Horse Training, Exploring, and Learning
by Kim Roe
Many serious riders are combining their love of travel with their quest for more equine knowledge.
Imagine traveling to your dream destination and while exploring a new country, culture, and landscape you also ride well-trained horses under the tutelage of world-class instructors.
If you love horses and travel it makes sense to combine them. The trend is growing in popularity and many riding academies and horse trainers throughout the world are now offering packages for students from around the globe. They provide the horses – all you need to do is pack your boots and helmet.
Equine professionals are welcoming people from all over the world to their farms, ranches, and equestrian centers. Many offer well-trained horses to ride and places to stay. Some even pick you up from the airport!
And you don’t have to travel overseas to do this; you can find fantastic opportunities in the United States with some of the best sight-seeing and training available. Chris Cox, from Texas, offers very popular clinics at his ranch – he puts you up and provides the horses. These clinics can be life-changing for people working to improve their horsemanship – www.chris-cox.com. Here in the Northwest we have many trainers that also offer this kind of an experience, the best thing to do is ask your favorite trainer if he or she is willing to take you on for a few days or longer. Just two of the many that are already doing this are Jonathon Field in British Columbia, Canada – https://jonathanfieldhorsemanship.net and Steve Rother – https://www.horseteacher.com.
If your goal is less about learning and more about sightseeing from the back of a horse, there are companies that specialize in equestrian vacations that involve trail riding through historic and beautiful landscapes. Castles in Ireland, beaches in France, and quaint villages in Portugal are just some of the destinations that trail riders can explore. Both Equitours and Equitrekking offer many options for once-in-a-lifetime adventures – http://www.equitours.com and http://www.equitrekking.com
Originally Published January 2017 Issue
Kim Roe grew up riding on the family ranch and competed in Western rail classes, trail horse, reining, working cow, and hunter/jumper. She trained her first horse for money at 12 years old, starting a pony for a neighbor.
Kim has been a professional dressage instructor in Washington state for over 30 years, training hundreds of horses and students through the levels. In recent years Kim has become involved in Working Equitation and is a small ‘r’ Working Equitation judge with WE United.
Kim is the editor of the Northwest Horse Source Magazine, and also a writer, photographer, and poet. She owns and manages Blue Gate Farm in Deming, Washington where she continues to be passionate about helping horses and riders in many disciplines.
