# Why do we ride the trails?



## goneriding (Jun 6, 2011)

Great article!


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

> ...when there are perfectly good arenas with excellent footing scattered across the country?


Why on earth would anyone want to ride in an arena? To me, it'd be like those people who do mall-walking as exercise, instead of going for a hike. Heck, you could put your horse on a treadmill...

The point is that for me "trail" is the important word, "riding" is just the incidental consequence of me having gotten suckered into adopting a horse, who I then got attached to.


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## JeepnGirl (Jan 15, 2013)

It's about fresh air, friends, and well.... GOING someplace!
4 dusty arena walls going in circles looses it's fun fast. 
Arenas are great for teaching, but I know when I was in school, I was always looking out the window. Wonder how some of those arena only horses feel?

Danielle


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## Jolly Badger (Oct 26, 2009)

If you're lucky enough to be riding a horse, you're lucky enough. . .

But you're really, _really_ lucky if you're riding that horse through beautiful scenery.

And if you're on a good-minded, thinking horse that will go through anything you ask him to.

To me, it's the best way to see the world. I can go out on trail all day by myself without ever feeling "alone" because I'm with my horse. 

Trail riders are also some of the best "horse folk" I've ever known. They're helpful and friendly, they'll stop and chat or let you know if there's something on the trail ahead to be aware of. If they see someone else stopped at the side of the trail - especially dismounted - they will stop and check if everything is okay, or ask if you need help.

I was an "arena rider" for many of my early riding years, and I don't discredit _any_ of the lessons I learned there. The arena still has an important place in developing a good foundation of horsemanship and riding skills that come in very handy out on the trail.

But I just prefer the trail.


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## Joe4d (Sep 1, 2011)

cause walking sucks,
Creed of the mechanized infantry, Why walk when you can ride ?


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## Celeste (Jul 3, 2011)

Great article!


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## jamesqf (Oct 5, 2009)

Joe4d said:


> cause walking sucks,


Hey, I LIKE walking, and on most trail rides will get off and walk or jog for a while. I actually enjoy trotting along with Ellie, keeping pace with each other. It's sort of... well, friendly is the best I can describe it, in a way that's not quite the same as riding.


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## Foxtail Ranch (Mar 10, 2012)

I love horses. I love riding horses. I love the outdoors. I used to love running trails too, but I was in a nasty motorcycle accident 2 years ago and now I can't run or walk for long because my foot didn't heal back to full usefulness. I'm thankful my horses carry me into the places I love.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Painted Horse (Dec 29, 2006)

I ride so that I can see more. The horse watches his feet and I watch the scenery. For me, Horses are way to cover distance in rough country.

My daughter came home to visit recently, Said a boy she is dating asked her "What her favorite memories of growing up were" I expect to hear her say dancing in the Nutcracker to a live orchestra, or trips to Paris or Rome with her mother. Nope, she said you can't tell mom, but her best favorite memories are horse camping with her dad. I tried hard to make tom boys out of my 5 daughters. And I guess a little of it stuck.


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## Jim Andy (Jan 21, 2013)

Painted I know you where smiling from ear to ear ,and I bet your chest got about 2 sizes bigger.


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## dashygirl (Nov 21, 2006)

Trail riding is therapy. 

Trail riding gets you out and exploring. It helps me enjoy the simple things like seeing wildlife in their various habitats and the subtle sound of the pitter patter of your horse's hooves on the dirt. I also love the smells of the various seasons mixed with the smell of a warmed up horse. 

And, of course, like Painted Horse said, trail riding helps to take you to places you might not be able to get to on foot in a timely manner. 










I'd like to think that horses like trail riding as much as riders do for similar reasons. That may be a silly idea in some people's minds, but I know my mare often doesn't want to go back to the barn after a good trail ride, she will try to pass it up and keep going! :lol:


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## toosexy4myspotz (Oct 7, 2007)

Oh geez.....there is nothing better! The smell of the air miles and miles away from where any car can go. The scenery, the wildlife, the feeling of trusting 1000lb animal to get you in and out safely, Idk, everything. I was diagnosed very young with a severe depressive disorder and trail riding has kept me off tons of medications. Its everything to me. I would never settle for an arena. Horses are surefooted why should I have to stay in an arena? They have 4 wheel drive all the time and can go some incredible places!!!! I could never imagine being confined to an arena. Our horses love to go places just as much as us. If they even think we are hooking a trailer up everybody is at the gates waiting and ready to leave. If I left my trailer a few of them will go in and stand like "alright, when we leaving".


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## Painted Horse (Dec 29, 2006)

We had horses when I was a kid. But as I grew up, Motorcycles, fast boats and faster cars all came into my life. Through college and my early adult life, I was hooked on both Snow and Water skiing. And there is still something to the adrenaline rush of going 60 mph down very steep mountains on two thin boards strapped to your feet.

In the early 80's the Forest Service began shutting down more of the old logging roads and access roads that ventured into the back county. Where we used to drive a truck/camper into camp for Deer and Elk hunting was now 7 miles past the end of the road. About this same time in my life, I started to be much more successful at harvesting big game. And I can tell you, it was serious work to hike 7 miles up the mountain early in the morning, kill and elk and pack it 7 miles back to my truck. It only took once for me to decide that there had to be a better way.

Hence my true association with horses. I bought a horse to go hunting with. Ride up the mountain on the horse, and let the horse carry the deer or elk off the mountain later in the day. All too quickly I learned that I needed to use the horse more than just for hunting season. In order to be any good during the hunt, the horse needed to be worked all summer. Beside the exercise and conditioning aspect, you are not going to load a bloody elk carcass onto a that don't have a relationship with.

So my adventure began with working a horse all summer to get him legged up and have him trust me. So you can basically say, "I own horses so I don't have to pack heavy dead animals off steep mountains" But they became so much more than that. A way to escape the heat after work on a summer evening, get on a horse and ride to the top of the mountain where the temps were 20° than home. Trips into remote lakes to catch wild trout. Weekend camp outs with my daughters and trying to keep up with the girls as they raced over a mountain trail.

And while I still use the horses to ease the burden of packing heavy loads off the mountain, they are used more now to just get out and enjoy a sunny afternoon away from home. I have a friend who was a marine sniper for 13 years. He often says, I've seen most of the world while in the marine corp, But I have seen the most beautiful places on earth while riding horses with me.


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## dashygirl (Nov 21, 2006)

Painted Horse said:


>


I love this pic! 



Painted Horse said:


> I have a friend who was a marine sniper for 13 years. He often says, I've seen most of the world while in the marine corp, But I have seen the most beautiful places on earth while riding horses with me.


I bet this is true. Perspective of the world changes when you're on the back of a horse. Surroundings seem totally different on horseback than hiking or biking the same trail.


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## foxhuntcowboy (Feb 21, 2013)

Trail riding helps me escape from all the BS from the world. Nothing like being at one with the outdoors and with your horse, great therapy. My cousin and I get to ride almost every day so we trail ride much of the time, except when it is raining heavily we ride in the indoor.


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