The Long Riders' Guild - Historical Long Riders

The Long Riders' Guild

Historical Long Riders

	The Scottish explorer Mungo Park is often overlooked when it comes to documenting the history of equestrian exploration. Yet the fact remains that the intrepid Long Rider made his first foray into Africa on horseback. Park reached the Gambia river in 1795 and ascended to the British outpost of Pisania. From there he chose a route across the Senegal basin and through the desert of Kaarta. When he reached the village of Ludamar, a Moorish chieftain held the Scottish Long Rider captive for four months. Park finally escaped with nothing save his horse and compass. He eventually reached his goal, the Niger river, in 1796, then turned for home because of a lack of money and resources.
	Though Richard Thomas Parks has passed on, the “Ocean to Ocean” ride he made from Savannah, Georgia to Moss Landing, California in 1992 continues to inspire a new generation of equestrian travellers. Thanks to Parks’ example, Darin Webster is planning on riding “ocean to ocean” in the opposite direction. Darin will shortly be journeying from Washington to Florida in honour of the man who inspired him to become a Long Rider.
	Though she started life as a Swedish princess, Bridget Persson became known as a saint, mystic and renowned equestrian traveller. In 1341, accompanied by her husband, Bridget set out to ride to the cathedral at Santiago de Compostella in Spain. Upon his death, Bridget devoted her life to spiritual matters, while making a number of other long rides, including a hazardous journey to Jerusalem. Bridget spent the latter part of her life living in Rome, where she founded the religious order which bears her name to this day, the Bridgettines. Because of her good works Saint Bridget of Sweden was canonised in 1391.
	Dmitri Peshkov - rode from Albanzinski, Siberia, to Saint Petersburg, Russia, in 1889.
	Ida Pfeiffer - If England is rightly proud of the doughty Long Rider Isabella Bird, the German-speaking world can take equal delight in recalling the mounted adventures of its own intrepid lady Long Rider, the brave Ida Pfeiffer. Ida was born in Vienna, Austria, in 1797 and, thanks to an indulgent father, was encouraged to follow her tomboyish tendencies. This instilling of courageous behaviour at such a young age led to Ida becoming a determined, brave and outspoken young woman. After the death of her father, Ida reluctantly married a man several years older than she was. Yet though they had two sons, Ida laboured under the constraints placed upon her by conventional society. Therefore, after her husband died, and as soon as her sons had homes of their own, the still-young Ida set off from home anxious to fulfil one desire: to explore the world at last! Ida's travels took her to many of the most exotic parts of the planet, including Scandinavia, South America, the South Pacific, China, India, Persia, Asia Minor, Europe and North Africa. It was, however, her equestrian journey across Iceland in 1845 which marks Ida as an Historical Long Rider. During that journey the observant traveller described the island kingdom as "a whole world of glaciers, lava-peaks, fields of snow and ice, rivers and miniature lakes." Her equestrian journey allowed her to visit the locals, witness the geysers, climb to the top of volcanoes and observe the interesting local customs. These included "passionate addictions to brandy-drinking, snuff-taking and tobacco-chewing," but not, she noted, any strong desire for excess work. By 1856 Ida's travel books had been translated into seven languages, she had seen a great deal of the world and survived a host of dangerous adventures. With those qualifications in mind, the diminutive Long Rider ventured to London. Her goal was to meet England's most celebrated explorer, Richard Francis Burton, and convince him to allow her to accompany him on his forthcoming journey to find the source of the Nile River. Despite having entered into Mecca in disguise, the flamboyant Burton wasn't able to evade the persistent Pfeiffer, who methodically peppered him with requests. Despite her excellent travel qualifications, and disregarding her documented courage, the normally unorthodox Burton sided with the patriotic forces of conventional society. As history later revealed, this was one of the most remarkable "what if?" moments in exploration history. What if these two incredible Historical Long Riders had defied custom and ignored the allure of patriotism by creating an International Expedition? Instead of travelling with Pfeiffer, the widely-travelled and talented linguist, Burton chose John Hanning Speke. Speke was not well-travelled and no linguist, and is the man whom history as often defined as an infamous cad and who later betrayed Burton's trust in an act of notorious self-interest. When her hopes were dashed by Burton, Pfeiffer responded in her usual resolute manner by announcing that if Captain Burton would not allow her to accompany him into the interior of the Dark Continent, then she would venture into another area of that world alone. Soon afterwards, the intrepid Ida set off to document the secrets of Madagascar. There she became afflicted with a series of fevers which eventually slew her. Despite the years she had spent in domestic duty, Ida Pfeiffer never lost sight of her dream for adventure. During her lifetime she was awarded membership into the geographical societies of both Germany and France. Sadly, the Royal Geographical Society of England denied her that honour due to her sex. Today Ida's legacy lives on by providing us with the memory of a woman of matchless intrepidity, surprising energy and heroic fixity of purpose.
