Holidays

Winding Through Writing-on-Stone on Horseback

Updated:

July 20, 2023

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Our group of 17 horses and riders had taken shelter from the brutal midday sun beneath a massive overhang created thousands of years ago when water roared through the valley, and our chosen lunch spot was also home to several rattlesnakes.

Holidays on Horseback - Immersed in the Muskwa-Kechika

Updated:

July 3, 2023

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A riding vacation through a place that changes you.

By Tania Millen, BSc, MJ

Painted Warriors - Horse Programs from an Indigenous Perspective

Updated:

June 19, 2023

When Tracey Klettl is on the back of a horse on a beautiful woodland trail, her mind is always clearer and she feels so much more at peace. “I always hope that people feel that same peace that I do,” says Klettl, co-owner of Painted Warriors Ranch, located in the foothills of the Canadian Rockies about an hour-and-a-half northwest of Calgary, Alberta. Painted Warriors creates authentic outdoor experiences from an Indigenous perspective, based on Klettl’s Cree and Mohawk heritage and on the Ojibway heritage of Klettl’s partner and business co-owner Tim Mearns. Guests learn a variety of skills, from riding to natural navigation, medicinal plant identification, and backcountry basics.

Crossing Mongolia for Charity

Updated:

December 16, 2022

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From May to August, 2022, 17 adventurers aged 27 to 70, rode over 3,640 kilometres across Mongolia in 84 days as part of the Blue Wolf Totem Expedition. It was the longest charity ride in recent history and combined exploration, fundraising, and adventure.

Trekking Horses: What Breeds Do Outfitters Prefer?

Updated:

May 13, 2022

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Holidays on Horseback - In India one can view the countryside through the heart-shaped ears of the Marwari horse. In Mongolia a small, strong Mongol horse will carry you through the desert lands. And the short, hardy Icelandic horse will smoothly tölt you along the rugged trails of Iceland.

Solo Horse Packing Adventures in Canada’s Southern Rocky Mountains

Updated:

April 22, 2022

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Holidays on Horseback - Sven, the Haflinger pack pony, jerked his head up and snorted. I looked uphill towards our camp and caught a humpy flash of beige ducking behind a stunted fir tree. Grizzly, I thought. I was hand-grazing Sven and my paint mare, Jewel, on a frosty July morning in Mount Assiniboine Provincial Park, British Columbia during a solo pack trip. When Sven jerked his head up again, a beige grizzly bear shambled downhill towards us. Just 20 metres uphill from the first bear, a second bear rose up on its hind legs out of the brush before dropping down onto all fours and following the frontrunner. As the two bears lumbered towards us, Sven danced around on his lead line while Jewel kept grazing, and my heart beat a little quicker. As I considered what to do, a third bear trundled out of the trees and followed the first two. They were all grizzlies, all full size, and all coming straight at us. I started to sweat.

On a Quest to Ride with Bison in Canada’s National Parks

Updated:

September 24, 2021

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Canada’s prairie country always seems barren to me, as though something is missing and the ecosystem is incomplete. Probably because it is. For tens of thousands of years, as many as 30 million bison formed the cornerstone of a complex ecosystem, which dominated the Great Plains. In 1890, bison were perilously close to extinction, with less than 1,000 animals scattered across the continent. Today, largely due to conservation efforts by Parks Canada, bison thrive in parks and private herds, worldwide.

Horseback Riding - Trails of Many Faces

Updated:

April 30, 2021

Stan Walchuk Jr, horse trail riding, trail riding guide

For many people riding across a pasture, down a laneway, or along a road is considered to be trail riding. It’s a good thing that we have those options since we cannot instantly wish ourselves onto the wilderness trail of our choice. But interesting trails spoil us

Checklist for a Comfortable Riding Vacation

Updated:

March 31, 2021

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On any riding vacation, whether it’s camping or glamping, there are a few essentials that I always bring along.

Horseback Holiday Outfits Rise to the Challenge

Updated:

February 17, 2021

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How guest ranches and riding resorts have survived and thrived during the pandemic - It’s been almost a year now since we began dealing with the repercussions of the global pandemic, and we’re not yet anywhere near “business as usual.” No aspect of the horse industry remains untouched. Although some businesses were agile enough to adapt fairly quickly, the livelihood of a guest ranch owner or an outfitter depends on vacationers coming to their location to experience a day or a week in the saddle. Horses cannot simply be parked; they need to be cared for, and wages need to be paid.