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About Pine Ridge Estates

Pine Ridge Estates was developed specifically as a planned equestrian community, but it is also much, much more!

Pine Ridge Estates is located in the middle of Citrus County's rolling hills in an area known as the Central Ridge. It is actually a large 4,800 acre subdivision located within the town of Beverly Hills. However you can substitute Pine Ridge for Beverly Hills in your physical address, and the mail will still get to you. Pine Ridge Florida is really central to Citrus County, meaning you can literally get to almost any place in the county in 20 minutes or less.

Pine Ridge has the honor of being the largest equestrian center in Citrus County with 28 miles of horseback riding trails. The horse crossings are clearly marked from the road for safety and many residents take advantage of the horse riding trails to visit neighbors or go on organized trail rides.

Equestrian Complex
The Pine Ridge Equestrian Center boasts a stable that can accommodate up to 17 horses. The stable has a feed room, tack rooms, office, and hay storage. There is a lounge with a kitchen above the stable, which will accommodate up to 40 people.

The main arena measures 300' x 115' and is used for everyday schooling, drill team practice, and charity horse shows. The dressage arena is a separate 20 x 40 meter arena with dressage rail and lettered cones for schooling and lower levels of performance.

The pleasure trails are about 28 miles of interconnecting trails (Map), which wind through the Pine Ridge Estates community. You will find an abundance of wildlife and some areas of virgin woodlands while riding these trails. And lastly the round pen is 50' in diameter. Also see (map) of nearby Withlacoochee State Forest Equestrian Trails.

Pine Ridge Homes
The homes in Pine Ridge Estates represent country living at its best. The laid back, easy going lifestyle mixed with the unspoiled landscape makes for a perfect setting for a Pine Ridge home. Most of the homes in Pine Ridge are newer, and spacious in size.

The yards are immaculately landscaped, many with ornate columns and some with gated driveways. Horse owners have their fenced pastures right next to the house with a quaint horse barn in the back. Not everyone in Pine Ridge owns horses, some residents have devoted their time to flower gardens or even vegetable gardens while overs have man-made waterfalls and small fish ponds.

The options are abundant and Sherri Parker has intimate knowledge of the homes in Pine Ridge because she has lived there for several years with her own horses. Sherri is known as the “Pine Ridge Horse Property Expert”! If you are looking for your next home in a horse friendly community, Sherri Parker can help you find just the right home for you and your horses in Pine Ridge Florida.

Golf and Country Club
While a large part of the Pine Ridge community is devoted to the enjoyment of horses, there is also a sizable amount dedicated to country club living as well.

The Pine Ridge Golf and Country Club offers two courses, a par 72 main course, and the Little Pines, a par 3 executive course. Pine Ridge also has two putting greens, a driving range, and chipping greens.

The main Pine Ridge golf course features challenging woodland holes with rolling fairways that are not crowded with home sites. There is also a fully stocked Pro Shop and a bar and grill open daily.

Pine Ridge Estates has a well-appointed community center with daily activities. There are ample tennis courts, horse shoe pits, shuffle board and a new play ground. Integrated into this area's beautiful landscape is a championship caliber golf course that runs throughout the countryside. The Pine Ridge Estates community is private but close to everything. A wonderful place to raise a family or retire to an active lifestyle.

Community Center

The Pine Ridge Community Center is a hub of social activity. Located at the rear of the equestrian complex, the Pine Ridge Community Center offers many clubs and organized activities as well as a place to just get away and read a book.

Clubs include: sewing club, civic association, equestrian association, tennis committee, golf club, quilters club, radio controlled airplane flying club, bowling club, craft group, bridge club, and fishing club. Other activities at the Pine Ridge Community Center are yoga classes, poker night, aerobics classes, games night, and Mah Jongg.

Boating & Fishing
Citrus County is located right on the gulf coast of Florida and Kings Bay in nearby Crystal River is only minutes away. Although Pine Ridge Estates is a deed restricted community, you are allowed to park your boat on your own lot. A short drive to the free, public boat ramp in Crystal River and you can be out in the bay or in the Gulf of Mexico in minutes. There is even a small white sands beach at the end of Fort Island Trail in Crystal River.

You will enjoy the sight of sailboats, pleasure boats, fishing boats, kayaks, and jet skis in the area. You don't have to head far out into the gulf to experience some of the best saltwater fishing Florida has to offer. Record size tarpon are routinely caught just off the coast of Citrus County.

There are also seven rivers in and around Citrus County as well as dozens of lakes on the east side of the county. Lake Tsala Apopka in Inverness offers some excellent bass fishing as well as perch and blue gill.

