More pleasant communication to the boarders. Signs…read moreindicating the numericals of the various pastures would be helpful and ways to request certain actions for the horse's wellbeing such as masking and mask removal at evening.

Both Todd and Barbara Johnson , owners of JBit Ranch are wonderful. Todd is an enthusiastic…read moreequestrian that shares his knowledge of natural horsemanship with his students. He goes above and beyond to make sure you understand the natural horsemanship ways to communicate to the horse!!

Had such a great time horseback riding and touring the vineyard! Louisa was wonderful, and the…read morehorses were so well-trained, sweet, and clearly well cared for. My horse (Duck) was lovely, and I honestly didn't want the ride to end! My only callout would be that I wish we got a little more time riding the horses, especially given the price. That said, it was still such a beautiful experience from start to finish. Definitely coming back!

ALERT: Please use the bathroom before coming here. When arriving to the farm I asked to use the…read morerestroom and she offered me a roll of toilet paper and directed me to a literal barn stall where there were horses and cows in there (not toilet seat, not even a porta-potty) . Personally I was not comfortable exposing my lady parts to a pile of hay/dirt/mud with animals looking at me . I held it for an hour. Yesterday my good friend and I went horseback riding with who I'm assuming to be Louisa Rice. We did the Ice cream trail at 03:30pm today and let me just humbly share, unfortunately the 3 stars are for the 3 horses and not Louisa. Firstly, I'm only assuming the horse riding instructor's name was Louisa because she didn't introduce herself as the instructor upon my friend and I's arrival . I'm assuming it was her name because, that was the name listed in the booking confirmation via email. Upon our arrival she was clearly very annoyed and didn't want to be there. I am assuming this because she didn't introduce herself, she gave us little to no instruction before getting on the horses, she never asked if we had any prior experience with horseback riding and remained with a passive aggressive/rude disposition for the majority of the session. The instructor today had us immediately hop on the horses without a demonstration first even though we quite literally have no experience with horseback riding lol . I know super safe ... Once we actually got on the horses with some help and guidance, she gave us what I would describe as a 60 second crash course... This was not enough time for us to properly learn how to steer/guide the horses in different directions or know what to do in case of an emergency. The three horses she chose was Juno (normal/mild) temperament, Duck (Very sensitive to touch and hyperactive) and Oden. She made us aware that Oden was old (20 years old), had a history of abuse and that he had an attitude today. Just the fact that she mentioned he had an attitude and had to pop the his butt with her hand to get him to move closer to me....Immediately, why would she give me that horse to ride??? Oden should have been specifically Louisa's horse to ride for the session today in my opinion. Given that I have no experience with horses, let alone experience with horses who have attitudes, are stubborn and in an elderly state, to me, this was already neglectful on Louisa's part. As we rode the trail, there were multiple times that I remained 6 + feet behind Louisa, my friend and their horses while riding Oden. At this point Louisa was doing what I believe to be yelling instructions, but how was I supposed to hear any of what she was saying being 6+feet behind??I did my best to keep Oden safe given her poor instructions or lack thereof. The most terrifying portion is when we had to make a sharp right turn at the cross walk. At this time, Oden was not as receptive to the pulling of the reigns and ended up scratching his leg on the pillar . It was very scary and he was bleeding . Louisa's response during this time was to ask me "why do you have your hands up to you boobs?" And to "look where I'm going" I don't know if she was trying to guide me, but I am not sure what she was talking about at this time. She also asked me to "fix myself" when getting off of Oden referring to my breasts again . This was very strange . I am not sure why she kept making references to my breasts ??? At the point where I was off the horse we made it to the ice cream stop (By the way, the Ice cream is not included in the $165 you pay, you have to buy the ice cream yourself). Louisa remained with the horses while she let my friend and I purchase ice cream and then shortly after, left me and my friend Shakila unsupervised with all 3 horses at least 3 times. She left us with the horses while she left to gather napkins and water to clean Oden. Her instruction was to hold the rubber rope while she left, that's it. Oden looked to be actively in distress, walking in circles, moving around constantly and even tried to back away from me a couple of times while I held the rubber rope as instructed. I was very afraid and I expressed this concern to Louisa several times. Unfortunately she was very dismissive and communicated with me that she would let me know if there was something to be worried about. How could she do this if she had been walking away multiple times for minutes while oden was in distress?? We also did not get to brush the horses as per the ice cream trail package . Overall the horses were not to blame for Louisa's unsafe conduct . One good thing is that there is a very sweet farm dog here !

