Queen Elizabeth’s Love For Horses: British Monarch Rides Her Pony At Windsor Castle [PHOTOS]

Britain’s longest reigning monarch took her pony out for a ride near Windsor Castle, along the River Thames on Monday, not allowing her age to come in the way of indulging in one of her favorite hobbies.

Queen Elizabeth II was pictured wearing a lightweight waterproof jacket along with a pair of pale jodhpurs and brown leather riding boots, but she was missing a helmet, which she replaced with a silk scarf around her head.

According to the Telegraph, the queen does not wear a “hard hat” to avoid getting her hair out of place in case of royal engagements. The 90-year-old, who turns 91 next month, was joined by Windsor Castle Head Groom Terry Pendry as she stepped out to enjoy the spring day.

The queen’s love for horses is well-known and reportedly started when she took her first lesson in horse-riding when she was only three years old. She was presented with a Shetland pony, named Peggy, when she was four, the Daily Mail reported.

In the past, she had also been spotted with Betsy, her black farm-bred horse, on numerous occasions in the 1950’s, and a grey gelding called Surprise, who she famously rode at Ascot in 1961.

The queen, who spends most of her time at Windsor Castle, has been spotted around its stables regularly, taking frequent rides into the park. She reportedly once said that horse-riding, a lifelong passion, allows her to be “just another human being.”

She, however, has had to reduce her visits to the stables in the recent years because of her age, especially after she suffered from ill health at the end of last year, causing her to miss church services at Sandringham, in Norfolk, over Christmas and New Year. The queen, however, refused to stay down and was spotted at a Sunday service in Sandringham early this year.