Our Adventures in England: Appleby Horse Fayre

Caravans: the horse drawn kind

The traveling homes: "Caravans"

Appleby is a rural town about 45minutes drive from us and hosts a very large festival each year, the Appleby Horse Fayre. This is a gathering of the "Travelers"from far and wide who come to show and trade their crafts and their horses. We just had to check this out. The weather was not the best, but the unique nature of this event made it a "do not miss" opportunity.

This horse got away but was easily captured.

The horse fayre takes place each June and has done so since the reign of James II of England. In1685 King James granted a charter for a horse fayre near the River Eden. Since then around 15,000 English and Welsh gypsies, and Scottish and Irish travelers, have gathered here to buy and sell horses and celebrate their shared lifestyle. In addition each year about 30,000 non-travelers show up to join in the fun.

Needless to say this is one of the largest horse fayres in Britain. It is held outside of the town on the crossroads of the Roman Road near Gallows Hill, which is named after a public gallows that once stood here. There are competitions held and a large market field. But the trademark of this event is washing of the horses in the river Eden and showing off the horses by racing them up and down Long Morton Road, known as "flashing lane", pulling all manner of carts in hopes of attracting a buyer and a good price. All of this makes for a rather unique experience and plenty of fun.