The wonderful photos are from our friends in the UK Judi Neachell and Barbara Stockton. They have toured the coaching routes of old England for the last several Autumns and are sharing this experience here with us. What an incredible trip, I cannot think of a more joyful way to spend a week.  Visit their wonderful sites for more photos of Hackneys, Coaching and information on our beloved breed.

Barbara writes: As you probably know we show a team of pure bred Hackneys, but for the last two years come the Autumn, we have tried to go back to the routes of coaching and get "down the road" so to speak.  Firstly so that we can experience the highs & lows of being out on the road in all weathers, secondly to promote the Hackney horse, his stamina and soundness, and thirdly to have a jolly good time!!! Last year we drove from Birmingham to Shrewsbury, seventy miles in three days. Pulling in to the famous Lion at Shrewsbury was a moment none of us will ever forget.

 This year we decided to do a five day tour to the beautiful Lake Vyrnwy in Wales. Friends of ours from Kent John & Pebs Brown asked if they could join us with their road coach "The Nimrod" and their grey gelderlanders. The Household Cavalry black team also horsed that coach for some of the stages. The whole trip was 110 miles, the Hackneys did the whole tour and thrived on it, even the hard pulls up some Welsh hills/mountains. The weather was very kind to us, and we had the fantastic time, there is nothing like a group of like minded individuals all getting together, and we all feel that we really achieved something. I have a fantastic team of people including Paul Bennett - Coachman whose expertise was vital to the trip. My husband Rod, myself, Chris Rawlins & Bill Ginns our partners and Paul were the coachmen who took it in turns to drive the horses.