PINE RIDGE DUDE RANCH | NEW YORK
Pine Ridge Dude Ranch has had a long run and has had a recent multi-million dollar investment to update add the property. As for me, I noticed many New Yorkers from both Westchester and Long Island were drawn to the ranch and traveled over two hours to visit. It was also my first rodeo (or experience) at a ranch and I was interested to see what Pine Ridge had to offer. I certainly dressed the part and made sure to pack my cowboy hat! Since how many times does a New Yorker really get to dress like a cowboy?
My room was in the Dakota wing which was one of the newly renovated sections of the ranch. I did appreciate the brand new wood floors, however, felt the interior decor could use updating as well. Shortly after checking in, I mapped out my schedule since there are certain meal times designated for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It’s very important to pay attention to the activity and meal schedule when at an all-inclusive place, so you don’t miss out on anything.
The meals were primarily served buffet style including a salad bar and only one of the three days did I experience a set menu. I would say breakfast was my best experience in comparison to lunch and dinner. I do believe the food options and quality could be improved upon as I didn’t find most of the offerings appealing…
In addition, there are an assortment of activities offered at Pine Ridge Ranch, my favorite being horseback riding (one trail ride including per guest per stay), archery (second favorite), tractor rides, campfire marshmallow roasting (every evening), outdoor rock walls, and general sports. Other occasionally scheduled activities also included line dancing, karaoke, live DJ or band.
I certainly would have liked a few more line dancing classes packed into the weekend schedule since this is very representative of the cowboy western theme! I did get a chance to join one dance class and would have loved to do more. A few basic line dancing steps were introduced, so it’s great for beginners.
In addition, to doing the trail ride, that lasts about an hour, I also got to meet the lovely yearling horse Juniper and get an intro on her horse training background. There are also times to visit the stable and feeding times and interact more closely with the horses. Apart from this, I also tried archery also for the first time and got hooked on it instantly.
I see myself taking up this sport in the future along with horseback riding, so I had a lot of fresh, first-time experiences at Pine Ridge Ranch and this it what I most enjoyed. Not to mention, there was a number of lovely staff members and they also made the experience more pleasant.
