Tag Archives: trail riding
Travel Las Vegas, Nevada: Trucking up a mountain on a horse
It was a scene out of a movie. Sitting at the top of a Nevada mountain with a 18-year-old cowboy looking down at the tiny glittering Las Vegas strip while listening to the wind rustle tree leaves was the quietest lunch I`ve eaten in days, a welcome reprieve from the crazy but awesome pulse of […]
Calgary Stampede comes to Toronto and I want to go to Banff, Alberta
The Calgary Stampede came to Toronto this week. Well, not the stampede specifically, but representatives from the world-famous Canadian extravaganza, along with some partners (yes, giddy up), were in town to promote the annual event kicking off this year on July 8 and running until July 17, 2015 in – you guessed it – Calgary, […]
Waterloo, Ontario: My First Norwegian Horse and Belly High Snow Drift
Not many trail ride operators offer winter rides, and that’s looptoo bad because there’s two advantages to heading out into the sparkly snow: a one hour ride is long enough because toes start to freeze, and there’s no problem with your horse grabbing bites of grasses. Well, there’s almost no greenery around – my mount, the adorable […]
Amelia Island, Florida: The Great Horse Trilogy – Beach, Carriage and Boat Tours
Amelia Island is the Florida of days gone by – summer homes along the shore, beaches lined with boardwalks and independent restaurants serving up locally-caught grilled shrimp, seafood chowder and fish tacos you take outside and eat at picnic tables under a canopy. This narrow island, 18-miles (29km) long and three miles (4.8km) wide, is in the northern part of Florida, just south of Georgia and a one-half hour drive from the Jacksonville International Airport.
It’s not the kind of place I thought I’d have three different equine experiences.
Hunstville, Ontario: Warm Saddle and Wandering Hooves Cure Winter Blahs
Riding across the snow-covered golf course streaked with cross-country ski tracks astride Static, a Belgian mare apparently crossed with a comfortable couch, is one of the most relaxing things a person can do outside in negative 12 degree Celsius weather. The sun is warming or at least creating the illusion of warmth as the winter trail ride experience at Huntsville, Ontario’s Deerhurst Resort.
Horsetrotting.net: New Year, new resolutions. Right?
Last year at this time I wrote about travel riding aspirations rather than resolutions: dream rides I’d love to take around the world. Well, guess what? I’m still dreaming. None on the list materialized, but I haven’t given up. Somehow, sometime, you’ll read post about the week I spent at a Spanish riding school or […]
Selecting the Perfect Riding Holiday.. advice from Globetrotting.com
How to select the perfect riding holiday? Thanks to Globetrotting.com, a company that specializes in worldwide horse riding holidays and safaris, here is some advice: http://www.globetrotting.com.au/how-to-choose-the-perfect-riding-holiday/
Ontario: Wake Up in Ottawa … Ride in Wakefield
A visit to Ottawa, the capital of Canada, doesn’t usually include horses, unless you’re headed to the RCMP stables where the musical ride practices (though in the summer it’s on tour). Yet, there are a number of riding outlets not far from the city and that’s primarily because Ottawa, situated along the Rideau Canal and […]
Riding in Wales and Embracing the Novice Rider in Me
Living in Wales – a country defined by rural rolling hills, coastal sea towns, deep valleys and the birth place of the industrial revolution thanks to rich coal deposits in the valleys – Michael Sullivan promised himself he’d ride a horse before his 80th birthday. There are many horses and ‘pony trekking’ operations all over […]
Riverdale Farms: Rural Sanctuary in Urban Toronto
This public destination has been a not so secret retreat for decades: at 7.5 acres in size, the Riverdale Farm smack in the middle of a dense residential area in downtown Toronto, Ontario (201 Winchester Street), is a rural sanctuary from city chaos. Riverdale is a living farm museum designed to give urbanites big and […]
Part II: Overnight with Bison while riding in Saskatchewan
We spot bison, a highlight on this trail ride through Prince Albert National Park thanks to Gord Vaadeland from Sturgeon River Ranch Adventures in Saskatchewan. This is possibly the only one in North America that can claim proximity to these rare and massive creatures that once roamed this region in remarkable numbers. Today the herd in […]
Part I: Horses, Flannel PJs and all the Bannock you can eat in the Saskatchewan Wilderness
Roughing it in the Canadian wilderness with no running water or toilets is something I refused to do … until someone said the magic word: horses. Last summer, I was presented with the opportunity to ride for two days, three hours per day into the prairie wilderness, boldly going where no motorized vehicles are allowed […]
Toronto Medieval Times: Horse crazy date night
When a fifty-year old man is willing to wear a paper crown and is excited to get front row tickets because his 47-year-old girlfriend wants to see Medieval Times Dinner & Tournament horse show, you know he’s a keeper. And that’s how I spent my birthday this year: cheering on the Blue Night, loving the […]
Dominican Republic Part II: Riding in Punta Cana, Beyond the Resorts
The tourist trade is the bread and butter of Punta Cana’s economy in the Dominican, and the vacation landscape in this region is changing. Two luxury resorts, where I stayed, are the Paradisus Palma Real, a boutique-style hotel with a Royal Service upgrade, and the newly renovated Paradisus Punta Cana, described as a resort within a […]
Dominican Republic Part I: Riding in Punta Cana at HorsePlay, a Canadian connection
One thing I love about riding outside of North American is less worry about liability and more about experience. On a ride in the Dominican, I’m one of the few tourists in jeans and boots astride a western-ridden horse very familiar with the brush we trotting through, though having no interest in following the herd […]
Romancing Winter: a snow covered ride
Until now, fall has been my preferred time of year to trail ride. Well that, and spring in another country. Winter wasn’t high on the list until last weekend when I took my first (yes, first) winter trail ride in the still negative two degree temperature (balmy compared to the previous days’ negative 15 plus […]
Dream Ride: Where I’d love to saddle up this year
I’m a little late with my New Year’s aspirations (better than resolutions) but I’m still thinking about where, when and how I want to get in the saddle this year. My plan is to find an instructor willing to take me out on a few English pony trekking lessons to prepare me for the speed […]
Down but not out: the joys of rolling
Staring between the ears of an Appaloosa named Queenie, while riding through a conservation park in Saskatchewan, I’m listening to stories about horses spooked by oddities in the woods (like wild bison) when my own horse stomps the ground in front of us, possibly stumbling. “Watch your footing I warn her.” But too little too […]
Pink Sand and Painted Ponies: Wake up to Bermuda Trail Riding
Never before have I ridden a horse into the waves of the ocean, and for a short period of time I got to do that on the back of Gypsy, a 12-year-old mild-mannered Paint who’s happy to be cooling down first thing in the Bermuda morning. I’m trail riding at the crack of dawn (tack […]
Charming Pony on the island of Lanai
One of the most scenic trail rides I’ve ever taken was at the Stables at Ko’ele, part of the Four Seasons resort on the island of Lanai. Dust from the red soil punctuated the hilly ride that delivered majestic views of blue Hawaiian ocean waters. I recommend booking a private ride if contemplation, not chatting, […]
Global Travel for Horse Lovers 