Overview: Horseback Riding in Minnesota

Minnesota’s riding landscape is one of the finest and most genuinely diverse in the upper Midwest. The state’s extraordinary public land system — the Superior and Chippewa national forests, the vast state forest system, and the most extensive state park equestrian trail network in the upper Midwest — creates a public trail infrastructure of scale and variety that places Minnesota among the premier public land trail riding states in the northern half of the country. The southeastern Driftless Area’s limestone bluff and coulée riding is among the most scenically dramatic in the entire upper Mississippi corridor. The north-central Chippewa National Forest’s lake-to-lake trail riding — with bald eagles overhead and loon calls across still morning water — provides the equestrian equivalent of the canoe experience that defines Minnesota’s outdoor identity. And the Superior National Forest’s boreal wilderness, bordering the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, provides riding of genuine wilderness quality rarely available this far east of the Rocky Mountains.

The state’s landscape spans from the Iowa line to the Canadian border — from the tallgrass prairie remnants and Sioux Quartzite escarpment of the southwestern corner to the subarctic boreal forest fringe of the northeastern Arrowhead. The Driftless Area’s second-to-third-week-of-October fall color window is the most spectacular single seasonal riding event in the upper Midwest and is worth planning an entire trip around. Itasca State Park’s old-growth pine at the headwaters of the Mississippi is one of the most historically significant riding environments in the state’s public land system. And Blue Mounds State Park’s native prairie and quartzite mounds preserve a Great Plains ecological character as different from the northern boreal forest as any two landscapes within the borders of a single state.

A Brief History of Horseback Riding in Minnesota

Minnesota’s relationship with horses spans the full arc of the upper Midwest’s human history. The Dakota people, whose territory encompassed the southern Minnesota prairie and the Minnesota and Mississippi river valleys at the time of sustained European contact, developed one of the most accomplished equestrian cultures in the upper Midwest through the eighteenth century as the horse spread northward through trade networks from the southern Plains. The Ojibwe, whose territory centered on the lake and forest country of northern Minnesota, incorporated horses more gradually given the navigability of the lake and river network where the canoe remained primary transport. The French voyageur fur trade culture used horses primarily at the portage points of the boundary waters region and the Mississippi headwaters country, with the fur trade posts at Grand Portage and along the Minnesota and Mississippi river corridors serving as the primary economic nodes.

American territorial settlement accelerated after the establishment of Fort Snelling in 1820 and the subsequent treaty processes that opened the southern Minnesota prairie to agricultural settlement through the 1850s and 1860s — bringing the draft horse culture of New England, New York, and European immigrant settlers into the Minnesota landscape. The logging era that swept through the northern Minnesota pine forests from the 1870s through the early twentieth century made the draft horse the central working animal of the logging camp system. The subsequent recovery of the northern Minnesota forest through the national forest and state forest systems transformed the logging horse culture into the recreational trail riding community of the contemporary northern Minnesota equestrian landscape. The Minnesota Trail Riders Association and the various regional trail riding clubs of the Driftless Area, the north-central lake country, and the southwestern prairie corridor collectively represent the organizational backbone of Minnesota’s active contemporary equestrian community.

Where to Ride: Minnesota’s Major Regions

What to Wear, Pack & Know

An ASTM/SEI-certified riding helmet is essential for every Minnesota ride. The state’s terrain ranges from the rocky limestone and shale of the Driftless Area bluff and coulée trails — where wet conditions can make the footing genuinely hazardous — to the remote boreal forest of the Superior National Forest where emergency assistance can be hours away, to the sandy pine forest of the Itasca and Chippewa corridor where footing is reliable but trail navigation demands attention. A certified helmet is your most critical safety equipment on every ride regardless of terrain or experience level.

