About Highlands Unbridled

We are a small friendly yard with happy, well loved horses and ponies and we would like to keep it that way!
We have no desire to be the biggest and would never have the audacity to claim to be the best, but we live and ride in a beautiful part of the world and we think we have something very special to offer. We are happy and love what we are doing, our horses are happy and we have happy customers that keep coming back telling us how much they have enjoyed riding with us, so we must be doing something right!

We enjoy our job - giving people memories to keep forever!

Jan

Highlands Unbridled has been Jan’s dream for 10 years.  She rode as a child at a local riding school, although never owned her own pony, then like so many of us, gave up during her teens, although she never lost her love for horses, or desire to one day own one!   Seeing an opportunity to infect her children with the riding bug, she loaned a small black Shetland pony called Tuppence for them to ride – and it worked!   Her daughter Charys became a very keen rider and of course, that meant that Mum had to get a horse to ride out with her – finally at the age of 33, she got her own horse!

Having had a love of the countryside and nature since childhood, and a desire to get out and experience it up close, led to Jan deciding that Trail Riding is what she wanted to do, and she embarked on a long process of research and training, culminating in the formation of Highlands Unbridled with her partner, Graham.

Jan is a qualified BET Ride Leader, and First Aider, and has a NC and HNC in Equine Studies.

She has a good knowledge of local natural history, culture and the area in general and a keen interest in local folklore, legends and history, and incorporates this into the rides.

Graham

Graham worked in social care for many years, specialising in supporting people with a learning disability.

He has been riding now for just four years. Before, his interests were mostly water-based, as he used to be a qualified British Canoe Union instructor.  However, that has all changed and now he rides out on the longer rides, and provides back up on others.  Like Jan, he really enjoys the outdoors. He enjoys hill walking and wild camping, canoeing and Scottish dancing as well as traditional Scottish music. His fiddle playing is awful but it is good fun!

Born in Scotland, he grew up in the West country, so don’t let his accent fool you – he is very proudly Scottish!  His family roots are in Sutherland, and he has a keen interest in Scottish history, especially in the ’45 rebellion and subsequently the Highland Clearances. He is also fluent in French.

Charys

Charys is Jan’s daughter and has been riding since she was Three.  She has spent the last two years studying for her NC & HNC Equestrian Studies at Thurso College and helps out with rides and general stable duties during her holidays.  She is now attending University down in the South of England in the second year of a degree course in ..... you've guessed it - equine studies!!! Charys is happiest when galloping along beaches or doing cross country.  Her pony, Blue, an Irish Cob now comes out with us on the trails rides, as she has a new horse to ride called Orion – a 16.3hh Thoroughbred x Clydesdale.

Charys has wanted to become a riding instructor ever since she knew there was such a thing!  She is working through her BHS stages at present.

Abbie

Abbie the Aussie is only here for a few months as she's working her way around the world! With loads of experience, she's great at her job and has a brilliant sense of humour - we love having her around and will really miss her when she goes. We thought of hiding her passport, but I don't think it would work!

At home is Oz, she runs a riding academy with her mum and has competed at eventing and endurance before settling down to do dressage. She's great at getting the new and young horses going and is an absolute star!

 

 

 

 

Heather

Heather is with us until she heads off to Uni - hopefully in Sweden at the end of the summer. As well as being a very smart lady - very academic, she has ridden since she was small and is a really good rider. She's is also very musical and has a lovely singing voice and we often here her singing away on the yard! At the moment her favourite horse is Shamoo, who she keeps promising to take to a cross-country event (poor Moo won't know what's hit her!) but we'll see what happens....

 

 

 

Lorna

Lorna has just started with us - went to school where they had horses and did a sponsored ride from Whitby to Penrith - coast to coast across England, so she is ideally suited to be here! Has brought her pet hamster, Blizzard to stay, who is very sweet. Haven't got any pictures of her yet, but I'll put them up as soon as I can.

 

Lizzie

Lizzie comes out to help during the school holidays and is an absolute star! She happily gets on with all the little jobs around the yard that we never seem to get time to do during the busy periods, and when she's not doing that, she helps out on rides - she's riding Shayner in the picture opposite who is her own pony, with us on working livery. Always cheery, we miss her and all her help during term time, but she at least she still comes out at weekends to catch up! Lizzie is now doing her NC in Equine studies on an open learning course with the North Highland College and she's doing very well (So is her mum Dawn who has also re-got the horsey bug - but don't tell her we told you!!).

 

Calum

Grahams son Calum has joined us since leaving school and is staying until he gets a better offer! Dedicated to 'World of Warcraft' and currently at level 80 (which is pretty impressive apparantly, although it goes way over our non gaming heads!) he helps out on the yard, and is chief hay net stuffer and wheelbarrow wheeler amongst many other things. A really big help!!! Sometimes if he's good we let him play on our own 'dread-steed' Blue! We really must get a more up to date picture of him as this one is about two years old and he's grown a beard since this was taken! Oh, how they grow........

Glen

Glen is our head of security! As you can see from the picture he is pretty rubbish at his job - his idea of security is to sit on peoples feet so they can't escape and have to make a fuss of him!

Rosie

If Glen is our head of security, then Rosie is our pest control officer! Always available for cuddles, she's a very friendly cat - she's just mewing in the picture not roaring!