Summer Riding Vacation/Tour/Adventure for Unaccompanied Teenager

[player_pony]

Hi Everyone,

I’ve read the forum for a long time, but this is my first time posting. Anyway, I am looking for a sort of riding adventure to do this summer, something with horses but a change of pace from my usual activities. Ideally, this would be a multi-day riding tour where one rides with a small group and spends most of the day on horseback exploring the landscape rather than working inside an arena (I have a horse at home that I do that with, and I’m hoping to try something new). As I’m not sure exactly how to phrase what I’m looking for, I figured that a list of what I have in mind would be the most succinct way to describe what I would like, in the hope that someone has a recommendation that would fit the bill. Thanks!

Here Goes:
-Preferably about a week-long riding adventure with at least several hours in the saddle each day
-Something tailored for experienced riders: in other words with trotting, cantering, and galloping, rather than a nose-to-tail walking trail ride
-English-style tack rather than western
-Somewhere with attractive scenery to ride in
-A program that’s set up for people to go alone, as opposed to a typical vacation ride that one does with their travelling party
-Somewhere that accepts unaccompanied minors (I’m 16)*
-Somewhere inside the United States would perhaps be easier
-Somewhere with overnight accommodations and food built in

• Many of the options that I have shown my parents cause them to worry that the experience is intended for adults who are already travelling with someone, rather than an unaccompanied minor like myself, and thus it would likely be isolating for me, in a way that a program created for my peers would not be.

Thank you in advance! I apologize if this is slightly incoherent, my mind is tired from studying for exams.

[Groom_amp_Taxi]

Here’s one that I’ve seen ads for:
http://willamettecoastride.com/

[hoopoe]

https://www.ishestar.is/en/

highly regarded Icelandic horse tours. some very advanced and adventurous

you are going to have to check with vendors about being an unaccompanied minor. They may require that your parents do the booking and even provide insurance to cover emergencies. International could get trickier

[Bluey]

Someone posted about such rides in Spain.
They rode from one castle remodeled as hotel to another.
It was a several days rides from one to the other.
Their group was intermediate to advanced riders.

Maybe someone remembers what that was all about?

[NC001]

Wild Women Expeditions has some- I dont have any personal experience though

[2tempe]

Personally if I suggest that you stay in the US for a wide variety of reasons. I have done several riding vacations as a solo adult, and can tell you that I have been very comfortable and IMO the people who do these rides are quite inclusive if you make any effort at all.

Willlamette Coast ride, run by Leahys should be a very nice ride; Justin is part of Leahys who do such a good job with the Ireland vacations rides.

My recommendation, however would be to go to Bitterroot Ranch in Wyoming. They take about 25 guests at a time, rides are split by experience/desire for fast or slow pace. They have added a xc jumping course, so more english riding then in the past. I am a dressage and past hunter rider, but found when I was there that much of the terrain was better in a western saddle. You will spend most of your day in the saddle, riding some stunning country. Very nice people, very nice horses. Good food. I did this ride solo, felt like family by end of week.

http://www.bitterrootranch.com/ CHECK IT OUT. It ticks all your boxes.

Edited to add: I’d suggest that your parents talk to one of the owners/managers so that there is more comfort level from their perspective.

[NoSuchPerson]

OK, I’m going to be the old wet blanket here. As a parent, and now, old enough to be a grandmother, there is no way I would let my 16 year old daughter go off on a trip like this by herself. The very idea makes me shudder.

I would agree to some kind of camp/trip designed specifically for teens. After, of course, I’ve thoroughly checked it out. :lol:

There are plenty of places like this, as a simple Google search for “horseback riding summer camps for teens.”

Also, if I was operating a business, there is no way I would accept an unaccompanied minor as a client. Just no. The potential liabilities are huge. The very idea makes me shudder.

[player_pony]

Thank you, everyone, for your great suggestions, keep them coming! @2tempe, you raise a valid point about staying in the U.S., the thought of navigating customs alone does scare me slightly. NoSuchPerson, if you are an “old wet blanket” so are my parents, they are not without qualms about this either, but with enough research, I think I can convince them. The reason I am not looking for the typical riding summer camp experience is that I have attended at worked at plenty of them before, and I would like to try a new experience. I am fortunate to have a lovely horse to ride, and it would be silly to take lessons and ride in an arena somewhere else while he sunbathes in a pasture. I do love riding and showing him, but I’ve always wanted to be able to ride most of the day out in the wilderness.

