Cowboy Way Adventures

Please do NOT go here. I had paid for a surprise horse back ride for my daughter’s bday. We showed up just a bit early. Charlie (who I was told owns the place) was still getting the horses ready. No big deal. We ended up starting the ride over 30 minutes late. Charlie had a young man, Wyatt, come riding with us. As soon as the ride began Charlie began cursing at Wyatt and using obscene language and was extremely unprofessional. Charlue began to become angry for no apparent reason. Charlie then left us on the trail. Wyatt went back to see why and what was going on and returned to tell us that he would have to finish the ride on his own. This is when I learned that Wyatt had only been working there for maybe a month. We were headed back when Wyatt lost control of his horse and it began running. This caused my daughter’s horse to run and she was knocked off. (Yes she was wearing a helmet) Charlie and Candace showed up as we were leaving as well as Wyatt’s grandmother. None of them ever denied that Charlie had been drinking or was drunk. The other party that was with us was a witness and realized he was drunk after we were on the trail. I wish I would have seen the Unilocal reviews before I wasted my money. My daughter ended up getting a concussion because Charlie left one person/​inexperienced person to handle 4 horses and Charlie was too drunk to do his job. Please do NOT go here and put yourself in the situation I found myself in. I will be looking into legal handling of this and to get this place shut down before more people get hurt.

One of the worst and scariest experiences of my life. Started out with a clearly hungover/​possibly still intoxicated and smelling of alcohol cowboy Charlie being very condescending and giving us a literally 35 seconds tutorial on how to ride a horse. I’ve never ridden a horse in my life. My 7 year old daughter had never been on a horse either. Great start, right? Our horses seemed a bit rebellious from the get go, unresponsive to steering and would not stop when we would pull back on reins.
About halfway through the ride, my 15 year old sister (who has had years of formal riding training) was on a horse who completely lost control THREE times, eventually throwing her from her saddle, to the ground, and she still has back pain a week later. Then, my mother’s horse loses its mind and goes into a full on sprint up a steep hill, knocking her into several cactus trees and eventually throwing her from the saddle, too!
Candace was very helpful and when my mother said she didn’t need to call an ambulance, Candace went to wrangle BOTH horses, which took quite a while to calm down. Candace’s horse, the one she was riding and from my understanding, her own personal horse, was very badly injured. My mother and sister ended up doubling up on my dad and daughter’s horses because they (understandably) did not want to get back onto the aggressive horses they were just thrown from, and Candace’s horse limped, sweating, all the way back to the ranch.
Awful Charlie showed back up with about 10 minutes left in the ride and started yelling at everyone (because he’s a lunatic), especially at Candace, and Candace was sobbing the rest of the ride, saying that she was quitting. I don’t blame her. Charlie seems like a real loose cannon and I feel horrible for Candace AND those horses.
NO ONE called the next day to follow up on how my mom and sister were doing. Don’t you think that’s odd? 2 of your guests were traumatized and injured and you don’t call to check up on them? When my mom called earlier today to speak to management, Crazy Charlie got on the phone and once again, started yelling at her. Something is CLEARLY not right with this place, and Charlie needs to go to detox pronto.

Ladies trip turned into unwanted Wild West reenactment, sheriff included!!! We (eight ladies) arrive at the cottonwood location to find our guide still saddling horses. No big deal as we understood he was behind due to another employee not showing up (?). We patiently waited and were about to get going when three sheriff vehicles pulled into the area. We came to find out from the deputies that they were there to follow up on an animal cruelty investigation. We of course became very concerned. As we were waiting and observing the horses and the pens we became even more concerned. They were down one worker so maybe the condition of the pens could be understandable… maybe. After one of our ladies (a horse owner) spoke to the deputy it was decided we would wait for him to examine the horses to decide whether we should continue with the ride. One horse was deemed «questionable» by the deputy and was going to require a call to the vet. This, OF COURSE, was enough to declare our ride not happening. We apologized to the guide with a large tip and our explanation that we were not comfortable riding an animal that is «questionable». As there were exactly enough horses at the site, a ride would not be possible. We tried calling the owner several times while we were there, no answer. Several messages were left over the next 2 days we were in the area. Finally, two days later, a call was received from Candace. She said that our money would not be refunded. She stated that we had signed the paperwork and that we made the decision not to ride. That the owners would not «let her» refund the money. One, that is a horrible way to run a business. Two, there wouldn’t have been enough horses to ride as one was deemed «questionable» by deputies. Finally, and most importantly, we would never give business to an establishment that did not take care of their animals. Since the owners refused a refund the credit card transaction is being contested

