the Bedford Rides

 
The Bedford Rides network extends southwards from the area around the border between Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and Cambridgeshire. It is a great starter network for first time Bridle Riders because the terrain is gentle - but the predominantly grassy field margins are also great if you like fast riding! It has a very traditional, middle-England feel about it with rolling countryside and big fields and skies - you can see where John Major got his inspiration from!

It is predominantly an arable area, so the riding is something else with miles of long canters on wide verges. There are not many gates because there's hardly any livestock.
The photo above left is of Bobbie from Bridle Rides and Herbie taking an impromptu rest stop near Yelden at the end of March. The one on the left shows bridle rider Debbie Wood crossing a rape field, while the one below was taken by Rita West. The bridleways in all the photos on this page are typical of this area, which has lots of grassy tracks across arable fields and along headlands.
We can offer 2-day, 3-day, 4-day and 5-day place to place rides back to start and there's also a one-centre holiday with 3 petal or day-rides. You can combine place-to-place and petal rides in several different ways to give up to 6 days riding if you fancy a longer break.

There are stables available at every overnight stop - and the easy terrain is good for mountain biking.
The photo above was also taken by Rita West, who rode with her friend and their two husbands on bikes. The one below is of their horses tied up in the garden at the back of the Five Bells, Riseley.