Pine Trails Ranch

My daughter went to one of their summer camps and loved it! She learned not only about riding but everything else involving caring for horses. She can’t wait to go back!

I have taken a couple of lessons form Erin at pine trails ranch and I could not have had a better experience. The horses are all amazing and Erin is such a knowledgable and patient instructor. I cannot wait until my next lesson!

Great place to ride and take lessons. Caring, knowledgeable and friendly staff. Michelle is always willing to assist in giving guidance both for training and care of the horse. i give it 5 stars.

I have been at PTR for a few time, for that I just started to lease a sweet private-​owned horse that boards here.
So far I had one lesson with Michelle the owner on lower-​level training dressage, and I watched my husband’s very first horse back riding here with Karissa. Both are really great lesson experience. Michelle has the very trained eyes for dressage and other disciplines, I believe. She is also very reachable at her Pine Trail Ranch facebook page, which is really a plus in scheduling a lesson or ask questions. For the beginner lesson, I like the way Karissa arranges the context of the lesson, during which she filled a lesson with different practices like two-​point through poles and various distances of trotting, according to the riding skill level of the students. She is also very knowledgeable to various questions from the curious beginners.
People at the Ranch are super friendly, and the cats are sooooooo sweet! Horses that stay at the pasture have really large space to run around and seem happy. I would recommend this place to take horse back riding lessons.

First visit here. Te staff and the instructors are friendly and know their stuff when it comes to horse back riding lessons. I took my daughter here and it’s her 3^rd lesson. She knows the basic knowledge when it comes to caring for a horse. The value of horse back riding is okay. I mean they have to make a living and consider the expenses for maintaining the horses. I’m considering in taking adult lessons here. When I find the time, I’ll sign up.

I’ve been riding at Pine Trails for over 11 years now and I can’t come up with a single bad thing to say. Pine Trails offers a fun, safe, and affordable way to enjoy horses, but in reality it is much more. Pine Trails has a community aspect that I absolutely love. More often than not my «2 hour rides» turn into hours and hours of not just riding, but learning and socializing. Everyone at Pine Trails is friendly, and selflessly cares for all the animals on the ranch– not just their own. And the trainers are always willing to offer help and guidance outside of scheduled lesson times. I can’t imagine a better place to ride.

My family and I love Pine Trails Ranch. My daughter has been riding there since she was 6 (she is about to turn 18). We have taken advantage of everything Pine Trails offers — lessons, leasing, boarding, schooling. I even had a «Pony Party» for a group of 10 women which was a blast. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed riding and learned a lot from the instructors. I plan to have another party next year.
Michelle the owner is fabulous! She is incredibly knowledgable about horses and riding and extremely generous with her time.
We plan to continue riding, boarding, schooling, etc. at Pine Trails for a very long time!

I brought my horse to Pine Trails Ranch and Michelle about 5 years ago when others had given up on her. The problem was I loved my horse. Over the phone, Michelle told me the problem was likely a sore back. After a couple of months of back exercises at home, I dropped off my lovely mare at Pine Trails for a month for training. After the month was up, to my amazement Michelle hopped on her bareback and rode her through her training exercises. Royal followed Michelle around like a puppy dog. I will forever be grateful to Michelle for giving my horse back to me. The two us (Royal and I) take lessons together most of the time. I liken it to the blind leading the blind, but Michelle is patient with us, and it has been a most rewarding relationship. We go to local shows and I have accumulated a wall full of ribbons! I wouldn’t have thought I would have gone this far. Thanks to Michelle.

My daughter began lessons last spring at Pine Trails. Her progress has been great. Great teachers and a laid-​back atmosphere.

My 7 year old granddaughter took lessons at Pine Trails every spring and fall starting when she was four years old and loved it. Shasta, the horse she rode, was a safe and intuitive horse that would scoot herself under a leaning child to keep her in the saddle. It wasn’t long before my granddaughter was posting, then trotting, then trotting with her hands on her hips! She especially loved getting to take the halter to the Shasta’s pen and bring her back to be groomed and saddled. I loved the way she was included in the brushing, hoof cleaning and saddling before and after the lesson. Each lesson concluded with a horse-​walk around the ranch learning about all the horses we passed. The owner Michelle also offered fun activities included practice horse shows, real horse shows and parties with fun and games. She made sure even the youngest and most inexperienced students had fun and won prizes. I highly recommend this ranch for horseback riding lessons for children!

I been taking lessons at Pine Trails Ranch with Michelle (the owner) for several years. My daughter, who has been riding at PTR for several years now, has been in lessons with all of the instructors. I have so many good things to say about this ranch. I like the community very much. It is down to earth and those who I’ve become friends with truly love and appreciate their horses.
There are amazing opportunities at PTR for learning about the care of horses and for learning how to ride, of course. Michelle is an amazing resource for equine info and you just need to ask. I’ve enjoyed my lessons with Michelle and have learned so much about riding in a relatively short period of time. She encourages questions during the lessons and her answers address both the rider’s actions and the needs of the horse. The lessons themselves are rarely repetitive and Michelle always seems to have a new challenge to tickle our brains.
As other reviewers have mentioned, the Pine Trails Ranch herd is large so there seems to be a horse to fit almost anyone’s needs… beginner through advanced. It seems like there are many clients who have either taken lessons or boarded their horses at the ranch for many years and I believe this alone is a testament to the quality of training. As a final comment, the leasing program is also amazing and allows students who don’t have the time for ownership to experience something similar to ownership.

Pine Trails Ranch is a lovely establishment and I have great memories here.
PTR is really popular with kids and is a great place for them to learn to ride. The horses are all well-​trained and different, but safe and fun. The head trainer, Michelle, is a very knowledgeable woman who takes time to get to know her riders and horses, which I really like. Her teaching style, although I like it, isn’t my favorite. But, of course, that is just a preference and I know many people who excel with and love her teaching style.
This ranch is also fairly large, with a covered (NOT an indoor) arena, a huge outdoor arena, another smaller outdoor arena, a round pen, many paddocks, and two or three medium-​sized barns. The paddocks could be better maintained, but the horses are healthy and happy and are clearly taken excellent care of. The boarding here is awesome– affordable and your horses are always taken excellent care of.
I learned to ride here and switched equestrian facilities when I began to jump, because PTR is aimed towards less advanced riders. However, although not perfect, I will always love this ranch. Yay PTR! :)

PTR is one of the few places in Yolo County that offers affordable horse boarding, training, riding lessons and summer camps.
I have boarded by horse at Pine Trails for several years now, and I have also been teaching lessons as Michelle’s Assistant Instructor for about a year. As a boarder, I have always felt that my horse is in good hands while I am away. PTR feeds good quality hay and the horses are always under constant supervision. There are even affordable schooling options available for those who don’t have time to ride everyday, or for when you go out of town.
Summer Horse Camps are Monday-​Friday 8:30am-5pm
$ 275 per child, discount for siblings and repeat campers.
Instructors teach both Western and English. This barn is perfect for beginner/​intermediate riders, or those trying to build up their confidence. The horses are safe, well behaved and well trained. Although PTR has a show team, the environment around the barn is really friendly and relaxed. The perfect atmosphere to ride for fun, learn more about horses, improve your riding (and your horse’s training) without the snobby looks or comments.
Michelle Haseltine is the owner of PTR, as well as the Head Trainer and Instructor. Don’t forget to call 24 hours in advance to cancel a lesson. «No shows» will be charged the full-​amount for missed lessons, (with the exceptions of real emergencies)
Stop by any day of the week to check out the horses, lesson program and meet the instructors!