	Roger Pocock’s life reads like a fairytale full of adventure. A childhood cut short to go to sea, then service with the Canadian North West Mounted Police in 1885, followed by stints as a war correspondent, Yukon gold miner, South African army scout, and “missionary to hostile tribes.” In between he formed the Legion of Frontiersmen, organized the original World Flight by airplane and was the first person in history to ride the length of the infamous Outlaw Trail. Following the Frontier is considered his best work describing as it does his early adventures in North America. Although the autobiographical account reads like fiction, it is in fact only the first half of his remarkable life. Pocock begins his tale by explaining how he came to join the Canadian Mounties in 1885. When the Saskatchewan Rebellion broke out soon afterwards, Pocock’s unit was ordered to march from Regina to Fort Albert during the height of the Canadian winter. The author’s feet were severely frost-bitten, leaving him crippled for life. Never one to be put off by physical adversity, Pocock went on to become one of the nineteenth century's most influential equestrian travelers. One of the highlights of Following the Frontier is the detailed account of Pocock’s horse ride along the infamous Outlaw Trail, a 3,000 mile solo journey that took the adventurer from Canada to Mexico City. During this trip Pocock not only visited Robber’s Roost and Hole in the Wall, he also spent many a night with the hunted American outlaws then inhabiting this lawless section of the Old American West. When he was wasn’t seeking excitement, Pocock could be found writing. Though most of the prolific author’s work predictably revolved around the exciting episodes of his own life, or the other men of action he knew, Pocock’s most well-known foray into academic study was his rightfully famous book, Horses. In today’s equine-friendly world it is difficult to imagine how revolutionary Pocock’s observations about horses were at the time. Horses was penned by Pocock while he was serving with the British army, stationed behind the trenches during the First World War.
	In 1925 the Argentine Long Rider Abelardo Piovano rode his Criollo, Lunarejo Cardal, from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Mendoza, Chile in only seventeen days. This rare photo shows the equestrian traveller, and his fourteen-year-old horse, ten days after they made their record journey.
	Hezekiah Prince was a respected builder and community leader in late 18^th century Maine. In the winter of 1793 the young scholar made a remarkable journey across the newly formed United States, riding 1,200 miles from his home in Maine south to Virginia. During the course of this singular journey, Hezekiah met America’s first president, George Washington, who he noted “was a fine rider on horseback.” Hezekiah also observed the White House being built and kept a detailed diary during his journey. Click here to read that diary.
	General Nikolay Przhevalsky was Imperial Russia’s most famous explorer. He made four equestrian journeys in Central Asia, crossing the Gobi desert, the Tian Shan mountains and exploring northern Tibet before dying on expedition in today’s Kyrgyzstan. An avid naturalist, Przhevalsky is credited with making hundreds of discoveries including the wild Bactrian camel and the Przhevalsky horse, which is named after this famous Long Rider.
