Red Ridge Ranch Riding Stable — Attraction in Town of Lemonweir

I took my kids here recently for the pony rides. I paid $10/kid for 30 minutes each. What I had in mind was totally different than what actually happened. We were handed one pony to lead on our own with our kids (I had 3 with me) taking turns on him. The path that we walked was the only/main path they have there and it got super congested since people were going back and forth to/from their big horse rides. What I thought was going to happen was they were going to have their own staff lead each pony and my kids would all get to ride at the same time and I'd get to take photos. But that was far from the case. We weren't even given basic instructions on how to handle the pony either. There were times the pony just stopped and didn't want to move anymore. I'm not sure if this is because the path was too congested and he didn't want to move, or if he was tired or what. So we just stood there until the pony decided to move again. Nobody helped us learn about the pony and how to actually "guide" him correctly so that we don't piss him off.

Had I known this was how it was going to go, I would have paid for ONE pony ride and just have my kids jump on and off because that's basically what we did!! It was not worth me paying for 3 kids thinking I was going to get 3 ponies at the same time and they can all ride at the same time on a DESIGNATED pony path not shared by humans and other traffic. Also, I did all the work anyway, so it was not worth it in my opinion.

The owner there (the older lady) did not seem very friendly at all. She may have been overworked because it did get kind of busy with people coming and going so quickly. But she did not appear to be friendly at all. No greetings. It was us who had to approach her and say "hi, we booked pony rides for 1:30".... she basically threw a clipboard at us for us to "sign our lives away" (her exact words). I thought she was joking and kind of chuckled but she had such a poker face it wasn't even fun anymore. She had younger workers there but she wasn't even friendly/nice to them either. She was just yelling at them and even they didn't look too happy working there. I am hoping it was just a "bad day" for her but the vibe she gave off did not seem very welcoming at all.

I didn't get a really good feeling about this place and I dont think I'll ever go back nor will I recommend it to anymore. The only reason why we came here was because we couldn't really find any other places that offer "pony rides" for little kids. Most places around the Wis Dells area have big horses only and my kids are too young to go on a real ride and steer their own horse.

If you want to do pony rides, pay for only 1 pony and just have your kids (if you have more than 1...

This ranch was about 20 minutes from downtown Dells. They charged about 50 bucks for the two of us to ride. The main pros about this ranch were 1) they didn't bat an eye at having a horse for "big guys;" and 2) they didn't bat an eye at letting a 6 year old ride by herself. It was just long enough of a ride. Any longer and my knees would have been super sore. Any shorter, and I'd have felt like I didn't get my money's worth. On the other hand, they did make us wait a long time on horseback while they rounded up another 7 riders. We were first on, and had to wait about 30 minutes while the rest of the folks got saddled up who trickled in after us. They obviously wanted a full party for the last trail ride of the day. The guy leading the trip, "Dakota," was a decent leader. He did put out his phone and text and ride, and seemed pretty aloof, but that was okay (as long as you weren't having problems way in the back of the ride). There's some marketing you have to go through (souvenier sales and alternative rides sales pitches). And then there's the Halloween maze and what not that I think should be discounted or free if you take a trail ride, but is TWELVE BUCKS per person (ouch!). But all in all, for on demand rides that don't have a lot of stipulations or hassle (besides the drive), this is a good place. I'm not sure what other reviewers are talking about with the "reservations." It was clear that they did not need or take reservations and are just open for walk in trail rides until 5pm. UPDATE: I had a $3 off coupon that I forgot to use the day before amid the flurry of sales tactics. So, we went back for the maze and I asked them to discount me the $3 that I forgot to use on the trail ride on the maze. They refused, so we didn't go to the maze or go back, and if they're going to be that petty, I'll check out another trail ride/ranch next time before giving my money to this one again. Downgraded star rating for that as it was very poor...

When we first pulled in, I knew there was something not right about this place. As a vet tech and horse owner myself, I was absolutely appalled when I walked up and saw the living conditions and physical condition of these horses! While waiting for the owner to come and talk to us, I actually went around and started inspecting the horses. What I saw was horrendous! Horses were in “pastures” that was simply 2 foot of manure without a blade of grass in sight. There was no food or drinking water in a single pasture. Many of the horses had deformed and rotting hooves from lack of trimmings and standing in wet manure 2 foot deep all day. Some of the horses were so thin and frail from lack of proper nutrition and dehydration that I knew that they would not last much longer without intervention. I spoke to some of the other patrons that were leaving and they were complaining that the owner was pushing souvenirs, and when they refused to buy any, she asked if they wanted her horses to starve. As of this wasn’t enough, things only got worse when I entered the barn area. There was a horse that was so thin and weak that it could barely stand tied to a gate (without any food or water). There was a horse being saddled up that had open oozing and obviously infected wounds on its back legs. I was so angry and horrified by what I saw, me and my group left and immediately called the authorities. Anyone who gave this stable a good review is obviously not very knowledgeable about proper equine care or they would call the police immediately upon seeing these conditions! If you decide to go here, please think about what you are supporting. If you have any equine knowledge, you will know that this is, at the minimum, animal neglect and you should call and report...