Flagstaff, AZ Outdoor Activities

Just south of the gateway to the Grand Canyon stands Bearizona, a drive-thru wildlife exhibit that regales creature-seeking carpools with bison, mountain goats, and other animals from the comfort of their own automobile. The 3-mile drive takes guests through sprawling enclosures, where they can peer in on packs of cuddly arctic wolves or ask black bears for directions to the nearest stocked cooler. After traversing the park’s drive-thru section, visitors can stroll through the forested Fort Bearizona enclosure, which houses exhibits of smaller animals and Bearizona Barnyard, an interactive petting zoo.

Juniper trees, prickly pear cacti, and other desert flora shade the rugged Sedona landscape, where A Day in the West's knowledgeable tour guides roam under the guidance of the outfit's owner, John Bradshaw, who's also the son of prolific Western movie star Bob Bradshaw. In fully equipped jeeps with four-wheel drive, they marshal adventurous sightseers on tours past sites such as the Mogollon Rim and historic Van Deren Cabin. For less rugged tracks, the team shepherds visitors on horseback along scenic trails, stopping for occasional alfresco picnics or dinners, shows, and elective hoof-implant surgeries. Future ascenders can check here for helpful tips on weather, clothing, and recommended accessories.

From the highest point of Adventures Out West's Colorado Springs trail rides, riders on horseback have a view of not just one mountain range, but three. Since giving their first tour in 1973, the guides of Adventures Out West have created many such scenic jaunts through Colorado and Arizona that deposit participants directly into the most beautiful parts of the local geography. Whether soaring over snowcapped mountains from the basket of a hot-air balloon or fly-fishing in the South Platte River, patrons get a chance to interact firsthand with all of nature's local sights, sounds, and whoopee-cushion gags.

Sedona Red Rock Adventures' founder, Jim Reich, credits his father with nurturing a love of nature in their home outside New York City. As an adult, Jim transplanted his passion for the outdoors to the crimson boulders of Sedona after encouragement from a friend and fellow outdoorsman. A Western backdrop for movies during the 1940s and '60s, Sedona covers 19 square miles in the middle of scarlet bluffs, canyons, and Native American ruins and petroglyphs. Jim and his canine sidekick, Summit, share their affinity for fresh air through diverse tours that range from daylong jaunts into the Grand Canyon to the exploration of nocturnal wildlife during full-moon adventures. He adheres to Leave No Trace protocols, leaving nearby national parks free from litter or speakers blaring the theme from Chariots of Fire.

Jim powers all of his tours, including voyages through wine country and microbreweries, with drinks and snacks, and invites pooches along for the ride. He also snaps photos so that patrons can always remember the time they dropped their digital camera into the Grand Canyon.

Recommended by Frommer's travel guide, Unicorn Balloon Company leads guided excursions through the aerial spectacles of the Sonoran Desert's landscapes and environs. Smoothly ascending sunrise and sunset tours provide an easygoing and elevated trip through the panoramic desert and mountain terrain, which includes resilient flora such as saguaro cacti, palo verde trees, and distant mountain ranges assembled by packs of Paleolithic tailgaters. The wicker baskets float above vegetation and discreetly hover over animal habitats, with occasional views of coyotes, jackrabbits, desert mule deer, and javelinas. Each 100-foot balloon drifts at heights from just above treetop levels to 3,000 feet above the ground, carefully following wind currents to prevent turbulence and stay on the scent trail of musky airplane pilots.

After retiring from competitive professional cycling, Scott Keller and Will Geurts decided to share the joys of the worldview from atop a bike with the next generation of cyclists. The pair conducts anywhere from two-hour to five-day forays into Sedona’s airy wilderness, providing expert coaching to riders throughout the desert journey through towering red-rock formations under a never-ending sky. Their solid advice and encouragement keep pedals moving and the scenery rolling past as they imbue others with the passion that led them to spend a lifetime with the sport and replace the lower half of their bodies with bicycle frames.