My family & I have never had such an experience. We trail ride at vacation destinations a few times…read morea year & this experience was pretty bad. One horse, several times, backed into the bushes to scratch his butt taking the rider completely in the trees. Also it's back legs buckled & it dropped down to its knees with rider on & then popped back up! Another horse went so close to trees to scratch itself, that the rider's foot was close to getting stuck on tree as horse moved forward, over & over. Really a nerve racking experience. Did not enjoy it at all. Plus no bathroom!

I called on a Friday, left a message and received a call back about twenty minutes later. I could…read morehave booked rides the same day, but I chose to make our reservations for the following day so we could get there early. I brought my two nieces (7 and 8 years old who had never ridden), but I hadn't told them where we were going and wanted them to have some time to get excited. We were greeted by all staff with smiles and the girls were given brushes to groom the two miniature ponies while we waited. Before our ride, the girls were given a short but thorough safety lesson and then we were off on the trail. Valerie had a lead on the first horse (Goldie) my older niece was riding, while my other niece followed on White Cloud and I was on Serena. Since the girls were a little nervous, we walked around many of the same trails which was perfect for their first ride. We had a wonderful time and were invited back the next day too! I went back with my sister and her three children (11 months, 3, and 4) and my 5 year old nephew. The kids were able to walk the miniatures (Casper and Blue Knight) around and we fed them carrots. We had a great time and will definitely return in the future!

New Moon Ranch (NMR) is a very special place! I came to NMR over a year ago upon the recommendation…read moreof a friend who had been riding and taking instruction from Lotta. It was a life long dream of mine to learn how to horseback ride but for many years it was something that I never thought that I could do. After a conversation with Lotta followed by my first lesson, I began a path on the most rewarding endeavor. Lotta helped me to address any reservations and fears that I had right from the beginning. I appreciate Lotta's instruction because she helps me as the rider understand the horse's perspective and how to build a foundation of trust. Lotta has a gift for teaching. She is emphatic, has a great sense of humor, and also knows when a rider needs to be challenged to break through to the next level. As a beginning adult rider, NMR has offered me a place to examine and grow my self-confidence, communication, and leadership skills through the horse and rider relationship. More than a year later, I am still so excited about this new found passion of horseback riding and always enjoy my time there! I must also mention that NMR is located in the most beautiful setting that offers beautiful trails and a ring situated in a scenic valley alongside the Huntington River. Lotta and the rest of the NMR crew (Hollister and Clara) are always welcoming, kind, and together offer a wealth of knowledge. If you are looking for a down-to-earth and beautiful place to ride, definitely check out New Moon Ranch.

It's a great family ranch. Hollister worked with my newly adopted horse on picking up his feet, not…read morekicking, and will continue to work with him until he is sound/rideable as he bucks/bolts currently.

This was so much fun!! We made a last-minute decision to check out the horseback riding, and…read moresomehow luck was on our side -- they had an opening later in the day! The horses all had their own names and personalities (some clearly knew they were the stars of the show ), and it was so fun watching how they interacted and handled the trail. The ride itself was actually a bit of a challenge in the best way -- beautiful, exciting, and lots of fun! We had such a great time and would highly recommend it!!

Colby & Cowboy Pete are truly the BEST! We brought along two 13-year-olds who had never ridden…read morehorses before, and from the moment we arrived, they made the experience unforgettable. The horses were calm, gentle, and absolutely beautiful. Cowboy Pete was an incredible guide, leading us through trails that were peaceful, scenic, and breathtaking. What stood out most was their patience and kindness -- they immediately put our teens at ease and made them feel comfortable and confident. Thanks to Colby & Cowboy Pete, their very first horseback riding experience became a joyful memory they'll cherish forever. Thank you both so much for such an amazing adventure and for creating a moment they will always remember!

Reunion after 20 years …read more.. In 2003, my wife and I spent a week with Mary and had a great time with the horses. We went through all kinds of terrain, streams, and ponds, for hours every day. It never became boring, or too much - we both were not used to work extended time on horses - but it was pure fun, and we only were sad when it ended. The whole experience was professional and layed back at the same time. The year after, my wife fell off a pony and broke her back - she stopped riding completely. I kept riding for a few more years, but time became scarce when we had a child. This year, I was on a business trip to Utica, when I realized that this was the place. I found Mary and gave her a call. The following day we took a ride through the woods. It felt like home, though I had not sat on horseback for quite some years. The horse, Ponyboy, was listening wonderfully, and I felt confident again. Thank you, Mary!

