Articles Tagged 'Central America'

by: Equitrekking host Darley Newman   Monica, our local Costa Rica horseback riding vacation guide, and her brother Sebastian and I rode at the base of the very active Arenal volcano. We rode through rolling farmland dotted with cattle, which would feel the heat if Arenal were to hav...

By Judie Framan Photos by Elliot Framan "Trust your horse and stay in my tracks," said Jose, our Costa Rican horse master and multi-lingual guide, "These horses are bred to navigate this country." And with that, he headed up a steep hill, along a 180 degree switchback trail no wider than three...

As an elderly woman whizzed by me, galloping at an alarming pace in her black dress pants and high-heeled patent leather shoes, I gripped by reins and giggled. She was delicately balancing a purse on her forearm, not exactly riding attire. My horse Perla, the perfect “bomb proof” mo...

Today we rode out with John Carr to explore the jungle and his farm. Carr owns a lot of land, having purchased it years ago in the 1970’s. He grows corn, black eyed peas and teak trees, among other things. It was hot, as we slouched through the muddy woods on our horses. The bugs in Belize a...

I was interested to drive through the capitol city of Belmopan on our way to the next destination. Belmopan is a really small city. There’s a colorful market, where fruit and smoothies and crafts are sold, right next to the bus station. Albert got us a smoothie, as we walked the market to ch...

The jungle here in the Slate Creek Preserve was one of the most untouched and beautiful of the places that we have ridden in Belize. It is vast. We rode through streams and hilly areas of dense vegetation and wild flowers to an open field where we could gallop a bit. Our final destination was a wa...

by Darley Newman Ride horses into Belize's rainforest to discover rainforest remedies, including the Maya method of suturing cuts or wounds with cutter ants.  I never thought that I would find a big horse ranch in Belize, but Banana Bank Lodge is just that. With over 100 horses, th...

One of the original riding destinations in Belize, Mountain Equestrian Trails is in a remote location in the Cayo District. Visitors come here to be at one with nature. The cabanas have no electricity, so you sleep under mosquito nets and use kerosene lamps to see at night. This makes finding thos...

Today, we took a sunset beach ride on the Central Pacific Coast, which was beautiful. Monica and Sebastian and I headed off through flat marshland and pastures on the way to the beach. I was on Pinata and Monica rode Perla. The Pacific beaches are a bit more calm and less rocky than the Caribbean ...

Today was my first riding day in Costa Rica for the Equitrekking Travel Costa Rica vacation. We started at the farm and Esteban of Centaura helped me pick out the horse that I would be riding. The horses here are different breed mixes. Some have more Paso Fino in them then others, meaning that the...