Absolutely worst experience I have ever had with customer service. We made a reservation which was paid in full. This was after calling over ten times to get a live person as they do not return calls. Given the weather conditions they cancelled on us with no notification. I have chased them down for a month for a refund and they don’t even return my phone calls. Credit card dispute was the only resolution to getting our money back. Unbelievably disappointed with our experience.

Showed up for our sunset ride that we scheduled and paid for with Candice weeks ago for our family of 4 and there was nobody there! We waited an hour anyway and a cowboy rides up, tried to help us figure it out but it didn’t really matter at that point. There were no guides, no healthy horses. Just 2 old horses in pens with almost no water and a donkey that had no water or food. on top of that their pens were full of poop! Full! All 6 or 8 stalls. Process my refund because there’s no way we’ll reschedule! What a depressing sight to see! I feel too guilty to post pics. Poor animals!
I called the next morning for a refund and got attitude from Candice. She was upset we wouldn’t reschedule! We waited for her and she’s annoyed with me? Definitely doesn’t make me happy. She tried to tell me they I must have left early because we weren’t there when she got back from her other ride at 4:30. I said no.. we were there over an hour and Charlie (an old cowboy who happened to come by) called you.. You said you didn’t know what he was taking about. She then said ok what happened was your ride was somehow rescheduled to Cottonwood. So she tried to lie about missing us! Unbelievable!
So since I wouldn’t reschedule she said she would process the refund on Friday (6 days later), that «they» wouldn’t let her. When I asked who «they» were she said her bosses. I told her I paid with my debit not a creditcard, that is the same as cash so I shouldn’t have to wait. I asked her to have her boss call me. She wouldn’t. She said she would process it today but it will take a week. Not good!

I did a ride with my family, including three kids (10, 8, & 6). We had a blast. The kids enjoyed having the horses run. They all thought is was so funny that if you made one horse run they would all start running, nobody wanted to be left behind. Candice was an amazing guide, she truly did a great job. She was exceptional when we were forced (by some grazing cows) to trail-​blaze. Candice was able to talk everyone through what they needed to do in order to make their horses go down into a wash and to then climb out. It was a great experience, one the will kids are still talking about (5 months later).

We did the two hour ride in Wickenburg. The views were beautiful and the ride was enjoyable. There was no river to cross at this location though which would have made it a little more fun! The only thing I have to complain about is the secretary that does the scheduling. I called and signed up for 3:00 and she told me to be there at 2:45. I called back to ask another question and I told her I was signed up for the 3:00 and she said my ride was at noon. I’m glad I called back or we would have missed our ride! We showed up there and another person who thought they were scheduled at noon was actually at 3:00.
So call back and verify to be sure! And bring water when you go!

We did a 2 hour tour in Cottonwood and Barney was our guide. We have a 6 and 8 year old and this was a fantastic tour. Barney was so good with the kids and super patient teaching them how to handle a horse. The ride was amazing and peaceful and when we return to Sedona in the future, we will use Cowboy Way again. Such a fantastic experience and one our kids will always remember!

Awesome! We had Bobbi as our guide and she was wonderful. Actually let us trot on the horses, which most horseback trail rides never allow. Truly up and down the mountain trail ride too. Super fun. Will definitely come back!

The company is disorganized and owner I’m surprised is in business by how he treats customers as the service from not calling back and changing booked rides was nothing I’ve ever experienced before. Knowing by experience how they are I would not even accept a free ride due to the principles of how they conduct business and the owner could care a less.

Had a great ride with Wrangler Josh today up in Cottonwood. Not your typical trail ride where horses are nose to butt the whole way. Got to ride separately from group if you felt you could handle it. Yes, the whole reservation system sucks but be patient because it is worth it.

Never ridden a horse in my life but Cowboy Way made it a great adventure!
The cowboys and cowgals were all very friendly and guided us down a safe and fun journey in the desert.
The tour was 3 hours and my horse «Grandma» was quite a sassy one! She took a while to liking me but once she knew I wasn’t going anywhere she took me for a great ride!
It was a great way to celebrate my best friends birthday and a try something new!