Eco Friendly

Citrus County has set aside over 152,000 acres of its 683-square miles to preserve the native wildlife. Many of the rivers in the area are spring fed, pumping millions of crystal clear gallons of fresh water into the rivers every day.

The spring fed Crystal River ans Homosassa River are most well known as being home to the Florida Manatee. The constant 72 degree temperature of the spring waters act as an oasis for the warm blooded manatees during the cooler winter months. Nature lovers and adventurers travel from across the globe to witness these gentle giants in their natural habitat. You can even rent snorkel gear and swim with the manatees in this unique area of the world just minutes from Pine Ridge Florida.

Shopping, Dining, Entertainment
Although some would say Citrus County and Pine Ridge Estates are off the beaten path, it does offer many choices for shopping, dining, and entertainment.

The Crystal River Mall offers first run movies on 9 big screens, some big name stores like JC Penny, Belks, and Kmart as well as many smaller shops, like shoe stores, jewelry, music, art, and toys as well as a few food court options.

The historic downtown districts of both Crystal River and Inverness offer many quaint main street shops including antiques and collectibles, crafts, pottery, gift shops, clothing shops, art gallery and more. There are also several unique eateries, cafes, tea bars, ice cream shops, wine bars, taverns, pubs, and restaurants.

There are several waterfront dining options between Crystal River and Homosassa offering some of the freshest seafood that the gulf has to offer, from shrimp, to bay scallops blue crabs and fish as well as Apalachacola oysters. And you can always get a cold tropical drink at the tiki bars.

Crystal River hosts several annual festivals including the Manatee Festival, Stone Crab Jam, Scallop Jam, Fourth of July Fireworks, Scarecrow Festival, and Christmas Parade. Homosassa just down the road is home to the annual Homosassa Seafood Festival, and the Shrimpapalooza Festival. Inverness is also home to many festivals, most notably the Cooter Festival, named after the local cooter turtles that inhabit the many lakes and ponds.

If you still crave the big city action, Tampa Bay and the St. Pete area (65 miles) is only a little over and hour away via the Suncoast Parkway. You can enjoy all that the metropolitan area has to offer: major league sports, theater, plays, opera, beaches, and more chain restaurants than you can count. And when you have had your fill of the traffic and hustle and bustle, you can be right back home in just over an hour.

More About Sherri Parker
Excerpt from the Citrus County Chronicle
By Karen Kennedy-Hall

The lives of Glenn and Sherri parker are perfectly centered on their three horses and 17 acre horse farm in Pine Ridge Estates. In their spare time they also focus on volunteer work and giving back to the community.

Sherri focuses on her horses as well as her business. Many of their animals are rescues. The Parkers love to drive horses although they ride them as well.

But you won't find either of then saddling up to ride on horseback, because they don't ride. "We drive horses," both say, which means they're more horse and carriage equestrians, owning about a dozen carriages kept on the property in a carriage barn, next to the horse barn.

They do hit the trails both on their property and around Pine Ridge, but with one of their horses pulling a carriage and both securely seated next to each other. "It's more pleasure riding," said Sherri. "It's really nice to watch the sun go down," said Glenn of why he enjoys riding in the evenings.

In addition, the couple attends and competes in a number of driving horse shows each year. The competitions include horse and carriage events, called pleasure driving, and are usually dressage, obstacles and marathon events, according to the website www.AmericanDrivingSociety.org.

Sherri competes in dressage events and has received recognition. Wearing Victorian hats and 1890s apparel, driver and horse are judged on correct training, such as trotting and other steps, smooth transitions and accuracy, the website explained.

Glenn enjoys competing in the more fast-paced, demanding obstacles, involving two drivers. One driver, seated in the cart, or carriage, drives the horse, while the rear driver stands behind, shifting weight to the left and right quickly as needed to keep the cart balanced and avoid tipping on fast turns and rough terrain. "It's called heading the horse," Glenn said. "It's great fun and challenging."

At home though, they both say carriage driving is very relaxing. "Horses have spirituality," said Sherri. "if you're near a horse, it's so calming." Most people who may be troubled can relate to a horse and it helps them both emotionally and physically, said Sherri, who is a hippo-therapist, one who uses horses in therapy.

“Horses have real personalities. They bring so much joy to people, she said, referring to her many trips to nursing homes with her miniature horse, Taffy.... before she passed away. "When I'm tense, I go to the barn. It's calming," said Sherri. She has spent years nurturing the relationship with each of her horses.