Should I be concerned my horse is called Pogo because he’s “bouncy like a pogo stick”? It’s been around a decade since I sat in a saddle and while I had some skill as vice president of my university’s riding club, my confidence in my ability has somewhat waned over the years. But as it turns out, riding a horse is like riding a bike – you never forget.
A gentle hack around Big Cliff Canyon outside Florida’s city of Ocala soon has me eager to trot, canter and jump, though I won’t be picking up any speed today; this is a beginner’s tour and some of my fellow riders are first-timers.
We prance through long grasses and woodland draped with Spanish moss to the iridescent waters of Lost Spring Lake, which is one of four on the 100-acre Canyons Zip Line and Adventure Park property.
As you can no doubt deduce from the name, this attraction is best known for its zip-lines. It’s home to nine including a 1,100 foot-long thrill that at 155 feet makes it the highest zip-line in Florida. Having opted for riding (how could I not when Ocala is known as the Horse Capital of the World?), my experience of the zip-lines here is from the saddle. Pogo and I hear them before we see them: adrenaline-seeking visitors whizz from one cliff face to another, unexpectedly popping up in the treetops in between as they clamber over the sky bridges and wave to kayakers on the glassy lakes below.
Meanwhile, I’m busy learning from our guide that horses have 205 bones in their body – just one fewer than humans (it’s the collarbone, in case you were wondering) – and that they can run at speeds of up to 44mph. You would struggle to reach such speed on any of the 24 horses here though, since these are the weary souls who prefer to live out their days and nights slowly ambling around their gigantic, sun-dappled paddocks; with the odd tourist ride thrown in here and there.
The horses at the World Equestrian Center just a 20-minute drive away, however, are of a different calibre. This hotel surrounded by 23 stables housing 2,100 stalls is where I’m staying during my days gleaning the latest news from the Florida Huddle trade show. I wake up daily and watch incredibly well-kept steeds leap gracefully over fences and hedges, perfecting their footing for their big moment. They’re fast and not-so-furious, with all of the horses I can get close to allowing me a gentle head-scratch and neck pat.
WILD THINGS
One Florida resident I’m less keen to get up close and personal with is the alligator. I catch a glimpse of this statuesque beast just 30 minutes down the road from the World Equestrian Center at Silver Springs State Park. Part-way through a glass-bottomed boat ride, my gaze is torn from a blue tilapia navigating the eel grass by the Southern drawl of our guide, who is pointing out said gator lazing on the shores. It’s a biggie, even by Florida’s standards, and luckily not too close for comfort.
