[Ratlady]

He did so well!

We went with another person who had a calm, experienced mare just in case, but I'm not sure I would've needed it. I was expecting him to keep wanting to turn around and go back home, but nope. He kept happily trucking forward, ears up and looking around. It was very exciting for him, but he kept listening to me the whole time. The only downside was that I had to pay attention and really ride him, because he wanted to go explore every single little trail offshoot rather than stick to the big trail.

I'm not confident that if we got lost in the woods that he would take me home, but hey, there are worse problems.

 

[carshon]

Congratulations! I love a curious horse

 

[charrorider]

Congratulations. It sounds like you're way on your way to "Happy Trails." My wife uses an APP that marks where she goes. If she ever gets lost, she can follow the trail on her phone back and return to her starting point. Happy Trails.

 

[Ratlady]

The thing that shocked me the most is that he would've had to leave his mare buddy to go off the beaten path, and yet he was still very eager to leave her side to go explore if I would've let him.

Needless to say, I can't wait to get a trailer! I think we'll both have a lot of fun hitting the trails on a more regular basis.

 

[charrorider]

About half to two thirds of my rides are solo and I've been doing that for years. I really don't think that there's anything that will build a bond between horse and rider as much as hitting the trails solo.

 

[ksbowman]

Like @charrorider , 99% of my riding is solo. It's so good for a horse building confidence and I never have to wait on someone else showing up on time.