Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom: Runaway Horse Side Quest - How To Ride A Horse

How can you get across Hyrule fast in Echoes of Wisdom without the use of Waypoints? By riding a horse, of course!

Echoes of Wisdom isn't the first time you've been able to ride a horse in a top-down Zelda title, but it may well be one of the most notable. To ride horses, however, you need to complete the Runaway Horse Side Quest.

In this guide, we're here to tell you where to find the Runaway Horse Side Quest, how to complete it, and how to ride Zelda's white horse.

For a list of all Side Quests available in Echoes of Wisdom, make sure to consult our complete list.

Where to find the Runaway Horse Side Quest

You'll find the Runaway Horse Side Quest at Hyrule Ranch. You can go there after you've completed the Suthorn Ruins Dungeon. Once you've spoken to Lueberry, you'll be able to leave the Suthorn Prairie and enter Hyrule Field.

When you reach Hyrule Field for the first time, simply head northwest until you reach Hyrule Ranch. Then, talk to one of the ranch workers at Hyrule Ranch and pick up the Runaway Horse Side Quest. This will allow you to ride any of the horses at the ranch except the white one.

Runaway Horse Side Quest - Solution And Rewards

Talk to the elderly man at Hyrule Ranch to find out one of the horses has gone missing, and you need to find it.

Luckily, the horse hasn't gone too far — simply head west from Hyrule Ranch until you reach a moat surrounding a small island. On that island, you'll spot a brown horse. You need to get over to that island and ride the horse back to the ranch.

Use whatever Echoes you need to to get over there (can't go wrong with a bed bridge), hop on the horse, then get them to gallop so that they jump over the gap. Then, ride back the way you came, all the way to the ranch. Speak to the man again and you'll be able to borrow any of the horses at the ranch.

How to unlock Zelda's white horse

The first time you go to the ranch, you'll spot a familiar-looking horse. Elegant, regal, and white, this is Zelda's horse — but you can't ride it, because no one knows you're Zelda right now.

To get Zelda's horse, you need to wait until after you've saved Hyrule Castle Town — that's after the Hyrule Castle dungeon, around the halfway point of the game. Speak to Impa in the Castle to get the Impa's Gift Side Quest.

Impa's Gift Side Quest - Solution And Rewards

Once you've picked up the Side Quest, fast-travel to Hyrule Ranch and speak to the stable hands there to find out Zelda's horse has gone missing.

From Hyrule Ranch, follow the path north towards the Eternal Forest, and eventually, you'll come across a rift where a carrot patch was. To get Zelda's horse back, you need to enter the rift and save Tri's friends. You'll find a guide for the Stilled Carrot Patch Rift guide just below.

Once out of the rift, call Zelda's horse by pulling one of the carrots of the patch using Bind, and your horse will return. Now you have a permanent horse you can rely on, and you can enter the Hyrule Ranch time trials, which you need to do to unlock all of Dampé's Automatons.

Stilled Carrot Patch Rift

Here, you'll need to rescue Tri's friends in four different locations. We've listed all of them below for you:

1. From the entrance, head north to reach a platform with four boxes on it. Remove the box in the top-right corner to reveal a ladder. Avoid the Platboom enemy and climb up on the right. At the top, move the boulder with Bind to activate a switch. Destroy the boxes for the first of Tri's friends.
2. Leave the cave, then head west to another set of boxes. Move the box further to the left to reveal some stairs. Head down, defeat the Moblins, and you'll get another of Tri's friends.
3. Leave, head left and north. Use Bind on the top boulder here to reveal another group of Tri's friends.
4. The last of Tri's friends are far north. Either climb up using the boulders and echoes or head back to the entrance and head north. The energy is just sitting there next to a tree.

Once you've rescued all four, you'll get 2 Might Crystals and you'll repair the rift.

How to ride a horse in Echoes of Wisdom

Once you've completed Runaway Horse, you'll be able to ride any of the horses at Hyrule Ranch by interacting with them, You'll be able to do the same with the white horse once you've completed the Impa's Gift Side Quest.

To mount the horse, simply walk up to it and press 'A'. You can then ride on the back of it. Pressing 'A' again will speed up your horse, but it will be more difficult to control. To dismount, press 'B'. If you can't find your horse, open up your map and look for the horse head icon in yellow.

How to call your horse to you

Zelda has no need for a fancy whistle in Echoes of Wisdom. All she needs is a carrot to call her trusty white steed to her anywhere in Hyrule.

When you rescue your horse as part of Impa's Gift, make sure that you pull a carrot out of the patch again. There, you should be able to create an Echo of the carrot.

Placing that Carrot Echo down in the world, your horse will come running to you.

Is Epona in Echoes of Wisdom?

Link's trusty steed, Epona is a beautiful brown horse who has been by Link's side in most games since Ocarina of Time. Can Zelda ride her, though?

Unfortunately not. While there are a couple of brown horses in Echoes of Wisdom, none of them have the white mane of Link's horse. That means Epona isn't in the game, and Zelda can't ride her. Well, least Zelda gets her own horse!

That's all for this section of our Echoes of Wisdom guide. For more help, hints, or tips, head on over to our Echoes of Wisdom walkthrough hub.