Top notch training and boarding! Jane and her team work tirelessly to make sure her students…read morereceive the best personalized training while her ponies and horses receive the best care! My daughter has been riding with Jane for 2 years and has become a confident, beautiful rider who is now going to A rated shows and placing in the top of her division. Best program in northern VA!

Broken lease agreement by giving away a horse without informing the owner. This ultimately led to…read morethe death of the horse, with no accountability for their actions from Jane or Meredith.

This place is exactly what you need. I can't say enough about Makendra and her Farm. Her passion…read morefor her horses and teaching is tangible. Both me and my daughter ride there but I am often requested by my daughter if she can just go hang out at the farm. The energy, people and overall pleasantness of the farm is a true escape. I love each and every one of her horses and have learnt a tremendous amount of horse care knowledge from Makendra. She is interested in the connection you have with the horse you ride, she wants the experience to be both educational but fun and enjoyable at the same time. Don't pass on the opportunity to visit Tsaheylu, you would be missing out.

This review is not only my testament to Makendra's teaching ability and skill, but also her…read moredemeanor and patience with horses and riders. She's an amazing instructor, rider and trainer. If I could afford it, I'd buy one of her homebreds!!!

I had an excellent experience at Secret Passage Ranch!…read more We arrived at Secret Passage Ranch around 8 am, and I'm glad we did because by the time we ended, it was already picking up, which tells you something about how popular this place is in the area. Even so, everything felt calm and well-organized. Our guide, Nate, was knowledgeable and patient, but what set him apart the most was that he let the visitors experience the ride on their own, too; he didn't rush us or keep us on a tight leash the way some guides do. He made the ride enjoyable for everyone regardless of experience level (even as a beginner, I felt very comfortable), all while staying attentive the whole time. The ranch has a family-run feel, and the staff clearly cares about the experience, not just the transaction. That came through when I realized I'd lost my phone on the trail; Nate spent about a half hour helping us retrace our steps to find it. The horses were calm, well-trained, and well looked after. The scenery was also beautiful! The cost was about $90/hour. I'd recommend Secret Passage Ranch without hesitation. We'll be back!

I had an amazing experience the horses were great and beautiful the Ranch had great scenery and…read morethe staff was kind hearted.

Amazing farm with beautifully selected horses, expert breeding services, and top notch care. World…read moreclass

The Natural Connection, near Front Royal, is the best place I've found for Western riding in the…read moreNorthern Virginia and Northern Shenandoah area, and I've tried most of them. It's got a well trained herd of 30 horses and a few mules, a superb owner/operator/instructor with a proven methodology, and scenic trails through shaded woods and streams. You might even see some local wildlife. Owner Jean French is terrific at recognizing "teachable moments" so that you are always improving as a rider. Note that helmets are required (no exceptions).

My daughters attended camp at Serene Acres. My daughters experienced light interaction with the…read morehorses but instead they had them locating fly masks in the field, mucking stalls, cleaned feeding dishes and additional barn labor duties. They did do 1 craft and depended on the weather the riding lesson went from 15min. To 1hour. We expected more interaction with the horses however the volunteer kids got those jobs over the paying customers. We will not be returning. The owner blocked me on Facebook from writing a review on The Serene Acres page. We followed the next week with camp at Red Gate and they had an amazing time with lots of interaction.

My girlfriend and I went here for a beginner trail ride having been referred here by a local bed…read moreand breakfast. They mainly offer boarding and lessons, but also offer short trail rides for novices. We had minimal prior horse experience. The staff at Serene Acres were very helpful and informative in getting us up and on two horses. The horses were good older horses with a little bit of personality. In no time we were walking around on the horses. The only downside was that we were mostly walking on country roads without much of a trail. The area is beautiful in rural Virginia, but not quite the trail we expected. Apparently they normally take people a different way but it was too flooded to pass even by horse. Overall great service and horses, thou the "trail ride" may be more of a quiet country road ride.