Boy - did the day turn out perfect for a nice ride! 13 riders showed up to enjoy the day and explore this new to us trail. Everybody came back on top of a horse - so it was a good day. :) We rode along the canal and as we passed under the big bridge several horses got a little nervous from the noise of the cars passing overhead (mine included). A couple of people took that opportunity to work their horses and desensitize them to the strange noise that came from above. Then we picked up our casual pace and headed on. Because the sides of the canal are built up - there was plenty of opportunity to work up and down hills if you wanted. We stopped for lunch at the end of the canal trail and got "politely" uninvited from the RV campsite by some quests. After talking to the nice ranger, we were advised that this part had been closed to riders because of some unpleasant history, but that we were welcome to camp for free at the trailhead where we started. After lunch we followed a trail through the woods and rode down to the dam. On our return trip, we followed the low trail through the swampy area before heading back up to the canal trail. On the way back - some of us took the opportunity to trot and canter along the wide groomed trail and Traci rode Mike's young horse Rusty for the last 25 minutes to the trailhead. We were out 5 hours and I would say it is definitely worth riding this trail again! You can view more pictures
HERE or through our Photo Album link.
Also we welcomed Traci Korn as a new member and were glad to have 3 guests join us for the ride, Chrissy from Starke and Chuck and Kenny from Jacksonville.