[M_al]

You might want to check out and take to heart the SafeSport regulations and USEF travel guidelines. We’re travelling with a group of teen girls to Europe coming up and are making sure we’re following the guidelines carefully. One of the points is to make sure there are no situations where kids are alone with a non-parental adult. This protects adults as well as kids.

Also, traveling out of the country is trickier at 16 - more doable after high school graduation/after 18th bday. If you get into any sort of tricky situation in another country it can become a nightmare quickly even as an adult. For instance, what happens if you need to be hospitalized? I would strongly suggest holding off until you can go with an organized group or in college.

Back to the current trip - do you have a friend who might might want to travel with you? Perhaps a riding compadre?

Have you ever looked at Hunter’s Rest foxhunting training in Virginia? http://www.huntersrest.net/ I don’t know if they would accept an unaccompanied teen but this one is on my bucket list. Perhaps with a friend (or a parent to travel but not ride?)

Please keep us posted!

[jawa]

@M'al

You might want to check out and take to heart the SafeSport regulations and USEF travel guidelines. We’re travelling with a group of teen girls to Europe coming up and are making sure we’re following the guidelines carefully. One of the points is to make sure there are no situations where kids are alone with a non-parental adult. This protects adults as well as kids.

Also, traveling out of the country is trickier at 16 - more doable after high school graduation/after 18th bday. If you get into any sort of tricky situation in another country it can become a nightmare quickly even as an adult. For instance, what happens if you need to be hospitalized? I would strongly suggest holding off until you can go with an organized group or in college.

Back to the current trip - do you have a friend who might might want to travel with you? Perhaps a riding compadre?

Have you ever looked at Hunter’s Rest foxhunting training in Virginia? http://www.huntersrest.net/ I don’t know if they would accept an unaccompanied teen but this one is on my bucket list. Perhaps with a friend (or a parent to travel but not ride?)

Please keep us posted!

I haven’t done any of her “camps”, but I have stayed with and ridden my own horse from her place to fox hunt. You can be assured that the horses that she has for riding are fabulous, safe, fun mounts. She has beautiful territory to ride.

[gottagrey]

I’m going to be a wet blanket here as well. First, there are going to be liability issues with an unaccompanied minor.
Second, and this is a bit ageist, but IME with these trips is the groups tend to consist mostly of mid-30s+ adults and few kids/teens. So IMO unless you have a buddy going with you, it could be a bit of a lonely trip when not riding.

My suggestion would be to contact Equitors and/or Equitrekking to see what their suggestions would be - they are experts in this area - they would probably know of rides that would be of interest, would allow unaccompanied minors, would have ability for airport pickup/drop-off, and would have a better idea of the ride’s group dynamics - i.e. a mix of adults and teens vs all adults. Good luck and my hat’s off to you for wanting to plan such an adventure

[SonnysMom]

@M'al

You might want to check out and take to heart the SafeSport regulations and USEF travel guidelines. We’re travelling with a group of teen girls to Europe coming up and are making sure we’re following the guidelines carefully. One of the points is to make sure there are no situations where kids are alone with a non-parental adult. This protects adults as well as kids.

Also, traveling out of the country is trickier at 16 - more doable after high school graduation/after 18th bday. If you get into any sort of tricky situation in another country it can become a nightmare quickly even as an adult. For instance, what happens if you need to be hospitalized? I would strongly suggest holding off until you can go with an organized group or in college.

Back to the current trip - do you have a friend who might might want to travel with you? Perhaps a riding compadre?

Have you ever looked at Hunter’s Rest foxhunting training in Virginia? http://www.huntersrest.net/ I don’t know if they would accept an unaccompanied teen but this one is on my bucket list. Perhaps with a friend (or a parent to travel but not ride?)

Please keep us posted!

I have been to Hunter’s Rest 3 times with my own horse. Twice to go foxhunting and once with a friend for a girls long weekend. She has really nice horses, beautiful country, nice B&B.

[Caol_Ila]

NOLS will take 16-year olds on their horsepacking courses. My Dad worked for them in the 70s as a mountaineering instructor, and it’s a fantastic organisation. The trips aren’t cheap but it looks as if some scholarships are available.

