Silver Spur Horse Drive

Photo Gallery (13 photos)

The ranch has dozens of horses, all of whom are mostly in outdoor pastures if they aren’t taking part in the drive. The landscape is, of course, quite rugged and difficult during the cold seasons - but as they explained, horses lived out here in the wild before them, so they let them just live out in the open all year long, as they would living in nature.

On the first evening, our hosts asked us to go around the table and share our riding experience and horse preferences to get a sense of who to assign to which horse. The next morning, they asked us to split into two groups: one that wanted a fast horse and one that wanted a slow horse. I opted for the fast horse group and got assigned a horse named Lefty. He was great. Fast in this case did not mean out of control - he was perfect to ride, but really got my heart racing when we were able to go all out!

The tack was beautiful Western saddles, and the host family had some great stories behind some of them. Since we had to bring everything we needed for the day with us, there were saddle bags in the back to store lunch, water bottles,s and any extra gear we wanted to bring along. I had no complaints about any of it.

Now for the docked stars… some red flags made me think they didn’t always put the horses first. Tales of tricking a prior client when she was pushing a horse too hard and substituting it with a horse that looked the same to give the original a break. While I appreciate the creativity, I would rather ride with people who would be more honest with me if they thought I was pushing a horse too hard. There was also a larger person in the group who was initially matched with a draft cross, but they then requested something smaller, and the guides obliged. There was also a lame yearling on the drive that we were told was okay to continue, but I'm not sure; I just felt bad for it. And a horse that ended up trampling into barbed wire because they couldn’t catch it otherwise.

I really don’t think they are abusive or anything - the horses seem to have a great life living out in nature with their herd, but they just didn’t seem to get the same kind of loving care that they did at, say, the Segovia ride. During lunch, we just loosened the girths but otherwise kept them tacked, and we passed by a lot of dried-up water troughs that the horses were clearly eager to drink from but couldn’t.

On the first day, we all went on a trail ride for the guides to see our real riding ability. It was also an opportunity lso for us to make a call as to whether we wanted to stay with our initially assigned horses or ask for something different. It was a full day of riding, with a stop for lunch and a nap in the middle. Every day, we would pack our boxed lunch, water bottles, and any other essentials into saddle bags on the back of the saddle. The guides asked us to trot, canter, and steer our horses, and everyone seemed to do fine enough with those tasks. Most people had experience riding before, except for one guy who had only ridden a few times. I was a bit worried about him, but he turned out to be completely fine, even on a fast horse. When I asked, they said they would tell people only to sign up if they knew how to ride all three gaits, but they wouldn’t prevent a beginner from signing up if they insisted.

After the first day, the three-day horse drive began. We began the day with a ride in the van to find the herd we would be herding. Before leaving for our three-day journey, we had to ensure we had everyone accounted for by counting the horses. We were missing two on the first morning, so I joined in the search. ….Until our two guides realized they were sitting on the missing horses!

Then the drive began. You could choose to be in either the front or the back of the drive. The front was definitely the easier option - you just followed the guide and made sure no horses got ahead of you, which, except for a few troublemakers, they generally did not want to do. It was the better position for faster riding and smooth gallops. The back, however, seemed more fun to me, the only downside being that you couldn’t go as fast as in the front. Your job there was to watch all the horses ahead of you and make sure they stayed in the herd - they couldn’t go slow or stop lest they get left behind, and also could not stray too much to the right or left since they could get lost that way. You never got bored just walking because there was always a stray horse you needed to get back on track. We had about 40 horses, so there was always someone straying off, and when we were going faster, it really felt a bit like being in a video game, quickly jumping in to cut a horse straying too far back into the herd. It was truly one of the funnest experiences I’ve ever had.

