Ocean View Stables · Daly City, on the San Francisco coast
Meet your horse. Then ride the coast.
Guided beach rides, horsemanship lessons and kids camps on the coastal bluffs of Daly City, fifteen minutes from downtown San Francisco. Every ride starts on the ground, next to your horse. No experience needed.
Booking opens on leydenhorsemanship.com, our booking site. Same barn, same team.
A working ranch on the bluffs above the Pacific, where every ride starts on the ground.
Ocean View Stables is the closest place to San Francisco where you can ride on the Pacific. It is a working barn on the coastal bluffs of Daly City: the herd, the arena, the round pens, and a trail that runs down toward the beach.
We teach Western horsemanship in the vaquero tradition, and one rule sits above the rest: the horse comes first. Come for a beach ride or come to learn. Either way, you start next to your horse.
Two names, one barn. Ocean View Stables is the ranch. Leyden Horsemanship is the teaching program we run here, and the site where you book.
Ways to ride
Choose your way in
Ages 8 and up
Beach and trail rides
Groundwork at the barn, then a guided ride on the bluff trail toward the Pacific. Plan for 75 to 90 minutes, including check-in and a safety orientation.
Ages 3 and up
Horsemanship lessons
Western horsemanship in the vaquero tradition, taught at the barn and in the arena. Every student starts at Level 1, on the ground.
Summer and holiday camps
Kids horse camps
Day camp at the barn, 9 AM to 3 PM. Each camper is assigned a camp horse to catch, groom, saddle and ride.
Private and group
Private rides, parties and stays
A private VIP ride, birthday parties, corporate days, weddings through OVS Weddings, and pods on the bluff.
Also here: arena pony rides for little ones, horse photography sessions and horse boarding.
How a ride goes
Meet your horse. Learn to communicate. Head for the coast.
01 · At the barn
Meet your horse
Check in at the barn office 20 minutes before your start time. You are fitted for a helmet, you sign the participant agreement, and you meet the horse you will ride. We match each rider to a suitable horse from the herd.
02 · Groundwork
Learn to communicate
Your guide starts on the ground with a hands-on introduction to horse behavior and safety: how to approach a horse at the shoulder, how to handle it, and how to stay safe around it. Riding instruction follows, under close supervision. Nobody heads out until the team sees each rider is ready.
03 · The bluff trail
Head for the coast
Out along the bluff trail with your guide the whole way, and down onto the sand when the tide allows. Beach access depends on the tide and is not guaranteed on any given ride. Then back to the barn.
Plan for 75 to 90 minutes, including check-in and a safety orientation.
How we teach
Soft is strong. Clarity is kindness.
From Soft Is Strong: The Art of Horsemanship, by Zachary Leyden with Kalea Leyden
We teach inside the lineage Tom Dorrance opened and Ray Hunt and Buck Brannaman carried forward. Three things run through all of it: feel, timing and balance. The language is pressure and release: ask with the smallest pressure that gets a try, and release the instant you get it.
Our standard asks one thing of everyone who handles the herd: leave every person and every horse calmer, safer and more willing than you found them.
Where we ride
On the bluffs in Daly City
2152 Olympic Way, Daly City, CA 94015. Fifteen minutes from downtown San Francisco; traffic can stretch that. Minutes from the San Francisco Zoo.
What riders say
From our Google reviews
“The trail is absolutely beautiful. The views are not just a flat beach. You ride a gorgeous trail with vegetation and cliffside views as well as the beach.”
Stephanie, on Google
“I loved feeling no pressure as a beginner, being taught the basics and supported along the whole ride. The scenery was unreal, and they even took pictures along the way…”
Alie R., on Google
Quoted as written; an ellipsis marks where a review is shortened.
“…Beautiful views, the horses are well taken care of, and the trail is just gorgeous. Staff is amazing…”
Kerie O., on Google
The people
Zachary and Kalea Leyden
Zachary and Kalea Leyden lead the horsemanship program at Ocean View Stables. Kalea is the architect of the Leyden Horsemanship process and heads instruction. Zachary, a U.S. Army veteran, is the engineer of the process: the systems and procedures behind the teaching.
Plan your visit
Before you come out
Arrive 20 minutes early
Check in at the barn office, get fitted for a helmet and finish your paperwork. Everything here is by appointment, with no walk-ins.
Dress for the coast
Long pants, closed-toe shoes or boots with a slight heel, and layers. It is often cooler and windier here than in the city.
Who can ride
Beach and trail rides from age 8. Lessons and arena pony rides from age 3. Riders under 250 lbs, able to mount and dismount with minimal assistance.
Helmets and the waiver
ASTM-certified helmets are provided, and riders under 18 must wear one. Everyone signs the participant agreement before any hands-on time with a horse.
Come meet the herd.
Book a beach ride, or start with a lesson. Either way, you begin on the ground.
Questions first? Send us a message.