It won’t be just a nice holiday riding through the wilderness. NOLS is an educational organisation, and students learn skills for surviving in the backcountry, and in this case, taking care of their horse in the backcountry.

https://www.nols.edu/en/coursefinder/courses/wilderness-horsepacking-HOS/

[player_pony]

I am checking out Hunter’s Rest as we speak: it looks pretty amazing. I am not sure how liability would work out with taking my lovely steed with me, as I full-lease him rather than own him, but it seems like they have horses there to ride. Looking at the camp, it seems like it is intended as a day camp, which might not work out since I live about an hour and a half away from there, but if I am not mistaken, they do have accommodations. I think the fact that it’s close would perhaps put my parents a little more at ease. Would the best course of action be to email her and ask about her unaccompanied minor policy? Thank you again for both your suggestions and the reality check!

[2tempe]

OP - just fyi, Bitterroot is owned and run by the same people that do Equitours. (sister company). Also their reservation documents seem to indicate that if guest is under 18, parental signatures and payment responsibility are required. Another thought - Jackson Hole Wyoming is not too far from Bitterroot - parents could spend some time there while you are riding, lol. Nothing like me spending your family money.

I’m not a parent so will defer to what you can talk them into. The nice thing is that you couldn’t be in a much safer place than Wyoming - I swear there are only about 50 people in the whole state, lol, and the ranch is in the middle of nowhere.

[player_pony]

@2tempe: I too have thought about the tantalizing idea of having my parents stay close to wherever I go, unfortunately, however, I am not an only child so I doubt that would really be an option, but I could always test those waters…My dad does enjoy fishing, and there’s good fisihing in that area, no? My parents aren’t horse people, so they couldn’t go with me riding on any of these tours, and they don’t really “get” the whole idea of leaving my horse to do more horses, and would prefer I did something not involving horses, sigh. That said, they are very supportive, and I don’t want to sound ungrateful, since they really do a lot for me when it comes to riding. Speaking of spending other people’s money, how about one of you COTHers just come with me.:lol:

[McGurk]

@playerpony,

Yes, I would email Betsy at Hunter’s Rest and see what she can offer you. She does a summer DAY camp for younger children; but you might be able to work out something with her to sort of do your own program, riding out with her over the fabulous surrounding countryside when she’s not doing the day camp. She does have accommodation - there are several rooms to rent and a couple of apartments on the property.

i would not bring my own horse, I would use one of her lovely horses.

I don’t know about the unaccompanied minor thing or how she would handle that; but the only way to find out is to ask.

Highly, highly recommend her, her program and her horses.

Best of luck to you, I hope you find something that suits you.

[NC001]

As a parent, I would like the option to be able to be close by and possibly vacation with you. My daughter really wants to be able to go ride in Ireland- we are planning a family trip for next year and are looking for someplace she can ride and we have other stuff to do. I like to trail ride but my daughter wants to do more advanced stuff.

[Bluey]

@player_pony

@2tempe: I too have thought about the tantalizing idea of having my parents stay close to wherever I go, unfortunately, however, I am not an only child so I doubt that would really be an option, but I could always test those waters…My dad does enjoy fishing, and there’s good fisihing in that area, no? My parents aren’t horse people, so they couldn’t go with me riding on any of these tours, and they don’t really “get” the whole idea of leaving my horse to do more horses, and would prefer I did something not involving horses, sigh. That said, they are very supportive, and I don’t want to sound ungrateful, since they really do a lot for me when it comes to riding. Speaking of spending other people’s money, how about one of you COTHers just come with me.:lol:

You have a good head on your shoulders for your age, you will do fine.

Being willing to adjust and adapt what you want to what can be done, not becoming infatuated with a narrow idea and want that or else, that alone will get you further towards your goals, that maturity.

Life is best lived if we are flexible and use what we have and can get, and are happy with that.
Making striving the goal more than getting our way or else is always smart, at any age.

You will find a way to do the best with what you can find for this summer.
Then next summer see what else will be there for you.
Maybe if you do find a way to use that one recommendation, once they know you, other will be suggested or offered you may not have learned about.

Good for you!

[clanter]

well our girls did several things unmonitored as a minors… one started riding Competitive Trail rides at age ten… for two to three days she was “alone” on the trail with her mount. She did wear a junior rider vest so others on the ride did keep an eye out for her safety… but these rides could be into the 55 mile range, often in remote areas. Lodging was camping with her horse

One spent the summer when she was ten in Kentucky with our horse, she stayed with out trainer’s family but she was there most of the summer riding different horses for various trainers. Following summers she spent at Sea World at some adventure camp they had… she work with the penguins getting up at 4am to cut up their fish then feed them…she spent most oft he day with the penguins (when it was 110f here she was in a freezer)