by Michael Wren
CARLISLE, NY — A beautiful autumn weekend on Oct. 6 and 7 marked the fifth annual open house at HBH Clydesdales. Here, families and friends come together to take horse-drawn wagon rides and watch the grace and power of Clydesdales. Throughout the day attendees would line up for their chance to ride the wagon around the grounds. There were also children’s activities in the barn as well as food, mums and pumpkins for sale. Vendors come to the event each year to sell homemade wares. The Schoharie Valley Animal Shelter hosted a bake sale and kitten adoption at the event with one kitten finding his forever home.
HBH Clydesdales started in 1988 in Sand Lake, NY, and moved to their current location in Carlisle in 2012. HBH is owned by John and Stephanie Leavitt and provides services throughout the year including providing horse-drawn carriage rides at weddings, proms and parades as well as offering horse-drawn sleigh rides in winter. The farm is kept running smoothly by the help of friends and family volunteers. In addition to the nine Clydesdales on the farm there are also goats, chickens and a mini horse on location.
HBH also hosts 4-H and school groups from Schenectady and offers the opportunity for children who have never seen horses to see what life is like on the farm. “We love having groups come to see the horses. A lot of them have never been to a farm,” said John Leavitt.
Since moving to the new location in Carlisle, HBH Clydesdales has seen a growth in weddings and parades. HBH has already built another building to house food services and plans to add more in the future.
For more information about HBH Clydesdales you can visit their Facebook page at facebook.com/HBH-Clydesdales.