Suffering from cabin fever here in Wisconsin...so my thoughts have turned to my annual Easter trail riding vacation.  Usually go to LBL....but the aftermath of the ice storm may mean trails that look more like a war zone.  If given a choice....would you prefer  Double M in the Shawnee, Midwest Trail Ride campground near Norman, IN or d bar K campground at Mammoth Cave, KY.

This would be a 10 day trip ..... and we have gaited horses..so I usually go where they have 100 miles of trail available.  I have a living quarters trailer so don't need cabins.  Appreciate any input.

Thanks.

Hi Dee,

While I love D Bar K and Mammoth Cave, there won't be enough riding there for you on gaited horses for 10 days.  Have you ever been to East Fork Stables in Jamestown, TN?  There are miles and miles of trails with unbeatable scenery.

Where is Palmyra?  I grew up in Northern WI.

Happy Trails!

JacciB

I'm planning my Spring Trail Riding trips too, but for a different reason. Probably going to get laid off soon. So, too make the best of it, I'll look for a job 4 days a week and ride for 3! Gotta ride to de-stress. Let us know where you go in Shawnee. We were there several years ago and stayed at Circle B. Heard that a lot of the trails have been closed, so let us know how the riding is and if there was ice damage there too.

I am wondering if Big Creek Trail Rides near Hartshorn, MO had significant ice damage.

We love to try new places and have been itchen to go into the TN area.  You sparked my interest with East Fork Stables in Jamestown, TN.  I found their website and will be getting more info.  Very nice so far.

We could do this with a stop over between Mass and TN.  Any thoughts on a stop over? 

Hey Bob, thanks for the additional info.  We had Patti send us a map, it's alot larger than the one on the website.  So do you think one should have a GPS unit with them, or are the trails marked well enough that an avid trailrider can figure it out by just using the map?

Thanks

Sue

East gang think East!  Your all going the wrong way again.. 

If we were to plan a trip to either of those spots we would need a stop over maybe in Pennsylvania.  Any suggestions?

Your all doing great, I have book marked all the web site you have been talking about.

Dee, have you ever been to Big Creek Trail Rides in Hartshorn, MO. There are hundreds of miles of trails. The campground land joins the Current River too. You can gait on the many miles of logging roads, or do some extreme hills and forest trails. There are also interesting points of interest around the Current River too. Although there are no "official maps", I just download the Current River map on my Garmin GPS and use it as a topo map. I believe they have an organized ride the week of Easter too - great food and nice folks. You can go out on your own or ride with a group of folks.

We started going there on QHs and met so many nice folks with gaited horses, that we sold the QHs and bought 2 out of our 3 MFTs from the camp hosts. Now we can easily ride longer distances in a shorter amount of time.

Shawnee National Forest is alot better marked than it used to be -  I believe you could get around just fine without a guide now

All of western KY was damaged by the ice storm.  Some areas are still without power.

We are less than an hour from Mammoth Cave and ride there a lot.  We haven't been since the storm but have heard that many trails are currently impassable.   I would wait until fall to ride MC or LBL.  Give folks some time to get things cleared up.

Not sure if the Shawnee was affected by the ice, but if you decide to go,  check out the One Horse Gap campground.  We have been there twice and just loved it both times.

BlazingCreekBar

If you head to Shawnee, perhaps you could do a stopover in Ohio....several places we are currently considering for long weekend trips for this year.....