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Intro
Horseback Riding Tour Review Coming Up
Animals… we all love them! Except for like killers and shit! Have you ever noticed that people who grow up to be serial killers or casual genocide enthusiasts always start off killing or torturing animals? Like for what? It’s so pathetic! But you know what’s not pathetic?
HORSES!
Horses are animals too, in case you didn’t remember that. They’re cool so ride them don’t abuse them. Where do I ride horses for relatively decent prices in the San Francisco Bay Area with experienced guides and beautiful ocean views you ask? Humpty dumpty dumb do I got the answer for you! It rhymes with barista!
MARVISTA!!
I took this ride with a friend for her birthday, just one of the many great times to giddy up, get up on the saddle, and ride into the night. So without further ado, i do declare that we mosey on in!
Basic Info
The horseback riding tour is based near San Mateo, a little ways away from San Francisco, and is only really accessible by car. Go to the Marvista Stables pictured above, and you’ll be ready to go in no time. You have to sign a waiver and helmets are mandatory to wear. It’s provided of course. Beyond that, it is a guided tour with several workers joining the tour group, making sure everything goes according to plan and the trip carries on with ease. Furthermore, it’s about an hour in length and my group totaled like 10 people with three or four workers attached. To book in advance as I did, calling in is the only viable option out in these streets.
What to Bring
There’s not a whole lot you need to bring to this horseback riding tour. As mentioned, because it’s a very short time, you need not overprepare yourself. There are rules about wearing closed-toed shoes and that’s about it. So the rest is pretty obvious stuff like sunscreen, a camera, nuclear launch codes, the usual!
Thoughts Going In
There was a part of me that was undeniably nervous about going into the horseback riding tour that day. Little known fact about me is that I’ve never really been a horse boy. I was unsure if I could avoid any mistakes or injuries. I didn’t grow up riding horses. No. I preferred riding on the opps when the time called for it. Nah, just kidding. Me and Spongebob squashed the beef back in 2001. I hoped for better weather than we got that day but anyone who is familiar with Bay Area weather knows it’s never the best thing to place your bets on.
Horse Riding Itself! On the Back of the Horse! AKA Horseback Riding!
The gang of workers teaches us basic instructions for directing the horse’s movements before we go off. Straightaway, they adjust the seats, saddles, and footrests to make sure we are situated well on the horses as well. Importantly, we are each told the names of our horses and told to keep this information for the future. The advice is paramount as they will refer to us by our horse when we start riding if they wish to give us commands or anything like that.
Keep Going!
One thing I enjoyed was the humor on display by the ride providers. Some of it can come off a little aggressive, particularly them dissing newcomers and comparing them to eight-year-old kids. However, it’s very clear this is all in jest so if you just let it jet away, you’ll be okay. In one ear, out the next, as they say.
believe in your dreams!
After the joking is done, and everyone is firmly placed atop their stallion, we are told to form a single file line with the horses, and subsequently, we be straight up departing into the fog of the ocean’s mustache. Do you like that? Fog as the ocean’s mustache? What an analogy! I’m a witty boy.
We get a lot of background into the history and geography of the region as we go along the horseback riding tour. Naturally, with the sound of hooves, horse-based angst, and crashing waves and wind, the guides consequently have to yell. It feels a little funny to me but it is effective in getting the points across. Not only do they provide background into all the historic or geological goings on of the coast but they also repeat commands to make sure you’re riding correctly and don’t end up on the Evening News.
don’t give up on yourself!
Here’s where I was supposed to list specific facts I learned about the area during the ride. But… I ain’t really tryna lie so… I didn’t really listen! Honestly! I was riding a horse okay! Man was distracted! Fuck I look like listening to humans when a horse got my life in its hands?
Ice plant may be an invasive species, but beautiful horizons are not! Yeah… so the ride takes us down some narrow paths along the hillside, descending towards the water. Remember to keep your eye in front of you while the horses walk down the thin dirt roads. Many of them have little holes or rocks sticking out as well as overgrown bushes and trees to the left and right of the path. In the beginning, they really are hillside, meaning there’s a chance that a slip could you send you tumbling down a hill and ending up on an RIP shirt.
don’t compare yourself to others!
Neverthemore, the horses are quite smart and since the tour guide is leading the line of horses, you should be safe. Most of them generally follow along to the horse in front of them and don’t require too much attention to be told where to go. That being written, horses are like humans. They are mammals. They start with an H. Furthermore, they have family members they call Asses. And oh, yeah they got personalities too. My horse, the legendary Trixie was pretty easygoing and well-behaved but I noticed others in the group were not so lucky. The person behind me sat atop a horse who seemed determined to bite Trixie’s tail for some reason. This is concerning since the attack, coming from behind, is invisible to me and a detriment to both me, the horse, and the rider behind me.
Trixie also just randomly stopped walking to eat some leaves too. Although, that’s neither here nor there. Anyways, we spend the first section of the tour going down the hillside paths to reach the beach. There are some more level routes as well, similarly flanked by battalions of ice plants on both sides. As we reach the climax of the tour, we hit the beach. Since this is the Bay Area, it be mad cold and windy so prepare yourself or you could be a statistic.
there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel!
Luckily for the incredibly vain like me, we take a photo break at the beach where you can pose on your horse and let the pros make you a model. It’s rather speedily done as sadly the horses don’t seem very invested in our modeling careers. They don’t like the water either, so whenever waves start a’coming, don’t be surprised if your horse takes matters into its own hooves to avoid the water. Otherwise, you can easily steer it away from the tide as well.
you have worth!
The beach is picturesque and beautiful, shining markedly worthwhile to just relish in for a moment or two as you let the horse catch its breath. I dunno if they need to do that much. When I pet mine a lot, I don’t know if she liked that. They need to smile more, to be honest. Regardless, from the beach, we turn around to head back up the hill and into base camp. For my group at least, the field was a bit shuffled, dealing us with different positions from before. And, the route we take is not entirely the same. But idk. Overall, it may be ignorant to say this but all that ice plant looks in the same to me!
Afterthoughts
This horseback riding tour was amazing in my book! Which I guess is the blog! I don’t be reading no books ya herd me!? Get it? Because animals!? Ooh!
Anyways, I found this horseback riding tour really fun. The length is sorta nice too because if you’re not feeling the ride you need not worry since it’s over quick and is perpetrated at a leisurely pace to begin with. There’s also entertaining guides and the glory of nature all around you! It really was easy too because the horses are well trained and used to people riding them and the instructions given by the tour guides really do be working! And what happened to Twerk’n Chicken!? I DON’T KNOW! But I do know, that after doing this tour, I’m considering looking at more horse rides. There’s something inviting about enjoying nature with an animal too. And as far as animals go, horses are among the most harmonious. Imagine we had like a walrus riding tour instead! Yuck!
In Conclusion
That was a really fun tour! There’s a common thing I’d say with people who live… or rather people who live near big tourist destinations. They evidently take for granted what they have so close to them. For me, San Francisco is the major attraction and having lived nearby my whole life, I never really think too much about the surrounding areas like this. Even when I do go out I just don’t be one of them thinkers, you know. My brain’s not the best, as my daddy used to tell me. Still, doing this opened my eyes to the possibilities out there. What a fun, easy, quick, horse-related thing to do too!
Again, check on the links I set up above if you’re interested! Give this a comment! Support this blog and in return I shall grant you eternal youth. Conversely, if you don’t want to, that’s okay too. I guess you just hate horses and wish death on the animal kingdom. Weird ass horse-hating person… Nevertheless, thank you so much for reading this piece! And I hope to see you again! Bye bye!
