Ionia Horse Trails Association
To Preserve and Protect
Monthly Newsletter
May 2008 Newsletter
The horses are shedding, it must be Spring. Not a minute too soon
either. Time to forget all those icy roads and emergency weather reports
and enjoy our beautiful state parks in Michigan. With the cleaning done in
April, we hope to have a great turnout for the May campout. It will be on
May 16 through 18. The Missouri Fox Trotter club is hosting a memorial ride
on Saturday, May 17 in honor of Chuck Potter who was a long time member of
their organization and supporter of both the Fox Trotter breed and the
trails in the Ionia Recreation Area. Come and help both groups celebrate
his life.
The club jackets that have been ordered are in. Contact Rob or Vicki
Potter for where to pick them up or better yet, come to a campout.
Our park manager has these advisories for us:
1. As we may still have stumps to remove in the campground, use care when
backing up trailers.
2. Riders are encouraged to let our staff know about any safety or
maintenance concerns on the trail. Due to staffing and muddy trail
conditions, we have not gotten out to assess any storm related damage at
this date. Specific location information will be helpful.
3. Spring turkey season opened on April 21 so riders may encounter hunters
along the trail. The season ends May 31.
4. Any individual or group contemplating an event in the park must submit a
Land Use Application (available from the park) as far as possible before the
event dates.
5. The camping fee for equestrian groups of 5 or more camps in the Group
Campground is still $17 per camp per night. There is, however, an
additional $8 registration fee for these camps. There is no longer a
registration fee in the Equestrian Campground if you come in without a
reservation.
Our summer meetings will be held at the campouts on Saturday evening
after our potluck dinner. This year our breakfasts will be in the group
headquarters area with everyone bringing something to share. The cooking
facilities will be furnished. This will help cut down on expenses so we
will have more money to use for the park.
Submitted by Norma Kilpatrick
PRIL 2008 Newsletter
The horses are shedding, it must be Spring. Not a minute too soon
either. Time to forget all those icy roads and emergency weather reports
and enjoy our beautiful state parks in Michigan. With the cleaning done in
April, we hope to have a great turnout for the May campout. It will be on
May 16 through 18. The Missouri Fox Trotter club is hosting a memorial ride
on Saturday, May 17 in honor of Chuck Potter who was a long time member of
their organization and supporter of both the Fox Trotter breed and the
trails in the Ionia Recreation Area. Come and help both groups celebrate
his life.
The club jackets that have been ordered are in. Contact Rob or Vicki
Potter for where to pick them up or better yet, come to a campout.
Our park manager has these advisories for us:
1. As we may still have stumps to remove in the campground, use care when
backing up trailers.
2. Riders are encouraged to let our staff know about any safety or
maintenance concerns on the trail. Due to staffing and muddy trail
conditions, we have not gotten out to assess any storm related damage at
this date. Specific location information will be helpful.
3. Spring turkey season opened on April 21 so riders may encounter hunters
along the trail. The season ends May 31.
4. Any individual or group contemplating an event in the park must submit a
Land Use Application (available from the park) as far as possible before the
event dates.
5. The camping fee for equestrian groups of 5 or more camps in the Group
Campground is still $17 per camp per night. There is, however, an
additional $8 registration fee for these camps. There is no longer a
registration fee in the Equestrian Campground if you come in without a
reservation.
Our summer meetings will be held at the campouts on Saturday evening
after our potluck dinner. This year our breakfasts will be in the group
headquarters area with everyone bringing something to share. The cooking
facilities will be furnished. This will help cut down on expenses so we
will have more money to use for the park.
Submitted by Norma Kilpatrick
March has been a very busy month for the IHTA members, first our meeting was held on the first at Jerry's Restaurant in Portland,then the next Friday, Saturday and Sunday was the Horse Expo and the next Saturday we had a table at the Saranac Tack Sale and that's not all because there is a work bee at the park on Saturday, March 29 at 9 am in the Equestrian Campground. Help is needed!!
We would like to express our sympathy to Bob Walker and family for the loss of his father.
At the board meeting, it was decided to apply for the Michigan Horse Council's trail grant to be used to improve the Meadow loop of the Ionia trail to accomodate carts. We have received several requests from our driving friends for a place to use their carts. The Trails Committee is putting together a plan of projects for the season.
Gale Moore and Bob Walker will be attending a Trails Design Seminar sponsored by the Wisconsin State Horse Council on April 30 through May 4. They should bring back some usable ideas for our park.
The April camp out is our annual work bee campout. You may earn your camping fees for the weekend by working for 4 or more hours. The date is April 25 -27. There will be time to ride too. IF you can't stay the whole weekend, come and help out on Saturday morning.
May 16 - 18 has been selected for the joint camp out with the Missouri Fox Trotter club as a memorial to Chuck Potter who was a very active member of both clubs. We hope to see many members of both groups that weekend.
We now have our own domain website and you can reach it by entering "Ionia Horse Trails Association". Be sure to check the website occasionally since the latest information can be found there. We thank our website manager, Wendy Walker.
Our June camp out will include a Saddle Up for St Judes ride on Saturday, June 28. We will be camping in the organization campground for this event. The ride is open to all and prizes will be given in several categories. For more information you may phone (517)285-8583 or email walkerranch200@aol.com.
SEE YOU AT THE WORK BEE CAMP OUT ON APRIL 25 - 27.
Submitted by Norma Kilpatrick
March 2008 Newsletter
Wow, are we having an old fashioned winter or what? The IHTA workbee scheduled for February 9th had to be cancelled due to the snowstorm and inaccessibility of the roads. Watch the website for rescheduled workbees. I am sure there will be several more scheduled as we move into Spring.
We will have a table in the Trails Room at the Michigan Horse Council's 25th annual Stallion Exhibition and Trade Show. Be sure to stop in and see what is planned for the 2008 trail riding season. If you have some spare time to help at the table, you can email Rob or Wendy at
rgvkpotter@yahoo.com or WalkerRanch2000@aol.com respectively. If you have never been to the Expo, you are in for a horse lovers treat.
Not only can you buy anything related to horses, you can learn from the seminars and be entertained by the demonstrations. It is located at the Livestock Pavilion at Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI on Farm Lane just south of Mt. Hope Rd.
At this years Expo, there will be a Trails Summit Meeting on Saturday, March 8 from 5:30 -6:30 in the Auditorium. This will be an open forum devoted to identifying common problems facing Equestrian Trails and Trail Riders in Michigan. Please notify your friends and any other trail riders you know about this meeting. For additional information about this meeting, visit the MHC website: www.michiganhorsecouncil.com or contact Sharene Kessler, Trails Chair at time2ride@yahoo.com or phone (586)776-7991.
Here is a recap of our campout dates for 2008. Each one has a special feature and we will do some trail maintenance also. They are April 25 - 27, June 27 -29, July 18 - 20, Aug. 22 -24, Sept. 26 - 28, and Oct. 17 - 19. Please put these dates on your calendars now.
Hopefully, by the time you read this, the sun will be shining and the temperature raising. Think Spring!
submitted by Norma Kilpatrick
February 2008 Newsletter
The Christmas party will be held January 12 from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Park Headquarters building. The club will furnish the meat dishes, Swiss Steak and Chicken, and everyone is asked to bring a dish to pass. Our auction will not be silent this year so come prepared to bid! We also need items to auction, horse related or other useful or ornamental items are good. Just a reminder that no alcohol is allowed in the park.
After the Christmas party, we will hold the January meeting. It is hoped that we can plan our years calendar of events at this time . It has been suggested that we reserve a block of campsites for the club when we camp so all can be in the same area. We will discuss this also.
Those of us who use the trails at Ionia really owe a debt of gratitude to the hard working work bee crews that show up to work nearly every time. We need to show our appreciation by thanking these people, Bob Keilholtz, Rob Potter, Gale Moore, Bob and Wendy Walker, Tara Sowa, Lea Burger, Vicki Potter and Ceaira Potter. Many others help when they can and we thank everyone. At the workbee held on Dec. 8, trees that park employees had felled were cut up and stacked and other marked ones were cut down and cut up and stacked, all in the Equestrian campground. Some of those trees in the campground were becoming a hazzard when the wind blows as it does rather frequently in Michigan. The eye bolts on all of the tie posts were checked by Wendy and Vicki.
There is a correction that needs to be made from the December newsletter. The fee for camping in the Modern Campground is going up from $17 to$19. It is still a bargain. Has anyone stayed in a $19 dollar motel lately?
Wishing you Happy Trails in 2008.
Submitted by Norma Kilpatrick