You could request to do front or back for the entire 3 days, but most people opted to switch halfway through the day. That way, you could get some nice runs in at the front and then have the fun job of steering the horses in the back as well. Note that no “work” was strictly necessary - I found herding horses to be very entertaining. But you could also just quietly ride along in the back, admiring the view, and occasionally lope alongside the rest of the group, and it would have been totally fine. The guides could totally handle everything on their own - we were really just there for our own entertainment.

The landscape was quite spectacular - not quite like the Tetons near Jackson Hole, but very similar in rugged beauty. We were able to climb mountains, walk through dense forests, gallop through fields of sagebrush, etc. The rides were designed to present us with a nice variety of local landscapes. And while the routes were thought out, they were not ready-made trails for the most part. When going through the forest, we frequently had to clear our own way through dense branches, which made it even more of an adventure.

The horses were amazing on pretty rough terrain - a lot of times I went through pretty dense forest with no trail, trying to herd a stray horse back in, and I was amazed at how Lefty just never lost his footing or hesitated about anything I asked him to do.

You’ve got 3 nights camping and 2 nights in a cabin.

I was given my own cabin, but from what I understand, this isn’t guaranteed. I was so happy I was assigned my own room, though, because I did end up having a lot of trouble sleeping (it’s very quiet and peaceful, more my own issues). And there was no single supplement, I think, because it’s not guaranteed. The cabin was really nice - shared bathrooms, but otherwise it was very private with its own porch, two beds, and some places to hang your belongings. It was really cozy, though quite plain. The only complaint was that there was a nest of some large insects right outside, and I had to spend a lot of time killing the ones that got in while I was out. I’m just assuming this doesn’t happen every year, though.

I was nervous about the shower situation, but it was honestly quite nice - the outdoor shower was a neat experience, and the indoor showers were very modern, comfortable, and warm. The ratio of people to showers was not a problem - our group had a nice mix of those who wanted to shower as soon as they got back from a ride versus those who preferred to crack open a beer first and shower later…so I don’t think anyone was frustrated waiting for a shower to open up.

The Camping

The camping - well, it was my first time camping in over a decade, so I’m not sure I should really be judging. I was given my own tent, which was amazing because I was very nervous about having to share a tent on top of being anxious about sleeping in a tent in general. Everything was set up for us, and in the morning, we only had to pack up our sleeping bags, pad, and personal belongings. It wasn’t the most comfortable experience, but I did manage to get a decent amount of sleep. Fair warning that the bathroom situation is an outhouse. I ended up being very careful about liquids a few hours before bed so that I didn’t have to do that by myself in the dark. Camping can only get so comfortable, but the ranch hosts went out of their way to make it as comfortable as they could. The outhouse had many supplies to for sanitation, and the tents and sleeping bags seemed to be of good quality. Each bag had a liner inside that was washed between guests, as well as a small camping pillow.

Showering was a different story - on the first night, there was a warmish creek you could soak in (bring biodegradable soap), the second day, the creek was freezing and also really shallow, so not everyone opted to soak themselves off. But it was ok….I think 2 days of not showering is totally doable.

The entire trip takes place in very remote territory, as you are driven from Idaho Falls. At some point, the driver will tell you when you are about to lose signal. And that’s it - there is an emergency line you can give your close ones, but aside from that, you’ve got no contact with the outside world the entire trip.

Facilities

The ranch has a nice shared kitchen/dining area that is stocked with tea, snacks, and a nice area to hang out both indoors and outdoors. One thing that was missing was a working corkscrew…so bring one with you if you prefer wine. For entertainment, there are some fake bulls and ropes, and the staff are more than happy to teach you how to do it; it’s pretty fun! You’re surrounded by the horses, so you can just watch them as well. The scenery is beautiful, so for the few days we were there, it was enough to keep my heart happy and entertained.

Campgrounds also have an area to sit around with chairs, and there would be some picnic tables to eat breakfast and dinner. The tents would be in the same area, so you would never feel alone.

Location

It’s in a beautiful rural mountainous area. That does mean no phone network, though the hosts have a satellite phone for emergencies. There’s nothing for many miles, so make sure that you bring any medications, snacks, drinks, etc that you think you might need.

