Winter Trail riding

[lawndart]

Does anyone do serious trail riding once Winter hits? I’m just so depressed that my riding will soon be over, not only because of weather, but because of a long hunting season in PA. Just not safe to ride out there when deer season is in full swing, even on Sundays.

I used to ride all year long, but I’ve gotten wimpy. Give me incentive, clothing that makes it possible, and reason to get off my (getting fatter) hindquarters.

note: I cannot wear face protection over my nose because I have to wear glasses to see where I’m going. This makes it a challenge to find face protection.

[Scribbler]

How wintry is your winter? How long are your trail rides? I have gear to do an hour outside without suffering from rain or snow. After that it’s the extremities that start to go. Toes get cold faster if you are just walking, posting gets the circulation going.

I have found battery operated warming socks in a work wear store. Haven’t yet tried.

Our PNW challenge is torrential rain but if you get into thick coniferous forest it is somewhat muted. I know an endurance rider that has a waterproof overskirt and cape for winter riding.

The other challenge is footing. Our back country trails can get boggy or turn into creeks. And then when we get a hard frost, the ground is too hard to move fast. When we have snow, the whole city stops but riding close to home in fresh snow with a barefoot horse is fun.

[tabula_rashah]

I do as long as the trails aren’t solid ice- snow is fine, mud is fine but I won’t risk them on ice. But being right on the PA, I also don’t do PA trails in the winter because the hunters are ridiculous. MD parks are usually fine - usually seem to be only open to hunting one or two days a year. Clothing is all about layers- I find if I can do a fleecey, warm air trapping layer next to my skin and good wind proof layer on the outside, it makes all the difference in the world. Also I have cages on my stirrups so I ride in warm hiking boots that a a little to big so I have enough room for extra socks. Also ceramic fiber glove liners- so awesome!

[RedHorses]

Here winter trail riding is all about the footing. Some winters are great, others terrible. It all depends on how much snow and freezing rain we get. If it gets warm enough for the snow to start melting too often or for too long we lose footing quality very quickly.

That said, I ride out as much as I can in the winter. I love riding in the snow, and it is something special to go for a moonlit ride in fresh snow.

For face protection I use a fleece neck tube that is loose enough for it to sit a bit away from my face. I wear sunglasses so I understand the glasses thing.

Boots and gloves are the hardest part. When I find good gloves for riding in the winter that is all I use them for. Not grooming. Not tacking up. Not bringing my horse in. This way they last longer. I have some SSG 20(30?) Below gloves that are good for trail riding.
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I too find trotting is great for keeping warm. Too much walking is cold!

[lawndart]

I can ride from home for 1/2 hour to 3 hours, depending on the loop. But once you start a longer loop, you are committing to it once past a certain point. That is when I get cold, when I THINK I can do a 3 hour ride. It all depends on the weather of course. IF the sun is out (rare in PA in Winter) I can go for hours. If no wind, I can go for 2 hours. I’ll go if it is 30 F, as long as it is a nice day.

Good advice above. Never thought about a fleece tube. I do wear one of those under the helmet caps that are silky on the top, and fleece around the neck, they are great. I do have trouble finding gloves that are warm enough, AND flexible enough. I’ve never heard of ceramic glove liners, will have to check on that.

The ground freezes rock hard here, and I think this year will be particularly bad because of the massive amounts of rain we have had. The ground is thoroughly saturated, and it will probably be that way for a while. If that freezes, it will be ugly. I love riding in deep snow, but it is very hard work on the horses, since they are not usually in as good a shape as they are the rest of the year. (no indoor) I will just have to commit myself to keeping them in work.

I’ve got a great pair of Mens Wolverine boots that are too loose for me right now, but will be perfect with a thick wool sock. Unfortunately, they have a safety toe, which tends to make your foot colder, but I will put in a foot warmer.

Yes, PA has a very long hunting season. No Sunday Hunting yet, but they keep pushing for it. I don’t know if it really matters, because when the hunting camps are full, one of the activities they like to do is target shooting. I ride a gun broke horse, so it is not the noise, it is the stray bullet that worries me. That and the fact that a lot of them are drinking. Not worth my horses life, or mine.

I’m feeling more encouraged about it, keep giving great ideas!

[RedHorses]

If you can manage it, ride into the wind on the way out, and have it at your back on the way home. Having the wind at your back is much warmer than riding into the teeth of it.

Can you ride one handed? I alternate hands, putting one in a pocket or just pulling the fingers back into the palm of the glove to warm up and keeping the reins in the other.

​​​Doing frequent short trots helps keep me warm without getting to sweating. Paying attention to how warm I feel so I can unzip a layer before I start sweating is hard for me. Wearing thermal base layers made of modern wicking materials has really helped.

It may sound odd, but greasing my face helps. I just put a heavier than normal application of skin lotion on my face, focusing on the bits that get painfully cold - nose, cheeks. I allow it to be a little too much to absorb cleanly. The grease helps block the cold biting and I am more comfortable as a result. I moisturize my hands well right before I go as I find my hands get painfully cold faster when the skin is very dry.

