From the moment the title screen runs and you see Link riding his horse across Hyrule Field in front of the moon, the need to ride a horse becomes the only thing you can think about. It's such a cool feeling and by far the quickest way of getting from A to B in the game.
Need to get from Lake Hylia to Gerudo Valley quickly? Got some fences you need to jump over? Just don't want to walk? Epona is the answer.
So how do you get Epona? Well, you get Epona from Lon Lon Ranch, a small ranch in Hyrule Field and the only other notable place in the middle of the map. Don't head there just yet, however, because you'll only find the annoying groundskeeper, Ingo, and no one else.
Instead, carry on to Hyrule Castle Town and head inside to the Market. On your right, there's a door you can enter. If you've never played Ocarina of Time before, then this room is legendary; it's filled with pots that you can throw to get rupees out of, and they reappear when you come back into the room. See the boxes near to the bored guard? It's moving; slash it with your sword and a Golden Skulltula will come out. Get the token and carry on.
There will be a little cutscene, and then you'll see how amazing the new castle looks. You'll also see a milk cart attached to a horse, and a small girl looking bored behind it.
Chat to her, and she'll introduce herself as Malon, the daughter of the owner of Lon Lon Ranch. She tells you that her dad is probably asleep somewhere, and she gives you You can't get through the gate into the castle as it's guarded, and there's a huge portcullis there, but if you head back around to the wall near the singular tree that you passed on the way in, you'll see some vines that you can climb up to get to a platform.
She'll give you a Cucco egg that will hatch with one cycle of day and night. This is what you'll use to wake Talon up when you get to the castle.
Climb the vines near Malon. They'll lead you up onto a walkway that gives you a great view of the castle and outlying town.
Make your way along the path - there's another set of vines to climb that bring you onto a parapet. You can either climb down the ladder in the hatch or run off the edge of the parapet and hold forward to roll when you land.
Make your way towards the conspicuous-looking crack in the wall against the wall (this will need blowing up later), then double back on yourself over the flowers and grass. There are guards further ahead up the path that you don't want to come into contact with, so you'll need to be stealthy here.
There's a path here that you can follow through some hedges. You'll need to go forward and then veer slightly to the left to avoid the guards, veering around a tree as you head towards another climbable area. Head up here, and you'll find yourself in a little guard room/storage area with a Gossip Stone.
Head forward until you see the small moat that goes around the castle. You'll need to dive into the water and swim along here so that the guards don't find you, coming up some steps next to the railings.
Here, you'll find Talon sleeping. Use the Cucco to wake him up, and after a little cutscene spiel, he'll head back to Malon and Lon Lon Ranch.
At this point, you can carry on and see Princess Zelda by pushing the blocks down into the water and crawling through the hole into the castle grounds. This section has also changed from the original, so keep an eye out for a guide on this soon. Or, if you really want to nail down Epona asap, you can leave Hyrule Castle Town and go to Lon Lon Ranch, as waking Talon activates the Epona part of the story.
Lon Lon Ranch
As you leave Hyrule Castle Town through the main gate, you end up looking right at the main entrance to Lon Lon Ranch. Head across the field and into the ranch.
You'll get a brief overview of the farm and see horses running in a little cutscene, and then you can explore. There's a door to your left as you head towards the main horsefield. Malon is asleep in here, but he'll wake up and challenge you to a Cucco catching game where you can win your first bottle of Lon Lon Milk, as well as getting your first bottle that you can use to hold bugs, water, and potions inside.
You can kind of see where he throws the Cuccos if you follow the general direction of their shadows, but to be honest, it's just a guessing game for two out of the three of them. You get 30 seconds to pick them up and find his Super Cuccos amongst the normal ones, but it's plenty of time and doesn't take long.
Once you've got the milk, you can either go and talk to Ingo in the cow shed, or you can head into the main pen and talk to Malon. She'll introduce you to Epona, but Epona will run off as she's frightened. She'll ask you to accompany her song with your Ocarina, and you'll learn Epona's song. Epona will come and nudge you, and the bond that will help you out as Adult Link will finally be born.
The First Piece of Heart
In the very far corner of Lon Lon Ranch is an old shed. It's set back against the horse field and doesn't seem like it has much in it.
Once inside, move the boxes to create a space behind the broken railings. If you get stuck, just move the right-hand block against the railings back towards you, and then move the middle block that's still sitting against the railings to the right.
You'll discover a small hole that you can crawl through to get a Piece of Heart. Get four of these, and you'll make a new heart container at the top of the screen.
