Things to Do in Whitewater

Dedicated to fostering social change by bringing the community together, the YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee engages denizens through a host of activities, events, and educational programs. The organization's focus can be distilled into three parts, the first of which promotes the development of area youth via programs that help them realize their potential. Secondly, a commitment to bettering the community's health manifests itself in everything from group exercise classes to youth sports teams. Thirdly, YMCA volunteers take the reigns of social responsibility as they organize local initiatives that focus on empowering children with disabilities and promoting workplace wellness. Trained staffers also helm a variety of childcare programs that boost literacy and help develop skills, and the Y's Camps Matawa and Minikani grant city dwellers and runaway trees a much-needed reunion with nature.

At Bouncy Town USA, children cavort, slide, and bounce across five inflatable structures. Regular hours encourage kids to make friends across the padded bounce floor, while parties make memories out of birthdays with private rooms, pizza, and cupcakes. On some days, Bouncy Town USA welcomes kids for drop off while parents enjoy a night out.

Between the dark, black walls at The Lazer Maze, green beams of light stretch from one wall to another, striking anyone willing to venture through their neon labyrinth. Levels of difficulty vary as beginners and pros nimbly crouch, tumble, and Macarena over and under laser beams, trying to beat the best time. The staff also equips a 3000-square-foot party room with party lighting, music, fog, and bubbles for birthday parties and other social events.

J&J Tumbling, Trampoline, Dance & Swimming's team of athletic instructors strives to create a fun, enjoyable learning environment where kids and adults can master skills in a variety of sports, including cheerleading, swimming, and gymnastics. Within the facility's spacious gym, parents watch from the balcony as their offspring spring on five Olympic-sized trampolines and flip onto the surrounding safety mats and foam pits. A 50'x28' saltwater pool kept at a toasty 89 degrees sections off into four lap lanes where swimmers practice their breast strokes and water-walking lizards train for relay races. The sturdy hardwood floors of their dance studio weather the fiery footsteps of students learning ballet, jazz, and hip-hop gesticulations. J&J's fitness classes keep adult exercisers in fine fettle with workout routines such as lap swim, aerobics, yoga, and Zumba.

Pepper Hill Farm owner Erica Savary passes on more than two decades of riding experience during lessons, assisted by experienced equine instructors. The farm specializes in Saddleseat, a non-jumping form of English riding, and Erica tailors lessons to each rider’s goals, whether they would like to ride for enjoyment, compete in shows, or save gas money by traveling via the original horsepower. Lessons take place inside a heated indoor arena with a second-story viewing lounge, where friends and relatives can watch.