DeWitt Stables, Mesa

Cloud-capped mountains provide a majestic backdrop for DeWitt Stables, a full-service boarding and riding stable nestled along the Salt River. There, visitors may feel as though they’ve been transplanted into a Western movie, surrounded by high-stacked bails of hay, empty wagons resting unhinged, and roosters chugging energy drinks after a 4 a.m. call time. Horses bear riders along scenic trails during lessons or romantic dates and lead seasonal wagon rides through winter and autumn, when DeWitt Stables also opens its annual pumpkin patch. When they aren’t busy riding in parades or celebrating the changing seasons on the stables, staffers also host horse, mule, and wagon auctions and make birthdays extra special with petting-zoo parties.