LaDonna Heise is from Aiken and grew up in Hitchcock Woods riding her own ponies. She has always had the desire to share the gift of horseback riding and her love of Hitchcock Woods with her community. She has been offering trail rides in the woods for more than 10 years. She has had guests from Aiken, the surrounding area, and all over the world. She has hosted people with physical and mental limitations and been an outstanding and outspoken proponent for and steward of the Woods. It has never been a problem, until now. Hitchcock Woods Foundation (HWF) has taken the position that it is obligated under the conservation easement it granted the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources (SCDNR) to restrict commercial activity in the woods.  That easement is a publicly available document. Simply go to https://www.aikencountysc.gov/RMC/ and enter Book 901 and Page 132. A close reading of the easement reveals that HWF granted a conservation easement to SCDNR and promised to keep the property open to the public for, among other things, equestrian activity. Paragraph #3 cites a list of rights that HWF (the Grantor) reserves the rights for, and, in paragraph #7, HWF (the Grantor) is prohibited from certain enumerated activities, including conducting commercial activity, or having those activities done on the organization’s behalf.

LaDonna’s “commercial activity” is no different than a horse trainer riding a client’s horse or offering lessons in the woods, a dog walker walking a client’s dog, or a babysitter taking a child on a walk. LaDonna is allowing people to ride her personal horses, which she is very familiar with. She has owned and trained horses for over 50 years. Her horses are well trained and are assessed and matched with a rider beforehand.

The service LaDonna provides has allowed those of us who are unable, for any number of reasons, to own a horse. Given Aiken’s rich history with equestrian activities, especially the Hitchcock Family, one would think Hitchcock Woods Foundation would encourage horseback riding, in any capacity. Unfortunately, their current position seemingly favors those who own horses. 

It is time that that we, the public, hold SCDNR and our elected officials to the obligation of public office and ask that they hold HWF to the promise they made when donating the easement. LaDonna Heise offers rides in the Horse District, at the beach, and in the mountains. It is not, and has never been, exclusively done in Hitchcock Woods, but, make no mistake, HWF’s interpretation of the conservation easement serves to exclude a large majority of the public from the woods. The signatures on this petition are being collected in order to show SCDNR and our local elected officials just how many people support that we, the public, have just as much a right to equestrian access as those able to own their own horses.