We had a friend coming into town and my wife booked the trip not realizing how far Wikenburg is from Phoenix. We made the drive and weren’t disappointed. Once my daughter turned six we went on a few horseback riding adventures. Based on these experiences, I can say that Cowboy Way Adventures is a professional outfit. We were greeted by a cowgirl, who I wish would have lead out trip as it was nice for my daughter to meet a non-​male cowperson. We walked around the nearby washes, and up and down some of the horse trails. As usual, I got one of the ornery horses, which turned out to be rather docile compared to the ornery horses I usually get. If you are new or a child, they give you a docile horse. I was warned that my horse might lie down in the sand on the way back, which I thought would be funny, but this never happened. No doubt, it was my riding skill. On past trips, the horses would go for the vegetation the entire trip. This seemed a lot rarer with the Cowboy Way horses. Before heading back, the trip leader had my daughter get her horse to trot. She loved it, and smiles when we talk about it. Although he kept a close watch over her, I felt like she was starting to learn the basics of directing her horse. Cowboy Way offers a variety of trips including moon light rides, dinners, and overnight excursions. I see another trip to Wikenburg in our near future.

It was great. In fact, I’m near speechless… The guides were VERY respectful while still being laid back and personable. Great at pairing horses to individuals’ backgrounds so if you’re more experienced, you have the opportunity to be with a horse that likes a faster gait. We only had four people plus a guide so it made everything much more personalized than the traditional «nose to butt» trail. Went through forest, open land, over logs, up/​down hills, through rivers… the experience was BEYOND amazing. Nothing dull about this ride especially because we were able to trot or even gallop, if we wanted to. Will DEFINITELY be back to ride with them in Paulden, AZ!!!

We found out about these guys through groupon and didn’t really know what to expect from the 2hr «guided tour». It turned out so much fun!
I’ve never rode a horse before, but my husband has — the tour is set so that no matter how advanced you are with horses, you’ll definitely enjoy it. The guides let you separate and run faster if you wish so or just follow them and stay on the safe side (that’s me lol). They watch everyone carefully though and always ask if everyone is alright to make sure you’re comfortable with your horse.
We were at the ranch in Paulden and it seemed like the best place for horseback riding — we went down pretty steep hills, rode along the stream, in the forest, in the field — it’s just such a gorgeous site!
Definitely recommend trying, it’s so worth the money spent!

Loved it! This was the 2^nd time we went horseback riding in Arizona or ever, but this place is my favorite so far! I liked how we actually got a bit of an adventure and just didn’t ride very slow w/​our horse in flat lands. We got to go on different terrain and up and down a couple small hills, I thought it was exciting. I felt very comfortable on my horse Moon and she really listened well. Our cowboy Dave was great, he had personality and seemed to really like people which made us feel very comfortable. His doggie Sadie is a gem. I can’t wait to go back again. Next time I think we will do the 3 hour ride because the area is beautiful and I love the rock formations all around. A nice bonus was the sun setting as we rode in– just seemed picture perfect. A huge thank you to all the cowboys that work that ranch they are very nice real genuine people.

I been on many trail rides but this was the best so far. Ususally you get a robotic horse that you can’t control and walk in a silent chain. But these guys really get into the «cowboy way» of life. These guys eat, sleep, and drink horses. They really talk to you and teach you about horses and the desert life. They like to keep groups small to keep it intimate. On the day we went it was just me and my wife.
Our guides Dave and Chris were very friendly, informative, personable and respectful. (Yes sir, no sir. Mr.____, Miss _​_​_​) .
They took us on a 2 hr ride through some very beautiful terrain which varied from sandy washes in narrow gulches to hill tops with panoramic mountain vistas. You WILL go up and down some steep hills so if you aren’t used to that on horseback you may be scared. But they teach you how to ride it. It is an «adventure» after all.
The time of day we went was 3−5pm. We got beautiful light on the rocks and watched the sun set.
The horses were very controllable and gentle.
Located conveniently on Rt. 60 right after the Wickenburg Inn a little over an hour outside of Phoenix. The address has changed to 800 Wickenburg Way. They recently moved.
I’d go back again as they have 10 radically different trails as well as a ranch in Prescott in the summer.