The food

The food was honestly not my favourite ... but definitely edible. It also got better as the trip went on. On the last day, we had a feast of Idaho potatoes and steak (salmon for me as I’m a pescatarian), and I think that was the highlight. It was always home-cooked, though more American-style, by which I mean that a lot of processed food goes into the home cooking. And when not processed, it was pretty bland most of the time. But I did appreciate that it was freshly cooked every day.

Also, I have to note that most of the other guests (all Americans) complimented the food a lot. I’m not really American, I just lived here most of my life…my pantry is mostly stocked with food from my travels all around the world. Though I am originally from a country known for very bland food, I really don’t know. I assumed people were just being nice, but I met up with a fellow rider recently, and she started talking about how good the food was out of nowhere. The hosts also mentioned that when they had more Europeans staying with them, they didn’t seem too jazzed about the food. So maybe I just have different taste buds or something. Being vegetarian in a land where it’s not super common may have also contributed to this, though I found the veggie options that were made for everyone and not just me were also pretty bland.

Breakfast was usually eggs and some kind of dish, like pancakes or French toast for breakfast. Coffee was served only in the morning, so I quickly learned to just pour some in my water bottle for a pick-me-up later in the day. Lunch was pre-made sandwiches, chips, fruit in a can, and unlimited candy. Again, not my favorite…for vegetarians, the sandwich was either processed cheese, iceberg lettuce, and tomato on Wonder Bread or PB&J. Dinner was more varied, but they usually had a veggie option instead of the meat main. I enjoyed dinners during the camping nights more, surprisingly - one night it was tacos and the other burgers grilled over the fire. There was always plenty of overly sweet dessert passed around before and after dinner. And of course, one night we also had smores.

The family that runs this trip is Mormon, so it’s a dry operation, BUT they are totally fine with guests drinking their own. Once they pick you up from the airport, they will stop at a liquor store to stock up if you’d like. The guests tended to share since most people don’t want to drink an entire bottle of whiskey in five days by themselves. I picked up two bottles of wine, one of which we opened and finished during the last night.

The posted cost of the trip is $ 6,800 for 6 days total, 5 nights, 4 days of riding. A transfer from the airport is an additional $150. My plane tickets from NYC were $500. I paid a little less (around $6300) to go through my local riding club; I think we got a group discount.

This ride is well over 1K a day, which is A LOT! And if you consider you only ride 4 days out of 6, it’s over $1500 per riding day! And honestly, I’m not sure that it was worth that much. For two-thirds of the price, you could have a more luxurious experience at Rancho Las Cascadas. And even that I thought was mildly overpriced compared to what else is out there. My favorite ride so far, Segovia was multiple times cheaper and had way better accommodations, non-horse activities, and fantastic food. You could go on a one-day longer trip for just over half the cost with them. Even being in the same country didn’t save me much money - the flight to Idaho was only $200 cheaper than my flight to Madrid, and the cost of riding in Spain is about half.

Of course, the horse drive element adds A LOT of fun to this, so I don’t want to say don’t go because I thoroughly enjoyed myself and am not mad I spent the money. But I feel like if I were really trying to stretch my travel dollars, this would not be the trip to focus on. There aren't many horse drives out there so perhaps that explains the premium pricing. The two I've seen are Iceland - less than 3K for the same number of days - and Tusheti in Georgia - also around 3K for an even longer trip. Though I have to say, the accommodations look a lot less comfortable on these cheaper trips than at Silver Spur so it is probably worth the price differential for many people out there.

There was a lot of video footage taken during the trip, and at the end we were shown a video of our time...and were given the option to buy a copy for $100. This honestly felt a bit too much after the cost of the trip; in other places, they would just give you footage for free.

They did give us a 20% returning rider discount. So if you are considering this trip, please reach out, and maybe I can get you some kind of a returning rider friend discount 🙂