	Though remembered today more for his work as a pioneering geologist, Raphael Pumpelly also undertook several equestrian journeys during the course of his long academic career. After having graduated from the Royal School of Mines in Germany, the young American’s first assignment in 1859 was to oversee the development of silver mines in the Apache held portion of the Arizona territory. This mission found him making perilous rides through mountains, often times barely escaping death. In a bold move, in 1861 he next accepted an offer to work as a consulting geologist for the Emperor of Japan. Once again he explored the countryside during extended rides. He thereafter journeyed to China, and then made an equestrian journey to St. Petersburg, Russia. Though he returned to the United States and enjoyed a brilliant academic career, Pumpelly still longed for adventure. During his 1903 expedition through Turkestan, he sought evidence of the Usun, a people of antiquity who were rumoured to have had red hair and blue eyes. The discovery of the “Tarim Mummies,” by subsequent scientists confirmed the existence of the forgotten people. Here is a link to his Story from the Road.
	Many places come to mind when one thinks of the dangerous and unexplored places of the nineteenth century world. Africa and Tibet, for example, both challenged brave explorers in that previous age. Yet one continent, though often overlooked, offered all the adventure a daredevil could want. South America was still politically unstable and geographically challenging. It was exactly for these reasons that George Whitfield Ray came sailing into Buenos Aires in 1889. A Fellow of the Royal Geographic Society, Ray was a part-time missionary and full-time adventure junky. Within a short time he had managed to acquire a job as “Official Explorer for the Bolivian Government”. Shortly thereafter he began a series of explorations and misadventures which still make for hair-raising reading. Ray’s account of his South American travels, Through Five Republics on Horseback was gathered from his years spent exploring the untouched interior, visiting unknown tribes, and making careful observations of native life in a host of countries. Yet it was his equestrian adventures that made Ray justly famous. On his most noted horse trip into the interior, the equestrian explorer set out to find a lost tribe of sun-worshipping natives who resided in the unexplored forests of Paraguay. The journey was so brutal that it defies belief. The horses were repeatedly attacked by vampire bats, thousands of which lived in nearby jungle caves. Then Ray and his horses were reduced to sucking dew off leaves to survive. By the time he discovered the tribe, Ray’s clothes were in rags, held together by horse hair thread. The intrepid American did eventually ride back to civilization, but not without paying a price for his boldness. He lost two toes to blood-sucking insects whose bites also caused much of the flesh on his feet to rot off.
	Robert Rigal - rode from the Camargue, France, to Finland's North Cape, then made another Long Ride from the Camargue to Romania.
	In an age full of colourful adventure travellers, Long Rider Joseph Rock’s travels in China during the 1920s and 30s still stand alone. A self-taught linguist and naturalist, Rock left his native Vienna, Austria and set out for a life full of excitement. He found it in the remote tribal regions of China. For nearly thirty years Rock wandered among the wild border provinces of Qinghai, Gansu, and Sichuan. Feted by native rulers and a confident of shamans, Rock would employ tribal bodyguards to accompany his equestrian caravans into these remote and dangerous kingdoms. Though never an accredited scientist in the academic sense, Rock was nevertheless a brilliant cultural observer, a talented anthropologist and a dedicated botanist. Thanks to his National Geographic magazine articles, Rock’s amazing travels are inspiring a new generation of equestrian travellers to venture into these formerly “forbidden kingdoms.”
