Hi everyone! I’m originally from the east coast. Growing up, my horse and his buddies had 2–5 acres to roam around on. I recently started riding again in the SF/Bay Area, and I’ve noticed that even if the farm is situated on 100+ acres, the “turnouts” are 12x24’ pens. Are there any farms that have decent turnout within an hour of San Francisco?
Hi Tres Grey, I sympathize. I shopped for stables every weekend for four months before I found a situation that worked for me. The place I decided on is an hour from the Marina in SF without traffic and has huge three to eight acre pastures with green grass that are irrigated year round. The horses come into stalls or stalls and paddocks every night for hay and supplements. It is not the fanciest barn and there is no covered arena but the care is excellent and the stalls are well cleaned. You can check out the website at http://www.greenvistastables.com/Home.html
I also tried boarding at a private home in Woodside. There was a five acre dry pasture, irrigated grass and a beautiful eight stall barn but the owner liked the grass to look perfect at all times so she used a nitrate fertilizer on it that triggered laminitis in my horse.
If I had a horse I was riding regularly instead of a retired gelding I would check out Ciara West on Skylibe Blvd. It is also not fancy and does not offer grass turnout but the paddocks are much larger then at other area farms.
Feel free to pm me. I have a list of many area stables that I do not wish to say negative things about but saw significant disadvantages to. As always in the Bay Area, what is a reasonable driving distance for you entirely depends on where you live and work. South Bay, North, or East Bay all have very different options.
You’re typically going to have to go far north (e.g., Sonoma County), far east (e.g., Livermore, Briones), or far south (e.g. Gilroy, Morgan Hill) to find decent turnout. Real estate comes at such a high premium in the Bay Area that it’s expensive to find spacious and well-maintained turnout space for horses - at a full-care type barn - anywhere within a reasonable driving distance (esp. considering traffic) of SF or the peninsula. It’s unfortunate.
It also depends what you need and what your budget is. For example, there are a few places with pasture board dotted across the Bay Area (and even in the peninsula), but they don’t tend to be the most high-end facilities, and they may not have trainers that go to many shows. The barns that check all the boxes (indoor/lighted arena, ample turnout, full care, show trainer, within reasonably distance of SF/Peninsula) tend to charge very high prices.
Landmark Equestrian in Pleasanton may fit the bill if you do H/J. It’s a little farther out, but Red Fox Farm in Gilroy has amazing turnouts and Flying Tail Farm (eventing barn) trains out of there.
I recommend Ciara West in Woodside - https://www.ciarawest.com/. It is around 30-45 minutes from many parts of SF and no bridges to cross. In addition to turnout, the management and care is awesome, feed 3x/day alfalfa and grass hay, covered arena, bridles paths for hacking, and several great trainers (dressage, H/J, eventing, and western) on premises.
Here is my horse enjoying turnout there: https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SP1iCJUKm…1_110519_3.gif
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