The barn offers rides from the second week in March to the second week in November.
Brown County
Saddle Barn
~ story and photos by Boris Ladwig
North Vernon resident Ashdon Davis sported a tie-dyed muscle shirt, shorts, and sneakers as he rode his brown horse the last few yards back to the Saddle Barn at Brown County State Park. His sunglasses shielded him against the bright rays of the mid-summer’ s early evening sun.
Davis, who drives a 28-foot flatbed truck for a living, had come to the barn for the first time and said he really enjoyed his 35-minute trail ride, which he completed with family and friends.“ It was awesome,” he said. Thomas Slick, of Seymour, who had ridden in the same group as Davis, said he, too, had a good time.
Slick, a home construction worker, had rented a cabin in the park the night before to attend a large family gathering. Someone told him about the horse barn, and he thought his sons, Jaylex, 10, and Jairston, 12, would enjoy it.“ It was really relaxing,” Jairston said. Slick said he had not been on a horse since he was a child in Tennessee and said the family enjoyed the park’ s tranquility and the animals they spotted.
“ Nice to do something that’ s … outdoors,” he said.
Spending time outdoors in Brown County’ s beautiful environment brings some people back to the barn year after year, said Jordan Bair, who has worked at the facility for nearly a quarter century, the last 15 years as operator.
Seeing parents and children enjoy the flora and fauna— rather than spending
16 Our Brown County Sept./ Oct. 2022
Jordan Bair, Saddle Barn operator.