Saddle up - Norco

Carly Ramsey,11, of Norco turns the reins on her pony Misty to head home after stopping at the Rite Aid to run an errand for her mom. Many stores and restaurants in Norco have hitching posts.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

The Santa Ana River trail is a popular and picturesque place to ride in Norco, located in northern Riverside County. Norco is one of the last remaining horse towns.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Lela Barcelona of Tustin presses the crosswalk button while riding her horse along the trails of Norco. The town has raised the crosswalk buttons to accommodate riders.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Michelle Tovani spends time training her horse Cheyenne at the River Ranch in Norco. She wants to take her horse along the neighborhood trails but needs to desensitize him to car sounds and other noises that could spook him.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Horse trainer Edward “Buzz” Riebschlager feeds his horse alfalfa cubes at his ranch in Norco. He is an advocate for mandatory manure collection, an issue that is dividing the city.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Judee Haddock shovels horse manure into a wheelbarrow inside one of her corrals at her home in Norco. She uses the manure in her gardens, but soon the city may enact strict policies which would require her to dispose of the manure in a dumpster.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Haddock keeps her rooster Dead Eye in a playpen in her bedroom while he recuperates from a broken leg. She is fond of all her chickens, cats, roosters and horses.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Juan Sanchez of Norco unhitches his horse in a parking lot after making a stop at a market off Sixth Street.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Sanchez pushes the corral door open as he rides his horse home from the market off Sixth Street in Norco. Most of the neighborhoods in Norco are connected with horse trails and the stores and restaurants have hitching posts. Norco is the self-proclaimed “Horsetown USA.”  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

As the setting sun streaks through the front door, patrons enjoy conversation at the Saddle Sore Saloon in Norco. The saloon has a hitching post out front to accommodate patrons who arrive on horseback.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

A cowboy stares at the setting sun from inside the Saddle Sore Saloon. Norco is considered one of the last remaining horse towns.  (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)