• ASTM/SEI-certified riding helmet — non-negotiable for all riders; Minnesota law requires helmets for equestrian riders under 18 on public trails and at licensed facilities; strongly recommended for every rider of every age on every Minnesota ride
• Boots with solid one-inch heel — water-resistant or waterproof materials are practical for the Driftless Area creek-crossing terrain and the river corridor trail systems of north-central and northeastern Minnesota; ankle-supporting boots provide additional security on the rocky and root-crossed trail surfaces of the Superior National Forest boreal terrain
• Permethrin-treated riding clothing — Lyme disease tick prevention is non-optional for any Minnesota woodland or brushy terrain ride from April through October; treat all riding clothing before the season and reapply periodically; Minnesota’s high Lyme incidence rate makes this the most critical health safety practice for any Minnesota woodland rider
• Maximum-strength DEET repellent — apply to all exposed skin before every woodland ride April through October; deer tick nymph activity peaks May through July and again in September and October in Minnesota’s forest and brushy terrain
• Light-colored long pants tucked into boots — tick visibility is critical on Minnesota’s leaf-littered forest trails; deer tick nymphs are nearly invisible on dark fabric
• Bear-proof food storage containers or hang kit — required for all equestrian overnight camping in the northern Minnesota state and national forest terrain; hang food bags at least 10 feet high and 4 feet from the trunk; keep cooking areas away from sleeping and horse tying areas; black bears are most active in summer and early fall foraging season
• Waterproof shell and layered clothing — Minnesota’s weather in the northern lake country, the Arrowhead, and even the Driftless Area can change rapidly; a packable waterproof shell is essential for any north-central or northeastern Minnesota ride and strongly recommended statewide in spring and fall
• Satellite communicator or GPS with downloaded trail data — cell coverage in the Superior and Chippewa national forests, the Itasca area, and the more remote sections of the Dorer State Forest can be unreliable or nonexistent; a paper trail map or GPS device with downloaded trail data is non-optional for any remote Minnesota wilderness ride
• At least two liters of water per rider for any ride over an hour — particularly important in the remote northeastern Minnesota terrain where water source planning for horses is a logistical consideration on longer routes
• Blaze orange vest — carry blaze orange for any state or national forest ride during Minnesota’s deer firearms season, which typically opens in early November; prepare entering the transition from October hunting seasons
• Certified weed-free hay (strongly recommended) — invasive species including garlic mustard, common buckthorn, spotted knapweed, and leafy spurge are significant concerns in Minnesota’s national and state forest corridor; weed-free feed is the responsible standard for equestrian camping; the Driftless Area hardwood forest is particularly sensitive to garlic mustard invasion

Trail etiquette: Horses have the right of way over hikers and cyclists on Minnesota’s designated multi-use trails — recognized by the Minnesota DNR and the USDA Forest Service policies for the Chippewa and Superior national forests. The Richard J. Dorer Memorial Hardwood State Forest’s management unit boundaries cross multiple private land parcels throughout the southeastern Minnesota Driftless corridor — riders must observe all posted boundary markers, respect private land closures, and close all gates behind them. The relationship between the equestrian community and private landowners who provide trail access is an important stewardship consideration that the Minnesota equestrian community takes seriously.

Beginner Ride Ideas in Minnesota

Intermediate Ride Ideas in Minnesota

Equestrian Events in Minnesota

Canterbury Park in Shakopee is the primary live Thoroughbred and quarter horse racing facility in Minnesota, hosting a meet that typically runs from late May through September — check current programming directly with the track before planning a visit. Running Aces Harness Park in Columbus is the primary harness racing venue in the state; meet schedules change annually. The Minnesota county fair harness racing circuit is the most authentic expression of the Minnesota agricultural horse culture, with county fairs from the southwestern prairie through the central agricultural tier and the north-central resort lake country operating harness racing programs July through September. The Minnesota State Fair in St. Paul, one of the largest state fairs in the country, provides the most significant equestrian fair programming in the state with a full roster of horse show, draft horse, harness racing, and youth horsemanship events — verify current programming at mnstatefair.org before planning attendance. The Minnesota Trail Riders Association annual trail ride events, organized at the Dorer State Forest, the Itasca corridor, and the Chippewa National Forest trail systems, provide organized group riding of the finest Minnesota public trail terrain through the summer and fall seasons.

Riding Vacations & Weekend Getaways in Minnesota

Sample Three-Day Itinerary — Driftless Area Fall Bluff and Coulée Ride: