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NBLA Trail Notes: 2026 Activities Being Planned

By Tracy Van Buskirk

Published: Dec 18, 2025 7:00 am

Newtown Bridle Lands Association’s (NBLA) Board of Directors recently met to start to plan out its 2026 activities and events. NBLA hosts educational seminars, group trail rides, demonstrations, and participatory clinics, not to mention the annual Frost on the Pumpkin Hunter Pace that takes place on the last Sunday in October.

Most dates for events are not yet confirmed, but it is looking to be a very stimulating year for our horse-loving members. The educational seminars will most likely include a talk about feeding considerations for the New England horse, fire safety in the barn, and proper methods for on-site composting of manure and shavings. We are also looking forward to several show and go trail rides where we introduce or re-familiarize our members with horse-friendly trails in town. This year, we will go to Huntington Park, a large parcel of land in the Hundred Acres area that was recently opened up to trail riding, and a ride starting at the parking area by Fosdick Preserve and going all the way to Cherry Grove Farm. Do you have some ideas for seminars or activities? Drop us a line at newtownhorses@gmail.com.

Clinics, whether hands-on or demonstrations, will also be part of the agenda. We are hoping to get a favorite animal communicator and energy worker to return, and we are planning on a Working Equitation clinic, a discipline that is growing quickly in popularity.

Please mark your calendars for our annual All Members Meeting scheduled for Tuesday, March 24 at Newtown Community Center. You must be a member to attend, which is easy to do by visiting nblact.org. Annual fees are very reasonable, whether individual, family, or barn type memberships.

Membership has grown by a whopping 87% since 2022 and we now have 157 current members! Not all our members live in Newtown or own a horse. What they do share is a love of horses and a desire to learn more and socialize with like-minded people. All riding disciplines are welcome.

As always, we are grateful to all the property owners who allow us to ride our horses on their land. These include private landowners, the Town of Newtown, the State of Connecticut, and Newtown Forest Association. Kudos to them all!

Tracy Van Buskirk is a 40 year resident of Newtown and president of Newtown Bridle Lands Association, at nblact.org, a nonprofit volunteer organization formed in 1978 to foster an interest in horseback riding as well as preserving, protecting, and maintaining riding and hiking trails in the community. Horses have always been a part of her life. She owns a small bay quarter horse named Little Bear.

Tracy Van Buskirk with Little Bear. —photo courtesy Peter Van Buskirk

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NBLA Trail Notes: 2026 Activities Being Planned

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