	W. C. Rose - Though the Historical Long Riders project is filled with extraordinary equestrian journeys, few are as unique, nor its rider more mysterious, than Captain W. C. Rose. It was the famous English Long Rider, Roger Pocock, who introduced Rose to their fellow countrymen. This occurred in 1907 when Pocock, who had made a tremendous solo ride along the length of the Outlaw Trail a few years earlier, told readers of England’s Wide World magazine about Rose’s equally astonishing adventures. According to a lengthy, detailed account written by Rose, after having made his fortune in the California gold mines, he journeyed south to Mazatlan, Mexico. Rose had barely arrived when he happened to see two men being attacked by a dozen brigands. Though he lacked the necessary Spanish, the impetuous traveller didn’t hesitate to attempt a rescue. “They did not understand my words, but my levelled Colts conveyed my meaning readily enough.” Pedro and Jose, the two Mexicans Rose had rescued, were so grateful that they decided to accompany the English Long Rider on his equestrian journey from Mexico to Argentina. The resultant story is unlike anything else in Long Rider records. Rose begins by describing their ride through the Mexican countryside, noting the wildlife and providing many geographic clues as to the group’s southern progress. During their ride, they hunted jaguars, attended weddings, survived scorpion bites and experienced the day to day misadventures which any lengthy equestrian journey will surely encounter. Rose next provides information about their entry into Guatemala, which indicated that they ridden the length of Mexico. According to the account, they then passed through El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama. Rose does not explain how his party avoided the infamous Darien Gap jungle, which separates Panama from Columbia, but it was common for travellers to sail between the two countries so as to avoid this swampy green hell. When the account continues, Rose mentions riding through Columbia, Ecuador and Peru, Then they entered the notorious Gran Chaco jungle of Paraguay. No outsider would thoroughly explore this insect-infested wilderness on horseback until the 1920s, when Welsh Long Rider Thurlow Craig ventured in on his grey Criollo, Bobby. Finally, after surviving enough hair-raising adventures to have slain an army of mortal men, the weary trio finally rode into Corrientes, Argentina The Long Riders' Guild can find very little information about the author, except for the fact that he died of heart disease in 1912 in an hotel in San Francisco, in his fiftieth year. Whereas we believe Rose made the journey, because it appears to be vouched for by that equestrian travel expert, Long Rider Roger Pocock, some of the episodes described do seem somewhat far-fetched. While the jury is still out in regards to the specifics of the journey, evidence clearly indicates that Rose was indeed involved in the day to day experiences of an extremely long, and perilous, equestrian journey. One point he made perfectly clear, was the high regard in which he held the beloved horse who accompanied him during the length of this Odyssean journey. “And now,” Rose wrote, “I crave to be permitted a few lines in just praise of my noble mare, which carried me faithfully and well during my long, long ride. She was a half-breed between a "bronco" and a pure Spanish thoroughbred, stood about fourteen and a half hands, was as swift as an arrow, surefooted as a goat, and almost indefatigable. She was a beauty, endowed with great intelligence, and of a very amiable and docile character. She twice saved my life, and, as I have said, carried me all the way from Mexico to the Argentine. When, after the termination of our journey, I made a present of Pepita to Pedro, he said it was the greatest token of friendship I could have given him. He was right: parting from her made me weep like a woman for the first time in my life.” Those are the sentiments of a Long Rider, past or present. Here is a link to his Story from the Road.
	Countess Linde von Rosen - rode through various countries in Europe in the early 1930s. Countess von Rosen wrote, "It is lovely this life. I feel it when I ride against the storm, and the horse rears up, his hooves dancing in the air. In that mad second, before my mount takes off in senseless fainting speed, I scream against the storm, I'm alive!"
	Brother William of Rubrick - rode from the Crimea to Karakorum, Mongolia, and back in the thirteenth century.
	Considered one of the finest travel accounts of its era, Adventures in Mexico describes the equestrian exploits of its famous author, George Ruxton, a young British army officer who rode from the port of Vera Cruz to the fabled walls of Santa Fe, Mexico in 1847. It is a true tale of rough adventure filled with detailed descriptions of Indians, Mexicans and Americans. When the English horseman met famed Mexican General Santa Ana, for example, he caustically noted that his host was short, overweight, sported a peg leg, and married to a woman many years his junior. At times Ruxton exhibits a fearlessness which borders on insanity. He ignores dire warnings, rides through deadly deserts, and dares murderers to attack him.
	Count Waclaw Rzewuski - set out in 1817 to ride from Sawran, Ukraine into the heartland of the Arabian Peninsular and back. Read his story here.