Horse Riding Vacations In Branson, Missouri

The City of Branson, in Taney County, Missouri, has become a popular destination for holidaymakers from Missouri and the surrounding states. The city is in the Ozarks on the shores of the Table Rock Lake and in the heart of the Mark Twain National Forest. Horseback vacations are popular here, and numerous horse trails can be found in the surrounding forests.

About the City

The city of Branson has more than 50 live performance theaters. The area also offers 12 golf courses, three large freshwater lakes, museums and a theme park. Many people now combine their visit to the region with horseback riding.

Horse Riding Vacations

The Bucks and Spurs Guest Ranch offers a western adventure straight out of the 19th Century. Stay in a log cabin, go on cattle drives, sit around a campfire and learn to handle and shoot an authentic six-shooter. Uncle Ike's Trail Ride offers a variety of rides along the many original trails of their 150 acres of Ozarks property. In addition to their usual daily rides, they offer breakfast rides that include stopping for an open-air breakfast, dinner rides that start in the afternoon and other specialty rides. The Dogwood Canyon Nature Park offer rides along horseback trails along ridges and through hollows that are not seen from the walking and biking trails.

Mark Twain National Forest

Much of southern Missouri is covered by the Mark Twain National Forest, which has hundreds of miles of maintained trails, many dating to the 1800s, that have been designated for horseback riding. Horseback specific trails include the Berryman Trail, the Ozark Trail and the St. Joe State Park Horse Trail. Fishing is also popular here. For fishing and hunting you'll need appropriate licenses, which can be obtained from a ranger station.

Shepherd of the Hills

One of the first books to sell a million copies in the United States was "Shepherd of the Hills," a novel based on the Branson region. The novel, which was published in 1907, led to increased tourism in the area. You can relive some of the events in the book and see many of the places mentioned by taking in the Shepherd of the Hills Trail Ride.

Climate

The climate in Branson is humid subtropical. Expect June to September maximum temperatures to be above 80 degrees Fahrenheit and winter maximums in the 40s. Four to five inches of rain fall every month except for the period from December to February when the figure is halved.