Michigan's Upper Peninsula is not exactly mainstream horse country. Cowboy boots are not standard footwear and few people wear cowboy hats. Backyards housing a horse or two are rare and dusty roadside corrals for various forms of cowboy work are nonexistent.
  But, a surprising number of horses live in the U.P.
  While a hundred years ago horses were a vital part of everyday life, people today are discovering their abilities in competition and enjoyment as a recreational hobby. Horses are one of the few true all-terrain vehicles, able to travel on the roughest, rockiest roads, over logs and sticks, through the thickest woods and rushing rivers and up the steepest hills during any season; in rain, snow or heat.
  Recreational riders in the U.P. don't need to go to such extremes (though some choose to!). Riding opportunities abound for the Yooper horseowner—for non owners, check the end of this article for some places to "hoof it." Unlike many mainstream horse communities that have to control horse traffic with strict rules and trail restrictions, most of us have free access to many beautiful trails that are right out our own barn door. For those that want to explore other horizons and prefer a well marked trail system, there are many local spots to choose from.
  The Pine Marten Run is a twenty-six- mile, non-motorized, hiking and horseback riding trail, approximately thirty miles northwest of Manistique. Every year people come from near and far to enjoy the five looped trails that pass many lakes and streams along gently rolling hills. A convenient trail map is posted at most trail crossings.
  Camping with horses is permitted, but horses have to be tethered 100 feet from any lake or stream. Some horse campers tie a line between two trees like a clothesline and attach their horses to it with a special hook that allows the horse some mobility. Some bring along portable hitch rails or corrals and others simply tie their horses to the horse trailer or a tree.
  Another popular place, especially for endurance and competitive rider groups, is the Bay de Noc/Grand Island Trail. The trail begins two-and-a-half miles east of Rapid River and extends northward, paralleling the Whitefish River. The trail is the approximate location of an ancient Chippewa Indian portage route used to carry canoes and supplies between Lake Superior and Lake Michigan. Camping with horses is permitted.
  For those that want more riding and less "roughing it," Get-A-Way Stables and B & B, located in Sagola has hundreds of miles of trails and old logging roads for riding. While rustic camping is permitted, they offer RV hookups, showers, guest rooms, box or tie stalls for the horses including feed, bedding, cleaning and a turn out area.
  Who can resist this romantic picture: It's a warm summer day—you and a few friends skim along a soft dirt trail on your powerful, steady mounts—passing through cool shady tunnels of overhanging branches—then sprint up a hill for a birds-eye-view of the vast U.P. wilderness and trot down to a secluded lake or rivers for a cool drink.
  "Whooooa!"
  Hold your horses.
  All these carefully mapped trails don't make U.P. trail riding a picnic-ponyring, however. There are many other things to consider before embarking on a pristine northern riding adventure.
  There's the horse that's going to carry you up and down those gorgeous rolling hills. Is he in good physical shape for the ride? How do you think you'd feel if you spent a few months sitting around the living room, then ran up and down wooded trails for ten miles or so, with a wobbly child on your back? The same way a horse would feel, if he carried a rider for a long distance after hanging around the pasture for a few months.
  How about the horse's manners among strange horses in a strange environment? Like a child with a bunch of friends at Disneyland, a young or secluded backyard horse will be, excited in new surroundings with new acquaintances. The rider's ability to control him and help him behave calmly will be the difference between a great ride or a dangerous situation for everyone involved.
  Even a highly trained horse that behaves perfectly in the showring, can show a different side if he's terrorized by "monsters" outside an enclosed area. Monsters may be bikes, cars, motorbikes, strollers, bridges, deer, water, or simple things like a strange looking tree or a large irregular rock.
  For those that would like to develop their riding skills or looking towards horse ownership, there are many good trainers in the area that offer riding lessons on an experienced lesson horse and could provide advice for possible horse ownership. Marquette County's 4-H groups also are an excellent way for kids to learn about horses.
  Horses are herd animals—like dogs— and they are very intelligent and trainable. But, unlike a dog's affectionate nature towards humans, a horse looks to us with respect and trust as the "leader of the herd," and with the right handling, a relationship of trust will form with a human. It's more of a trust and obey relationship with horses, than a faithful love relationship with dogs.
  It's important that novices realize these things about horses before they consider ownership. Horses know whether you're scared or uncertain—they know if you lack the confidence to be the "leader of the herd," and will push you to the limits. But once the pecking order is established and a trust relationship is developed, that horse will go almost anywhere you point him.
  All kinds of different trail rides have been organized locally: backyard neighborhood rides, overnight rides, charity rides, etc. Currently, a group of riders in Munising are attempting a "Ride Across the U.P."
  Every fall a group of riders in Chatam organize a Poker Run. It's something like what snowmobilers do, where riders ride to different locations along a marked trail to get their poker card filled. It's not a race of speed, but more of a card game to see who collects the best hand. Afterwards they all gather for a potluck supper. When this annual event started nine years ago, about twelve to fifteen riders took part. It's now grown to about forty or fifty every year. And they have the ride every year—no matter what the weather. "One year we rode in the rain," said Taboo Gauther who's helped plan the ride from the beginning. "And one year we rode in the snow—it's a diehard thing."
  Long time horse owner Denise Villeneuve, has created a web site of horse happenings in the U.P.: http://www.geocities.com/superiorequine/ or
http://www.superiorequine.homestead.com/index.html—It's a new site and some parts are under construction, but it lists all kinds of horse events, shows and clinics. There are interesting articles about local horse owners and other horsey links.
  In these non-mainstream parts, the non-horse owner may have to look hard beyond the popular boating and fishing attractions of the U.P. to experience this bygone mode of travel. Sky-high insurance costs and strict liability laws have forced many stables to stop renting horses to riders—but it depends where you look—or where you go.
  Mackinac Island has three very successful riding stables. Brothers Jack and Burton Gough started Jack's Livery Stable in 1953, and it still is family owned and run. Family members opened a second stable in 1970: Cindy's Riding Stables. Both are open from May to October, seven days a week. For $25 an hour, and $20 for each additional hour, riders have free rein of approximately forty miles of state owned land—eighty percent of the island.
  Jack's Livery Stable, with 31 rental horses, averages 150 horse and rider teams a day that leave the barn during the summer. Cindy's, with 21 rental horses have another 100 riders out their doors every day. A third stable, Chamber's, has another twenty-one horses plus three ponies for a pony-ring. Horseback riding is a big and busy business on Mackinac Island.
  We may be far north of the beaten horse trail, but horses and opportunities for horsing around, are far from extinct in the U.P.
—Joni Gleason

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