Gettysburg?

[cnvh]

A friend and I recently rode the trail loop on the Gettysburg battlefield… we had a blast, but there was one bit of a trouble spot-- there was a large tree fallen over the trail in the Round Tops area. We were able to get around it, but only by going through some nasty brambles; fortunately our horses were pretty level-headed about it and it wasn’t a huge deal.

Next week we’re going back again with a couple other friends, one whose horse (a young OTTB) is very new to trail riding, and I expect he may not tolerate the “bushwhacking” very well. His owner is also fairly new to trail-riding (at least with this particular horse) and I want to make sure she has a good day without any unnecessary crazy-horse drama.

So… does anyone know if the fallen tree at the Round Tops has been removed yet, or if not, would it be OK for me to bring a pair of hand-pruners along and “thin out” a little path around the fallen tree, or would that be against Park Service rules?

[analise]

If it were me, I’d call the park directly and notify them of the tree/see if it’s been moved.

[callidorre]

I know exactly where you’re talking about. It was blocking the trail on Oct. 29 when my friend and I rode there. We did the same thing-out around through the brambles. I told one of the horseback battlefield guides that I’m familiar with when we got back to McMillan and she was finishing a ride. She said that she’d notify the group that takes care of the horse trails. I’m assuming that she did but who knows.

I’ll be riding there friday actually. I’m not sure if the people I’m riding with will go around the round tops, but I can post on here if I do get to see if it’s cleared.

[cnvh]

@ callidore, thanks a lot in advance for updating here… I really don’t mind clearing a bit of a path, but I don’t want to do anything forbidden… I hadn’t thought to notify the GEHS; that would be a very logical idea, wouldn’t it?

[brightskyfarm]

You could also check with Ray @ Artillery Ridge
http://www.artilleryridge.com/

He can be a good go-between in getting things done,

especially concerning the horse trails. He also has excellent facilities and prices for temporary stabling while riding the battlefields.
Check out his offers for the ride tours/ 2 & 4hrs … quite reasonble…
and its awesome!! you’ll love it!
http://www.artilleryridge.com/horserates.html

[callidorre]

The trail is all cleared up. So you’re all set.

[Bank_of_Dad]

Thanks a lot, I need to get there too.

[cnvh]

Wonderful! Now to hope that the weather next weekend holds… One more question, is the parking at McMillen’s Woods open year-round? I see their season ends at the end of October…

[callidorre]

Yep it’s open year-round. We went riding at Gettysburg on a day this past January that it was somehow in the 60’s. Freakishly warm spell. The only thing is that they’ll probably take the port-a-potties away at some point if they didn’t already. That info is probably talking about the boy scout camping and stuff that they hold there.