I use reflective insoles in my boots as I find the soles of my feet get cold first. The insoles make a difference for me. If you use metal stirrups swap them for plastic. Or frequently take your feet out of the stirrups and wiggle toes and rotate ankles to warm them up again.

[Garythesquirrel]

I love my lap robe. Keeps me warm and dry and really helps to keep my toes from going numb. Mine is waterproof and lined with polar fleece. I bought mine 12 years ago from the woman I bought my Haflinger from, here’s a link that has her contact info. I hope it’s still current.

https://www.trailmeister.com/lap-robe/

[OneGrayPony]

PA is going to be so gross this year, I’m sorry. I’m not living there now, but did and that weather has just been brutal. I had a buff muff (polarfleece tube) that I could pull up from my neck to over my nose. Was a lifesaver. I use the little heater things in my boots when it gets super cold. When I did a lot of trail riding, I taught my horse to neck rein so that I could swap hands when necessary. I did use those little hand-heater things too.

Hunting season SUCKS. Did they change Sundays back to no hunting or are they still hunting on Sundays? I did ride on Sundays back when it was no hunting, but always wore hunter orange gear.

I actually love riding in the cold and snow, so much better than in the heat, but the hunting thing really puts a damper on the rides.The lap robe is a great idea too!

[Palm_Beach]

@Garythesquirrel

I love my lap robe. Keeps me warm and dry and really helps to keep my toes from going numb. Mine is waterproof and lined with polar fleece. I bought mine 12 years ago from the woman I bought my Haflinger from, here’s a link that has her contact info. I hope it’s still current.

https://www.trailmeister.com/lap-robe/

That looks awesome!!! I guess you order it custom in the pattern of your choice?

[Garythesquirrel]

@Palm Beach

That looks awesome!!! I guess you order it custom in the pattern of your choice?

I’m not sure how ordering them works. The woman I bought mine from had a few of them on hand. I have the waterproof type and it’s just plain blue with a green fleece lining.

It’s really the only thing that actually keeps me warm when I ride in cold weather.

[cloudy18]

I think I need a lap robe! I don’t like wearing bulky Carhartt overalls. I have less bulky overalls/snowpants, but they are made from that slippery nylon stuff, so not ideal. I’ve seen the sheets that cover part of your legs and the horse’s butt, but I don’t think I’ve seen anything with as much coverage for the human as the lap robe.

​​​​​​I wear my Steger Mukluks to ride in, though they don’t have a heel so are not riding approved. But it’s the only thing that keeps my feet warm if I’m just going to be moseying along on a trail ride.

​​​My biggest issue is keeping my hands from freezing while I tack up. I wear a thin pair of gloves and have another pair to wear over them when it’s time to ride.

[avjudge]

I saw a riding skirt at Equine Affaire last year that would work similarly to the lap robe, and since then have read some posts (on another forum) by a woman in New Brunswick who has that one and loves it for winter riding: https://arctichorsegear.com/

[RedHorses]

@cloudy18 - I stick the gloves I’m going to wear when I ride inside my coat - one on each side of my upper chest. By the time I’m ready to put them on after grooming and tacking up they are nicely warmed up and will warm up my somewhat chilly hands.

[MrsMontana]

I didn’t see mentioned the hothands hand and toe warmers. They’re amazing. Put them in your boots, in your coat pockets, so great. Also, I found puffy earmuffs on a headband (a la 1980s), fit really well with helmets over my ears. And wool socks, long johns, and tops under regular clothes.

[beau159]

My husband got me an electric jacket for Christmas a few years back. I love it! The battery pack is pretty small, and it will last a good 2 hours on the high setting. So I usually turn it on when I start to get chilled and then get nice a warm again!

I also use these toe warmers like crazy in the colder months. My hands are usually okay with mittens but my toes get so cold otherwise. I will put them on the TOP of my toes because that just works better for keeping them warm. (nevermind what the label says) Of course, I’m choosing to ride in my cowboy boots (with no insulation) because it’s just safer in my stirrup, IMO. Maybe one day I’ll buy some expensive warm riding-type boots.

I did get some riding “snowpants” from horze.com and they work really well too. The strap on the boot keeps them from riding up and they have grippy felt on the inside of the leg.

[lawndart]

avjudge, thank you for mentioning those Artic riding skirts. That jogged my memory, years ago when I used to do Winter Riding with my Daughter, my Mom had made her a riding lab robe that covered both her and the horse. I dug it out, and used it Sunday which was around 40 degrees, damp and chilly. Worked a little too good! I’ll save it for those frigid days. I do use those hand and toe warmers, which help to some degree. My problem is I have to cross open fields to get anywhere, and that sucks the warm right out of you. Same on the way home. Makes me not want to go at all if it is more than 10 mph winds. I have some snowpants from Horze too, which work pretty well.

[SonnysMom]

I know somebody that used to field trial her dogs and would be standing in fields for hours. She used to use the thermacare back one to help keep her core warm.