Turner Falls success story: Carriage rides
DAVIS, Okla., (KTEN) — Lynn Diepenbrock and 4D Carriage Services have been taking people on horse-drawn carriage tours of Turner Falls Park for five years.
“We started with a little carriage on weekdays to see if it would work for us and see if it would work for Turner Falls, and it's become kind of a success story,“ Diepenbrock explained.
Carriage rides start at the trading post and by the waterfalls.
"Lots of people and lots of rides. It’s just a really neat way to see the park, especially if it’s your first time,” Diepenbrock said. “It's hard to understand how to get to the falls, and we explain where to go; tell them about the castle, the falls, and where the caves are.”
Lynn and his horses have drawn people to the park and kept them coming back.
“He has added a lot to the park. Some people come out just to see Lynn,” said interim park manager Cathi Neal." All the kids and adults are thrilled to have the horses down here, but it's not just him taking people down to the falls and back. His horses actually provide emotional support for my staff members sometimes. If we are having a bad day, we say, ‘Hey, Lynn can we come to see the horses?’ We just love on them, but just being around horses gives you a good feeling.“
That's how Diepenbrock aims to make every person feel when they finish a ride in the park.
“We try and slow down a little; life is too fast, to begin with, so we slow down, enjoy the ride, enjoy the horses,” Diepenbrock said.
Carriage rides will be available daily after Memorial Day and continue through the summer season.
“We have enough teams now where if the horses worked one day in the summer, they have the next day off, so we never try to overwork them,” Diepenbrock said.