Anyone who wants a change of pace and is drawn to the wild, wild, West doesn't have to fly to the Mainland: It's possible to ride the trail on all of our Islands

Horses may not be able to speak, but Franklin Levinson believes they rank among life's greatest teachers. "Through interaction with horses, we can get to know ourselves better," asserts Levinson, a well-respected horseman, riding instructor and trainer. "They show us who we are by reflecting ourselves back to us whenever we enter their space. Either calm, peaceful and confident, or nervous and fearful, will be their response, depending on which we bring to them."

Levinson launched The Maui Horse Whisperer Experience in July 1998. Offered as a half- or full-day session, it adds an educational option to the trail rides his company, Adventures on Horseback, has been running since 1982 in verdant Huelo. Levinson describes the experience as "playing, dancing and communicating with one of nature's most exquisite and revered species - the horse. Participants get to walk, talk, whisper, ride and join with horses during one of the most wonderful days they could ever have."

The program features a lecture and demonstration by Levinson on the "horse whisperer" training technique that became widely known after Nicholas Evans' 1995 book and Robert Redford's 1997 movie of the same name.

It employs gentle, confident movements, body positioning and spoken commands to direct a horse to walk, trot, canter, follow and change direction without a single touch of the whip. Participants then enter the corral, one by one, to execute the cues themselves.

"When you begin to learn this language, you'll discover that horses are not so different and separate from us," Levinson says. "Thoughtfulness, sensitivity, perceptiveness and quiet strength must all be in place in order to have a truly successful relationship with horses. It takes the same qualities and awareness for us to have rewarding relationships with each other.

"The cognitive and communication skills, patience, timing and intuition we practice while playing with horses is carried home with us, stays with us and becomes a more conscious part of our daily lives. This is life enhancement at its best."