A KENDAL woman has spent the past month fulfilling a teenage ambition by travelling through the stunning Cumbrian landscape on the back of a fell pony.

Clare Dyson, 37, began her adventure in Staveley-in-Cartmel with ‘tough’ Pansy the pony and her collie dog Finn at the start of May.

The trio have trekked clockwise around the Lake District, passing through a number of locations including Hawkshead Hill, Walna Scar, the valleys of the west coast, Troutbeck, Ambleside, Langdale, Grizedale Forest, the Rusland Valley and were due to finish today (May 31) back in Staveley-in-Cartmel.

Pansy is not Clare’s but belongs to Tom Lloyd, who owns Hades Hill Fell Pony Stud, and who needed help looking after his ponies while he went away.

A community engagement ranger for the Rusland Horizons project and self-employed as a gardener, Clare said she ‘worked her backside off’ to secure the extensive leave period but that it had been ‘worth it’.

“It’s been an absolute dream,” Clare said, describing the trip. “This magical stuff has been happening. Every day waking up to blue skies and people have been so kind.”

Clare set out with the ambition of being self-supported, sleeping wild with Finn in the tent and Pansy nearby.

And although she has largely been doing just that, she said that she has also met some generous people on the way who have been happy to help.

Farmers offered her land to camp on, a hearty breakfast or a cup of coffee - one even helped to replace one of Pansy’s shoes.

“People have been really interested in what we’re doing,” she said. “They have never seen a pony on the fells and then they find out you’re wild camping and then they say ‘oh my god that looks like total freedom’.”

Clare said that her and her ‘team’ had taken in both ‘tough’ and ‘stunning’ terrain - not least the climb up Helvellyn.

“Pansy was loving it,” Clare said. “I couldn’t stop her, she’s so fit now. She was enjoying it so much.

“It was a gradual but steep climb up and we got to just before the peak and she was whinnying and just absolutely electric with excitement. She cantered to the top!”

Although Clare has never owned a horse herself, she started riding at around eight-years-old.

“I just used to go out exploring and it was always something I loved doing,” she said.

And with a mountain leader qualification and a background in fell running, she said that it was like everything had ‘come together’ to make it a successful trip.

“It’s just been amazing,” she said. “I’m already starting to grieve for the trip!”