Ionia State Recreation Area, near Ionia , MI
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Ionia has a nice variety of trails with views of fields, woods and lakes. Nice parking area to tie up horses. The Ionia riding association does a lot to keep the trails clean and clear of fallen branches, etc. |
| Reviewed by Jen on 7/18/2005 2:56:02 PM |
Experience: Intermediate |
Ride Date: 6/18/2005 |
Hometown: DeWitt, MI |
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Sleepy Hollow State Park, near St. Johns, MI
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Sleepy Hollow has some 2 nice wooded trails to take horses on. One unique thing about sleepy hollow is that one of the trails is designed extra wide for horse and cart access for those who like to drive train their horses. |
| Reviewed by Jen on 7/18/2005 2:51:56 PM |
Experience: Intermediate |
Ride Date: 11/1/2004 |
Hometown: Dewitt, MI |
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Carlise Reservation, near LaGrange, OH
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Great trail ride, and we even had pancakes - maple syrup demos going on. One warning, the bridge farthest away, past the Visitor Center on the way to the Duck Pond was very slippery. The wood was very wet. Be careful! |
| Reviewed by Jen on 3/14/2009 7:21:08 PM |
Experience: Intermediate |
Ride Date: 3/7/2009 |
Hometown: Milan, OH |
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Warning! The park was closed today because of high water! We rode at Kipton instead... |
| Reviewed by Jen on 2/13/2009 9:43:54 PM |
Experience: Intermediate |
Ride Date: 2/8/2009 |
Hometown: Milan, OH |
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5 Star for wet weather! Great footing, wide trails. Perfect for our young horse. Even had bathrooms near the parking lot! We were able to close the gate on the riding ring and let the horses run and roll - good sandy footing. Everyone we met was friendly and polite. |
| Reviewed by Jen on 1/6/2008 6:50:29 PM |
Experience: Intermediate |
Ride Date: 1/5/2008 |
Hometown: Milan, OH |
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Edison Woods , near Berlin Hts., Oh
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First time away from home for my youngster. My husband was riding our wonderfully experienced trail horse. We rode 3 times in December. First time the trails were solid, the second time we walked a lot through water up to their knees. Where the map shows wet or had wet in the name, it is wet! We haven't riden the entire Preserve yet, but we found the long straighter trails to be old road beds and much better footing for the wet weather. We parked in the lot off Smokey Road (Lot C), which is on the other side of the park from St. Rt. 61. Again, in the wet weather, watch where you park. Stay up on the high ground or near the road on the gravel. Great local park! Plus we always stop at Quarry Hill on the corner of Mason and Humm and pick up apples, cider, apple fritters, veggies, etc. (They have wine too - in warmer weather you could have a nice picnic!) |
| Reviewed by Jen on 1/3/2008 7:50:41 PM |
Experience: Intermediate |
Ride Date: 12/1/2008 |
Hometown: Milan, OH |
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Much improvements! The really muddy areas (north and south wetlands) have had a lot of gravel brought in, and some culverts. Much easier to ride and the gravel is pretty packed down so not uncomfortable for barefoot horses. |
| Reviewed by Jen on 11/29/2008 7:40:49 PM |
Experience: Intermediate |
Ride Date: 11/16/2008 |
Hometown: Milan, OH |
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Hinckley Reservation, near Hinckley, OH
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There was a couple of inches of snow on the ground, but the footing was great. Beautiful area. Trails wind through the woods and cross a couple of creeks. Wide enough in many areas to ride two abreast and talk. The hikers and dog walkers we passed were very polite and friendly. There is a place along the Ledge Lake Loop Trail (I think) with a picnic table and a tie rail next to a scenic ravine. Perfect picnic spot in the warmer weather. |
| Reviewed by Jen on 11/29/2008 8:00:17 PM |
Experience: Intermediate |
Ride Date: 11/29/2008 |
Hometown: Milan, OH |
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Paint Creek State Park, near Hillsboro, OH
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I've been to Paint Creek twice, and both rides were great. The loops are nice and easy marked to follow. There were some steep descents being on a goofy horse, but otherwise not a problem. |
| Reviewed by Jen on 2/26/2009 3:47:00 PM |
Experience: Intermediate |
Ride Date: 9/1/2008 |
Hometown: Eaton, OH |
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Tanglewood Acres Horsecamp, near Bainbridge, OH
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Holy cow batman! These trails are NUTS! I have been riding for more years than I care to remember and I have NEVER seen trails like this. Now, it could be I've been riding in the wrong places, but these trails are scary. The trails closest to the campground are straight uphill with sharp switchbacks and the footing is either very rocky or extremely rutting. I am thankful that we did not attempt this ride when there had been any type of rain, as I can't imagine getting up/downhill with the trails in the shape they were in. We didn't even make it to the top of the hill before we turned around and slip/slid back down to the bottom. We spent the rest of the day joking about Ohio having mountains!
The lady at camp was very nice though, and refunded our camp fee, just charging us the day rate since we were out on the trail about 40 minutes before we realized we were way over faced. The campgrounds themselves were nice and shady, and the water spigots were easily accessible. The creek was dry when we were there, but it looks like it would be a beautiful place. Tanglewood is an easy 15-20 minute drive from Paint Creek, and we spent the rest of our day riding there before heading home.
I would only recommend this to very experienced riders with well trained horses who are in peak condition. |
| Reviewed by Jen on 8/27/2008 3:16:55 PM |
Experience: Not Specified |
Ride Date: 1/1/2004 |
Hometown: Eaton, OH |
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Horse Heaven Ranch, near Talihina, OK
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Really nice camp grounds. Had electric and water and a flat level concrete pad for the living quarters trailer. The horse pens very nice and in the shade. I noticed that a few of the pens had cables that had come loose, but ours were good. Friends stayed in the cabins. They were clean and cute. The barns and pens that went with the cabins were excellent. The bath house for the campers is nice: air conditioned, great water pressure and very clean.
The trails are nice and well marked. They aren't difficult. The pine trees do cool off the ride. It was 95 degrees in May when we rode, but the trails were cool. Only a few water crossings in May. |
| Reviewed by jen on 9/3/2005 12:51:12 PM |
Experience: Expert |
Ride Date: 5/22/2005 |
Hometown: Edmond, OK |
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