Trail riding near Kingsport: bring your own horse

Trail day ride or arena day ride

River Creek's day rides are for riders who bring their own horse. A trail day ride takes you out on 12+ miles of creek-side, meadow and ridge trails across 86 acres; an arena day ride gives you the all-weather 100×200 ft outdoor arena and the round pen for schooling.

Bring-your-own-horse day rides are open: arena day ride $25, trail day ride $35, booked online at least a day ahead.

Guided trail rides on River Creek's own horses are not open yet. If you do not have a horse, the trail-rides page has a waitlist for them.

The trails

The trail network runs along the creek, through the meadows and up onto the ridges. Named routes include Goldenbank Loop, Hayfield Crossing, Lanternwood Ramble, Fox Hollow, Meadowlark Way, Barnside Bend and Sycamore Reach.

• Goldenbank Loop follows the hay fields beside the river
• Barnside Bend is a compact circuit by the barn
• Lanternwood Ramble and Fox Hollow are the more advanced woodland routes

Before you haul in

Every visiting horse meets the same standard as the boarded herd:

Bring your own tack and a helmet. There is trailer parking on site, and rides are booked online in advance, so check the trail-rides page before you load up.

• A current negative Coggins test
• Geldings and mares only — no stallions
• No pregnant mares
• A signed liability waiver

Getting there from the Tri-Cities

The barn is at 125 Goshen Valley Rd, Church Hill, TN 37642, just west of Kingsport. Barn hours are Monday–Saturday 8am–9pm, Sunday 2pm–7pm.

• Kingsport, TN: about 15–20 minutes, west on US-11W
• Mount Carmel, TN: about 10 minutes, west on US-11W
• Blountville, TN: about 30 minutes, through Kingsport, then US-11W
• Gate City, VA: about 30 minutes, US-23 south to Kingsport, then US-11W
• Johnson City, TN: about 40 minutes, I-26 to Kingsport, then US-11W
• Bristol, TN: about 40–45 minutes, I-81 to Kingsport, then US-11W