I agree about Bryce...it is stunning! And 5 days in that country, heck 10 days in it, even out of the same camp, will leave you wanting more :) As an XP ride, it is also very low-stress and fun, so great for a first multi-day. There are also plenty of outdoorsey things to do and see if you have to bring family with (the actual Bryce Ntl Park is right around the corner, there is fishing, lots of OHV trails, and so on...) Other than that, Grand Canyon is also wonderful, also run by the XP crew. I would not try a point-point MD as my first, unless you have someone that knows what they are doing as crew to pack and move your camp and take care of any extra horses you might bring. It is easier to "get your feet wet" in a one-camp MD first, esp if you are on your own. I would also not recommend a MD that has a million small loops out of camp...try to go to a ride that has one big loop back to camp each day, or at most two. The horses otherwise tend to resent going back to camp a ton of times and being asked to leave...esp by the end of the week... Other advice: bring lots of clothing for you and your horse...many MDs are in places (elevations) where the weather can be 80 and sunny one day, and rain/snow the next, then back to sun the next. You want to be prepared for it all. Bring lots of gall salve and scratches stuff...often horses that have no issues on one or even 2-day rides, all of a sudden start getting rubbed by their gear. You btw might find the same happeneing to your own body ;) So also bring several different things (saddles, pads, girths, whatever) that "work" on your horse if you can...just changing what kind/where a girth sits might solve the rub, or a different pad or even how a different saddle sits on the back. I know this sounds like a lot of effort, but driving however far for 3-5 days of riding, then riding only 2 or whatever because something rubbed, is no fun...been there! MDs REALLY tell you if your gear works for you and your horse...I had 2 saddles that my mare loved for 1 day rides...after 2-3 days she was SO sore in them, that on one occasion I even got dumped off her back on day 3... ooops.... Oh, and bring MORE food than you think you will need for the horse (hay and grain)...better to take extra home, than wander around camp asking ppl if they can sell you hay/grain (been there too!) LOL...eventually you figure out how much you need... If bringing more than one horse, make sure the "left in camp" horses are secured well. Unless they really don't care if their buddy leaves, there is a lot of screaming and running around done by the left horse. A horse that normally stays in an electric/panel/whatever setup, might not do so when left behind...you can test that on a "camping" trip maybe... I think that about sums it up...watch out though, once you start doing MDs, you'll find them highly adictive! It is so much more fun/easier to drive somewhere, set up camp, and get a bunch of riding for all that effort, vs driving, riding, then going right back home for a 1-day ride. Oh, the first few are killer (like doing your very first 50 or 100...your body thinks it is horrible the first time), but once you get used to it, you find both you AND your horses get stronger as the days go on :) Nat (who does more MDs than 1-days lately)
“Riding a horse is not a gentle hobby, to be picked up and laid down
like a game of solitaire. It is a grand passion. It seizes a person
whole and, once it has done so, he will have to accept that his life
will be radically changed.” –Ralph Waldo Emerson.
