.

Not strong enough to bend the wire and free the stuck sheep, I found myself with no choice but to straddle it and use my hands to wiggle its head free.

Minutes later, the grateful ewe ran off to rejoin the flock while the aforementioned ram — who had been persistently head-butting me the entire time — chased me back to the gate.

I did wonder as we continued our ride — once my sister had managed to stop laughing — what would have happened if the farmer had spotted me while I sitting atop one of their sheep…

And finally… a monkey in a tree

Jane Ballinger came face to face with a life-like toy gibbon while out hacking with her pal Emma Evans. She says at first glance they thought the primate was real, and were rather surprised, but could relax when they realised it was just a stuffed animal.

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