Like so many I rode as a child and young adult and then time wasn't available. I had lessons for…read moreyears and loved everything about horses. I had an opportunity to take Mary's 2 day course this past week and can't find enough great things to say about it! She knows horses better than anyone I have ever met. She takes the time to explain everything you need to know about horses, their needs, their personalities, and how to do anything you need to feel comfortable around them. I had the most enjoyable and magical two days with Mary and Pozo. She told me she could teach anyone to ride and she is not kidding! Of course I was nervous to get back on a horse after so many years but Mary took me step by step and I regained my confidence quickly. Whether you have never ridden, used to ride, or just want time on her wonderful horses I urge you to contact her. Her gentle and loving nature is infectious. I loved every minute of my days with her and her horses. We really super lucky with our weather. Was chilly on day one which the horses loved and warm and sunny on day two. With the colors of the leaves changing while we rode in her woods I felt like I was on a magical journey with my personal horse whisperer by my side.

Cannot recommend this amazing place enough! The ladies were so kind and sweet with booking the same…read moreday. They even watched over our dog during our hour long ride! The staff is super friendly and take care of all of the horses! We had a private ride that felt longer than an hour- felt like we were getting lost in the woods and fields! They took beautiful pictures of us in the yellow fields and it was perfect. Honestly one of the best rides I've ever been on with an amazing trainer, Stacey/s name I'm so sorry! All the trainers are amazing and the owner is fabulous! Hope you get to check out this amazing place to spend time in nature on horseback!

My boyfriend and I were visiting Vermont and wanted to do something fun together. LaJoie had a lot…read moreof good reviews, so we opted to travel a bit further from where we were staying to do trail riding there. I called about two weeks in advance to make the reservation. They had a lot of flexibility in when we could go. We went around 10:30am on a Sunday. It was just the two of us and our guide, who was so sweet. My boyfriend had never been on a horse and was a bit nervous at first, but all of the horses are so gentle and sweet. We spent about an hour on the trails. I would highly recommend this experience to anyone looking to do something fun in the region.

I scheduled a trail ride on short notice for just me, and Tam and Sarah were very accommodating…read more They got me in next day, easy as that, and listened when I told them my riding experience. "Experienced rider" is a term that gets tossed around a lot when it comes to trail rides, and in general I think people say they're experienced in order to get an "exciting" ride, possibly with cantering or galloping, or to be given a lot of autonomy on the trail. The thing is, lots of cantering or galloping, letting riders do whatever they want rarely sets up a good ride, either for horses or riders, and as a former trail guide I'm all too aware of dealing with those expectations vs. what a trail guide can actually safely and reasonably do. So to the "experienced riders" who aren't actually experienced with being a rider on a paid trail ride, your experience may or may not be relevant to your ride and to your trail horse. The guides don't know you, the horse doesn't know you, and you might not know trail riding well; like all horse events it's its own particular beast. So, for me, I said I'd been a guide but I don't do much riding these days and besides that, I'm old and lazy and don't want a hippy hoppy happy bouncy horse, I want a nice horse with half a brain that does as they're told and has some common sense. The horse they gave me was Serena, a lovely Percheron/Canadian warmblood whom they've used for beginners on trail all the way up to experienced riders. She was a perfect pick for me and the reason I've gone to all the detail I have here is to once again point out that the key element to having fun on a trail ride is having the right horse, a good guide, a fun trail and things going along according to your expectations. Accordingly, I had a lovely horse who quickly realized I more or less knew what I was doing, and adjusted her game to match my skill. She was fun, willing, had her own personality but when it mattered, did precisely what I asked. It took me a while to get used to her gaits but after a while on trail I learned to get her collected into both a trot and canter that weren't too bone jarring. (A little more muscle tone on my part might have helped too, AHEM.) Meanwhile, Sarah's a wonderful guide. She had me ride Serena around the ring to assess my actual versus reported skill, and once she was satisfied I'd be all right, off we went. The trails around Breakaway are *stunning*. Given my experience and enjoyment Sarah had me exploring some pretty dense forest with her, which was some fun challenging riding and incredible scenery including vast meadows, silvery-hued marshes, the mountains in the distance and finally my absolute favorite moment, what Sarah calls "The Cathedral," a stand of maples planted in long rows whose branches form vaulting pointed arches of green over dark naves of loam. The ride was long and satisfying, with varying scenery, good conversation, some nice challenges like trailblazing and a bit of trotting and cantering. Sarah was at all times alert to me, what I was doing, Serena's behavior and the safety and well-being of all four of us, horses and riders. This is the epitome of an excellent guide. The rates are very reasonable for the rich experience you get. An hour was fifty dollars and I tipped heavily, which is customary for such a great experience, solo, tailored exactly to my skill and what I wanted out of the ride. Breakaway is not a "fancy" stable; it's a working stable. There are geese, sheep, ducks, dogs, ponies, mules and horses there, all of whom are well behaved and well cared for. All the horses I got to hang out with and pet (I really had to go introduce myself to their glorious Fresian!) were calm, inquisitive ranging on downright affectionate, which is always an indication of how well socialized and cared for they are. In short, if you'd like a fun, scenic trail ride with horses and guides who know their stuff, this is the stable to call. Just be honest about your experience and what you want out of the ride, and you're sure to have a great time.

