Bucket List Adventure: Horseback Riding on the Beach

Fira has her first beach day!

When I grew up in Ohio, I always dreamed about horseback riding on the beach. I think every equestrian has the exact fantasy of galloping a horse across the sand with the waves crashing behind them. Fast forward to moving to California and the beach dream became a little closer. Ever since Fira came into my life, I’ve had the goal of bringing her to the ocean.

A lot of pieces had to fall in line for me to make this happen. Being a backyard horse owner in the city, a truck and trailer always seemed out of reach. The expense and the daunting idea of being responsible for street parking (I don’t have a driveway) in the city seemed like a lot. Back in December, my mom generously gifted me her truck. My husband and I flew out to Ohio to pick it up. We had a fun road trip all the way back to California. Then the search for a used two horse trailer began. I looked at a few trailers and found an older Logan Coach that had been meticulously taken care of. It was a Christmas and birthday gift from my husband.

Once I had the trailer, I faced numerous obstacles – learning how to park on the street with limited options, someone trying to steal the truck which resulted in it being in the shop for weeks, a horse that refused to load in her new trailer (I think the entire neighborhood knew she wouldn’t load) and so much more. That alone is enough for its own blog post. At one point I questioned if it was even worth having a trailer. It seemed like everything was going wrong. I knew that horse ownership, a truck and trailer were blessings but I felt like everything had become an obstacle.

Fira’s first beach day made those struggles seem like distant memories. We drove up to Loon Point Beach in Carpinteria. They have summer hours for horses which means they are only allowed from 8am-10am in the morning or after 5pm in the evening. I brought my friend Isabelle and her OTTB, Champ and our friend Susan from Saddle Seeks Horse. Susan quickly became our official photographer, capturing some amazing shots of the day.

I street parked the trailer and quickly tacked up. Luckily our horses are familiar with traffic because we were right on the road. They didn’t flinch when a large truck went speeding by as we saddled up. I was thrilled with Fira’s overall behavior. She stood nicely and didn’t mind her new environment. Once we got down to the beach she was very concerned about the ocean.

Fira didn’t want to go into the waves, so I didn’t push her to do so. Next time, I figured. At the end, she began to follow the waves as they would fall back and then she’d try and quickly escape when they returned towards the shore. We galloped along the sandy stretches, the sounds of hoof beats in the sand underneath us. I felt like I was in a movie.

I definitely want to go back in the next month or so. I think it’s great to keep exposing Fira to new things and can’t wait to see how she does on her second trip. She was snorting and puffing at the ocean on her first encounter. I think she’ll become a little braver next time.

Outfit Details

Lavender Hat / Black Shirt / White Riding Jeans /

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