Since he was a boy Hobby Charles has been working with horses. Now in his 50s he runs Shilo Stables and the distinctive white horse-drawn carriages that take visitors on tours of Hamilton.

With the cruise ship season up-and-running again the horse and carriages are becoming a familiar part of the city scene as his fleet of eight licensed carriages take to the streets whenever there is a cruise ship at the waterfront.

Over the years the business has had its fair share of detractors questioning the morality of using horses to ferry tourists around, and how the horses are looked after ? particularly when the temperature and humidity climb to uncomfortable summertime peaks.

But Mr. Charles and his wife Dee point out their horses receive some of the best care and attention around, and that is not just their point of view, visiting veterinarians and even animal rights' activists have commented on how well their horses are looked after, say the couple.

The horse and carriage rides have a long tradition in Bermuda. Until the arrival of the motor car in the 1940s it was the main form of transport on the Island.

Mr. Charles remembers a time when the residents of Tucker's Town would come to Hamilton in horse-drawn wicker carriages, and the musical group The Talbot Brothers rode through the Island in a carriage singing Calypso songs.

The wicker carriages are now few and far between although he has build one using a 100-year-old chassis, which is popular with many of the older guests to the Island.

He estimates the antique status of the carriage gives it a value of around $75,000 far overshadowing the newer, mostly metal carriages that are painted white and are popular with the younger tourists.

Mr. Charles is an experienced horseman. He helped his father who delivered goods around the town using a horse-drawn wagon, and went on to ride rodeo in the US. He was 18 when he got his horse and carriage licence, and it is a business that has been his career for most of his adult life.

What many people don't realise is the cost of bringing a horse to the Island to pull a carriage. It adds up to around $7,000, which includes transportation, quarantine and veterinary checks.

Then there is the cost of importing the hay and food for the horses and storing it, the shoeing bills for the horses, buying sawdust and the vet checks.

Correcting the many misconceptions that surround the horse and carriage business is an ongoing process for the couple.

One myth is that the horses do not get any exercise in the winter months when there are no cruise ship customers. But they do get hitched up and taken out around Spanish Point, or if the weather is not so good they are exercised using a roundabout-type walking machine at the stables, say the couple.

As for water and shelter, the Corporation of Hamilton has done a lot to help with a shaded area at the main stand on Front Street. The horses are fed compacted hay cubes while at the Front Street stand and there is also a hose to water down the horses when they are hot.

Mrs. Charles, who has been a licensed horse and carriage operator since 1989, said: "We have been fortunate with the shelter and the water. The tourists love it when the see the horses getting a shower."

Most of the rides last a half hour and the horses normally only work on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays when the cruise ships are in, or for the occasional wedding or party engagement.

A former pre-school teacher, Mrs. Charles finally followed her husband's lead and became a full-time carriage operator and has not looked back since, professing a love of the outdoor life and working with horses.

The couple say most Bermudian motorists respect the horses when they are on the streets, but there are some who do not leave a gap behind the carriages at traffic lights.

Mr. Charles would like motorists to observe a 15ft gap behind the carriages especially at traffic lights in case the horses become "spooked" by the sudden appearance of a moped or auxiliary cycle pulling up in front of them.

Some Islanders have commented on the routes the carriages take, such as the roads around the Belco power station. But the tourists are fascinated by this area and how the Island gets its power, said Mrs. Charles.

"So many of the tourists are interested in Belco and say the power station is so much prettier than theirs and they want to know how the Island gets its power," she said.

Mr. Charles once worked for Lindo's Supermarket and in a slaughterhouse and would like to run a beef farm if it was possible to do so in Bermuda, but for now will continue with his love of running a horse and carriage business and giving tourists the chance to step back in time and experience how it was to travel in Bermuda more than half century ago.