the guide was so awful and rude. she seemed young and i wanted to almost tell her how she could…read morebecome a better leader but she was so cruel to not only us but the other rides and even the horses, it would've fallen on deaf ears. don't recommend, im writing this almost three weeks after it happened because it still bothers me how awful she was

John was awesome! So knowledgeable and took us horse riding rookies through a nice and easy path…read more The horses were so sweet and their extensive training was apparent. Kohn went out of his way to get us some nice pictures as well! Such a fun way to spend an afternoon!

Without a doubt the best riding experience I've had yet! I took my girlfriend (a very experienced…read morerider) and myself (very little experience) on the Advanced Ride as a gift. John was an awesome guide, super cool super nice guy who gave me a lot of great pointers on how to improve my riding and offered lots of encouragement along the way. He helped me work my way up to a canter--my first time ever--and we all had a lot of fun! Even while we were hitching our horses at the end of the ride, my gf and i were already talking about when we were coming back. The nature scenes and mountain views were stunning, and John and his staff were so helpful and welcoming (Ruger the ranch dog was especially welcoming)! I can't recommend this place enough!

This is a review of the rodeo at Pond Hill Ranch, held on Saturday nights each week for ten weeks…read morein the summer. It was an enjoyable rodeo with a variety of events, skilled competitors, an announcer who continually explained what was going on, and a friendly crowd of all ages including well-behaved children. On the night we went, the events included bull riding, calf roping, barrel racing, and a ranching event that I'd never seen elsewhere. In the ranching event, a trailer was driven onto the field, a team of three cowboys on horseback had to single out a tagged cow from the herd and lasso it, the cowboys had to convince the lassoed cow to get into the trailer, then they had to persuade one of their horses to do the same, and after securing the trailer's rear gate they had to pile into the truck and honk the horn to stop the timer. As the announcer explained, this event was designed to replicate real elements of a working ranch, and the competitors were professional cowboys doing ranch work at Pond Hill full-time. The bleachers filled up with about 1000 spectators, so we were glad we arrived early because there was no assigned seating, but even people who arrived after the start of the event found places to sit. There were concession stands with typical fairground food, but we didn't try any because we brought a picnic dinner. There were no picnic tables, so we ate in the grassy parking area before the event, but most people ate in the bleachers. There were several port-a-johns, though for a crowd this size ideally there should have been twice as many, and there was also a shop selling horse tack, cowboy apparel, and similar items. The seating was in open-air bleachers with no protection from rain or sun, so fortunately the weather was ideal when we went. The parking in the grassy fields went smoothly, guided by two cowboys on horseback directing each car where to park, and the departing traffic after the rodeo flowed pretty smoothly as well, helped by the fact that the spectators were a courteous crowd. This was a wholesome, family-friendly event and a wonderful reminder that America's ranching and cowboy heritage is found nationwide, not just out West.

Our four teenagers went on a trail ride and raved about the experience. The views were amazing, the…read morestaff shared a lot of interesting information about the area. The adults regretted not tagging along. In August we also attended the rodeo and everyone had an amazing time. The community was so welcoming and the rodeo was very well organized. We will be back often.