World Tourism Blog

Has the Kentucky Derby Whet Your Appetite for More?

Horse-racing season hoofed it into high gear with Saturday’s Kentucky Derby. If it left you hankering for a horseback ride, Darley Newman, host/producer of PBS’ Equitrekking, shares top spots to saddle up with USA TODAY’s Rebecca Heslin.

Totsonii Ranch:Canyon de Chelly, Ariz. Channel your inner John Wayne and trek through the wild West with Navajos as your guide. “On a longer ride into the canyon through small forests of Russian olive trees and across streams, you reach Spider Rock, an 800-foot sandstone spire,” Newman says. “You might feel dwarfed by the high cliff walls, some of which reach 1,000 feet, as you ride inside one of the largest sandstone canyons in the United States.” 928-266-5789

Vermont Icelandic Horse Farm:Waitsfield, Vt. Explore the country lanes of the Mad River Valley on an Icelandic horse. This breed is good for beginners because its “smaller stature makes them less intimidating to many riders,” Newman says. “Icelandic horses have been bred over the centuries to conquer the elements and terrain in Iceland, so riding year-round in Vermont is not a problem for the horses.” 802-496-7141; icelandichorses.com

Marriott Ranch:Hume, Va. This working ranch in Northern Virginia, owned by the Marriotts of hotel fame, is about an hour from Washington, D.C. Newman recommends this riding experience to East Coast families craving a Western-style ranch without the cross-country travel. “The ride to Paradise Valley, a favorite spot for the ranch’s exotic longhorn cattle to graze, passes quiet country streams and rolling hills in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains,” Newman says. 877-278-4574; marriottranch.com

Bardy’s Trail Rides:Seward, Alaska Scope the serene sights of this Alaskan harbor town by horseback with a local guide. “View wildlife like bald eagles and arctic tern as you ride through forests, across rivers and even on an Alaskan beach with snowcapped peaks in the distance,” Newman says. “On this trail ride, your guide will recount stories of what happened during the devastating 1964 earthquake.” 907-224-7863; sewardhorses.com

Horseback riders are seen near Spider Rock, in Canyon De Chelly, Ariz. Horse-racing season hoofs it into high gear after Saturday's Kentucky Derby.

The history of Alaska dates back to the end of the Upper Paleolithic Period (around 12,000 BC), when Asiatic groups crossed the Bering Land Bridge into what is now western Alaska. At the time of European contact by the Russian explorers, the area was populated by Alaska Native groups. The name “Alaska” derives from the Aleut word alaxsxaq, (an Archaic spelling being alyeska), meaning “mainland” (literally, “the object toward which the action of the sea is directed”).[1]

In the 1890s, gold rushes in Alaska and the nearby Yukon Territory brought thousands of miners and settlers to Alaska. Alaska was granted territorial status in 1912.

In 1942, three of the outer Aleutian Islands—Attu, Agattu and Kiska—were occupied by the Japanese and their recovery for the U. S. became a matter of national pride. The construction of military bases contributed to the population growth of some Alaskan cities.

Alaska was granted statehood on January 3, 1959.

In 1964, the massive “Good Friday Earthquake” killed 131 people and leveled several villages.

The 1968 discovery of oil at Prudhoe Bay and the 1977 completion of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline led to an oil boom. In 1989, the Exxon Valdez hit a reef in the Prince William Sound, spilling between 11 and 35 million US gallons (42,000 and 130,000 m³) of crude oil over 1,100 miles (1,600 km) of coastline. Today, the battle between philosophies of development and conservation is seen in the contentious debate over oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. National Hard Money Association Conference