Just Saying "No" to Those Muddy Trails

In a rainy season such as we’ve had, the "North Tract" of the Patuxent Research Refuge has some of the best trails to ride.  The North Tract encompasses over 8,000 acres that were formerly a military training area.   Because the trails were originally built for tanks, they are wide, flat and rarely become muddy. 

The land was transferred from the Department of Defense to the Patuxent Research Refuge in 1991.  The North Tract now is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and is part of America’s only wildlife refuge devoted to research.

Saiph and I joined 20 other TROT (Trail Riders of Today) riders on a beautiful spring morning to ride the North Tract trails.  I opted to join the walk-only group while Saiph went with the walk/trot/canter group.  It was fun to compare our experiences and the people we met.

My group of five riders was led by Trish, who in her mid-80s, still mounts up regularly to ride near her home and with TROT.   I’ve ridden with Trish and her tiny, dead-calm Arabian before but on this ride, Trish was on an Icelandic.  At 38 years old, her Arabian is enjoying retirement.  

 

I hope to be riding well into my 80s like Trish

There were a number of Icelandic horses on the ride and Saiph and I decided these amazing little horses are perfect for an older rider.  They are gaited and even at a canter, the rider barely moves.  

 Icelandic horses have a gait called the TÖLT - a four-beat lateral gait in which there is always at least one foot on the gound.  Because there is no moment of suspension, the Tolt is very smooth and comfortable for the rider. It can be performed at any speed from a slow trot to a gallop. 

 

The Tolt is an excellent gait for trail-riding.

Like Trish, I hope to still be riding in my 80s so I’ll be putting an Icelandic horse on my “must list” 20+ years from now.

The wide trails and comfortable pace of our 6-mile ride made chatting with my fellow riders very easy.  

One of the first questions is always, “how long have you had your horse and where did you get him/her?”  Charlene said, “Chief had been a cart horse in Baltimore.”  Amazing!  Chief and Queenie were among the 19 horses seized by the Humane Society from Baltimore’s Arabbers. The two horses went to different rescue groups, however.  I adopted Queenie from Days End Farm Horse Rescue and Charlene got Chief from another rescue group.  

Chief was also a Baltimore cart horse

My fellow riders

 

We spent much of the ride comparing our horses’ initial post-adoption behavior and the training issues we’ve encountered.  We both agreed that having horses that were exposed to so many sights and sounds during their time pulling carts in Baltimore resulted in pretty unflappable mounts. 

The walk group returned to the trailers first but the other groups arrived a few minutes later.   We unsaddled the horses and gave them beet pulp and hay.  After 2.5 hours in the saddle, I was as hungry as the horses.  Saiph and I joined the other riders for a potluck lunch.

Horses, ideal weather, good food, and nice people—the perfect combination for an enjoyable day.