Lynn BuShea and Patty Gates met each other occasionally at various horse networking events over the years. When they introduced their husbands on a trail ride in Florida nearly 10 years ago, the chance meeting evolved into a business partnership that became the impetus for Tennessee's premier land-development company.

When Lynn and Patty visited East Fork Stables they fell in love with the Cumberland Plateau and purchased land for their dream homes. "It was too beautiful to leave without owning," Lynn recalls.

Ken and Paul somewhat reluctantly visited Tennessee expecting to see some trees and a nice trail or two. Instead, they decided their wives were right. "Once you've seen this land, you'll wonder how you ever lived anywhere else," Ken says. "It's a horse-rider's haven and true paradise."

100 Years in the Making In the process of building their dream homes –– and stables for their horses –– the BuShea and Gates met the heirs of a pioneer named Bruno Gernt. The founder of the community of Allardt, Bruno Gernt had been the largest landowner in Fentress County, thousands of acres including the land that is now East Fork Stables, one of the nation's most popular riding venues.

When several spectacular tracts of land became available, the BuSheas and Gates formed a partnership with two of Gernt’s heirs to develop River Park on the Clear Fork as a community built around their love of horses and trail riding.

"We've done everything possible to make this the perfect community for horse lovers," notes Ed Wiley V, the managing partner of TRP and a sixth-generation resident of the Cumberland Plateau whose grandmother was a Gernt. "It's easy to ride nearly every day, either in the community's 120-acre waterfront recreational area, at East Fork, at the Big South Fork Preserve or at other near by parks."

To a large degree, the community's design was based on the developer's nearly 100 years combined riding experience. Both the Gates and BuSheas have been riding for more than 20 years: the BuSheas ride Paso Fino horses, Patty rides an Appaloosa Indian Shuffler and Paul prefers his Tennessee Walker.

Ken and Lynn have traveled the country with their horses and ridden at some of the nation's best venues, while the Gates have stayed closer to home, riding nearly all the venues in Florida, Georgia and Tennessee. "But we all love Tennessee and the Big South Fork more than anywhere else," Paul says.

"We jumped at the opportunity to introduce the Cumberland Plateau to other people, particularly riders," Ken adds. "There's nowhere else like it in the world and we're committed to making it a national destination for family reunions and outdoor recreation."

For more information on Tennessee Recreational Properties, visit www.tnrecprop.com.