The Big Hoof ride across Europe

100 days & 1,800 miles in the saddle: The Big Hoof ride across Europe

By Louis Hall (EW14)

‘The Big Hoof’ ride across Europe was undertaken to raise money and awareness for Amna, a charity supporting refugees with their trauma. I had no idea what was going to happen. When the world pushes you, you push back. Or you don’t. I bought Sasha, an 8-year-old Arab gelding on 12 March 2022 and we left Siena, Italy, twelve days later. From here we made our way through Tuscany, following the ancient ‘Via Francigena,’ to Ceparana, a little town nestled into the dark shadows of the Ligurian mountains. On 2 April the first snows of the year began to fall. It quickly became apparent that riding Sasha over these mountains was going to be too dangerous and a waste of his energy (energy that I needed to call upon when things got too much for me). Ditching the saddle and putting my kit in a rucksack we walked as a pair, 20 days in the snow, across the Ligurian mountain range and were the first to do so in recorded history. We both came out of that mountain range older, colder, and stronger. Never again. There is a reason why Hannibal and Napoleon rode over the Alps in May. After sourcing a second-hand saddle, we crossed into France by travelling along the partisan pass that runs through Monte Collardente, from Colle di Nave to La Brigue. As we entered France, we were joined by a Dutch girl called Kiki Ho who had also brought a horse with her, another Arab called Istia. Kiki was a stranger to me before this ride and reached out to my charity, The Big Hoof, as she wanted an experience to help her come to terms with the tragic loss of her late sister.

From La Brigue we crossed as a four into the Maritime Alps of Provence. The land was green again - ‘Les Haute Plaines’ - soft and lush to ride upon and, finally, we could really stretch our legs. From Provence we descended into the grasslands of the Camargue. Wild horses, bulls and long beaked birds stalked the translucent route; along the canals to Arles, up the steps of Emperor Tiberius’ Amphithéâtre d’Arles’ and then along the ‘Arles way’ until riding into Lourdes, the Basque Country and then, of course, over the Pyrenees. Kiki, the two horses and I crossed the Pyrenees from Sare, a little village near the Bay of Biscay. We decided to follow the ‘Camino de Santiago de Compostela’ (the northern route) until we reached Oviedo. From here we travelled down upon the ‘Camino Primitivo’ which took us to the captivating city of Santiago de Compostela, the medieval Arcadia for all Christian pilgrims. Just before entering the city, I had managed to rent two extra horses for friends who wanted to join. We passed underneath the shadows of the Cathedral, built upon the bones of St James, and then rode on to Cape Finisterre, ‘the end of the world.’ The Big Hoof has since become a charity with the next ride to be held in October 2023, raising money for Cancer Research UK.