Walking with wild horses- Black Mountains, Wales

Walking with wild horses- Black Mountains, Wales: Our Easter break meant a relaxing staycation in Hay-On-Wye. We couldn’t wait to get out in the fresh air and explore the surrounding areas, to drink in those expansive views! An overcast Friday saw us walking with wild horses in the Black Mountains…

The Black Mountains are a group of hills spread across parts of Powys and Monmouthshire in southeast Wales, extending across the England/ Wales border into Herefordshire. We put on our wellies and raincoats and headed out into the countryside…

We rambled through the fallen ferns and bracken, jumped across the streams and did our best to avoid the snow that remained from this winter’s cold snap. The wind was blowing and the country air soon put the colour back in our cheeks.

The Black Mountains are well known to ramblers and walkers as they offer a range of walks and climbs across many of the ridge trails. The ease of access by car or foot make The Black Mountains a great destination for anyone looking to stretch their legs and experience the countryside.
On my list of ‘goals for 2018’ is to stare at the horizon at least once a week and boy did I nail that this week! The horizon stretched undisrupted for miles, the rolling hills sprawled for as far as the eye could see.
We were staying with our lovely friends Juliette and Neal and their dog Schmoo, we chatted and walked, stopping every so often to take in the scenery. Schmoo was busy bounding across the hillside, pausing suddenly when she detected a hare or something scurrying in the bushes.
As we got closer to the foothills of the mountains we saw some wild horses, we approached them cautiously. The wild horses had long manes and were very trusting and relaxed as we bent down to greet them.
The wild horses walked alongside us whilst grazing on the land. There are lots of wild horses and ponies living up on the Black Mountains and across the hillsides in Wales. The beautiful wild horses are free to roam and have a somewhat mystical nature (I half expected one of them to have a horn) it is thought that the wild horses and ponies have lived around the Brecon Beacons since the Roman times.Despite the overcast weather, I couldn’t help but think that the colours of the rolling hills, the horses and the occasional patch of snow would make for the perfect landscape painting. As well as horses we were fortunate enough to see lots of Welsh sheep and their tiny lambs >squeal!!!< and a giant hare thumping along.
There’s nothing quite like getting out in the countryside to put things into perspective! Being surrounded by mother nature in all her majestic glory can be quite humbling, to stand on those great Mountains and walk across the rugged land that has and will continue to be there much longer than we can comprehend…Once back at the car, a little windswept and ready for a warm drink- we had the small challenge of removing Mr T’s wellies (that were royally stuck!) – fabulous times indeed!