Giddyup! Family Horse Riding Experience
In our quest to find new and different adventures, we discovered Mesa Vista Farm in Powhatan, VA. Mesa Vista is a incredible therapeutic riding center that serves traditional riders and riders with a variety of special needs including Autism, Cerebal Palsy, Developmental Delay, Spinal Cord Injury, Stroke, Down Syndrome, ADD/ADHD, Vision/hearing impaired, Muscular Dystrophy and Multiple Sclerosis.
This past Fall, they offered a special "60 minute family horseback riding lesson" for a family of 4. We couldn't wait to get in the saddle!
When we arrived, their friendly staff greeted us and paired us each with an appropriate sized horse. (Snoopy was our young son's horse and a personal favorite!) Once we were all in the saddle, an instroctor took us to a ring that was filled with training obstacle and we were given instruction on how to guide our horse through the various obstacles. (Truth be told, these horses were so well-trained, that they would likely have performed well with no guidance from us, but the kids really enjoyed the experience and partnering with the horses to accomplish the tasks!) I can see why folks get hooked on riding! Near the end of our hour, we dismounted the horses and were able to brush and groom them. Even my husband, who is not a big horse fan, really enjoyed his time on a horse. The two pot-bellied pigs roaming in the barn were also fun to interact with! It was a super fun way to spend a Fall day!
Mesa Vista is offering 2014 summer camps for kids-- no experience needed! Check out their camp flier under "News" on their home page left corner.
