Amazing ride and beautiful views on Murray Canyon trail. Great crew too! See you next time! read more

Smoke Tree Stables - Horseback Riding Near Me - Palm Springs, California

We loved the beautiful trail ride in the canyon. The staff is very helpful and loved that its a private owned business and that they are very in tune with the customers. Animals are very well taken care of. Great job Smoke tree stables. read more

We had an amazing time yesterday! My husband surprised me for our anniversary! Murray Canyon was beautiful and Morty was my buddy for the day. read more

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Had a wonderful time with Ed and the lovely horses from Smoke Tree Stables! Getting into the park was a breeze and the ride was such a fun experience. We could not have asked for better weather or a better guide. Big Thanks to Ed, Shorty & Morty! read more

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Great experience, beautiful views, best company! The crew was extremely helpful, sweet and friendly. Willis - my horse, was the cutest thing I would absolutely recommend this and will do this again. read more

I had a fabulous trail ride! Buck, one of the guides, was a joy to chat with during the ride, answering lots of questions and sharing info about the canyon. Everyone I dealt with at Smoke Tree, from when I made my reservation through the end of the ride, were pleasant and professional. The horses were fit and well-taken care of, and navigated the rocky, hilly terrain sure-footed making even new riders feel confident. Thank you for a wonderful couple hours away from it all! It was the highlight of my trip to Palm Springs. read more

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Today is my birthday. I love horses and my husband found this place It was a 10 star stable. The horses, the people, the dog were so so nice. The ride was almost two hours and need I say it was the best ride. The view that you get to see and hear about the plants the rocks was just amazing. Thank you for the great ride. We will be back read more

We did the Murray Canyon Haul trail ride for our wedding party and it was spectacular! The staff is so friendly, the horses are very chill and great for novice riders. The scenery is gorgeous. read more

Overall great experience. Staff is very accomplished and friendly. Some challenging trails but the horses are very steady.

My 11 year-old daughter said wanted to give Smoke Tree Stables 6 stars because our experience with them was so good. The two of us (about 10 hours of riding experience each) headed over to the stables on beautiful Friday afternoon to embark on their two-hour Murray Canyon Ride. From the moment we arrived, I knew we made the right choice. Smoke Tree Stables has been around since the 1930s (and in the same location since the 1960s) and the current family running the business is the third generation! One of the owners, who was running the office at the time, told me that her husband's grandfather was close friends with Cary Grant! She was encouraging to my daughter and incredibly warm and inviting to us. Once we were ready to go (no backpacks allowed, but they provided saddle bags to use and had an array of cowboy hats and helmets that you could borrow), we followed the horse trailer a couple of miles out into the canyon and then mounted up for the ride. Our guide, Dennis, was amazing. He's an itinerant horse guide who works all over the country. He engaged my daughter and I in conversation along the way, pointing out remarkable plants and birds and geographical features, and sharing the history of the area that we were riding in. He was knowledgable and generous. Beyond that the ride was amazing. The canyons are simply incredible - beyond description with words (see attached photos). We climbed through the hills, trekked through desert oases, and saw all manner of cacti and rock formations. The horses (all over 12 years old for this ride) were gentle and pleasant and handled the trails and climbs easily. The total ride was about 1 hour and 45 minutes with one stop at the top for photos. The staff was professional and friendly and clearly very safety-conscious. And again, the scenery was amazing. We'll definitely be sure to return on our next trip to Palm Springs. Pro tip: once you're in the canyons, your admission to the area has been covered, so make sure to drive further in to Palm Canyon and hike around there as well. read more

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We had the absolute best time here today at Smoke Tree Stables! Every member of the staff was extremely friendly and approachable. They give you cool helmets that look like cowboy hats which is fun, and it helps that they're light and comfortable too! You also get your own little saddle bag to store your personal items. Now to the best part... the trail was absolutely stunning. This is not just a horse ride where you stay on flat open ground. You actually go up and down mountains and over small bodies of water! I was not expecting to have such great views of the mountains and go on such an adventure. I believe it even lasted over the hour and 40 minutes which was a really nice surprise. I am actually scared of horses but these horses were all mild mannered and required basically no direction. My horse even seemed to be extra careful going on unsteady ground which I appreciated! This was the best anniversary surprise and would be great for any sort of group, or even going alone! I really cannot say enough good things about the experience. I wish I could go back tomorrow, but we will definitely be back here the next time we visit Palm Springs. read more

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We had an amazing time with Smoke Tree Stables. The guides did a great job getting you set up and making sure you were comfortable. It was my 9 year old's first time riding ever and the lead guide, Ed, talked to him the entire time, made sure he knew what to do on different parts of the trail, etc. Not to mention the entire trail had beautiful scenery. 10/10 would recommend and would love to do it myself again. read more

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Extremely friendly, knowledgeable, fun Best ever to go riding through the Indian canyons. Highly recommend read more

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The staff was really nice, very informative and kept a strict eye on everyone to make sure we were sitting up straight, leading the horse correctly and keeping the horse in line. There was a little girl too, about 10 years old who was able to handle it perfectly fyi.. The whole trip was about 2 hours. I think it's a little bit expensive for horseback riding, so I wouldn't do it again, but it was beautiful and fun. If it was a little less expensive, I would do it again next time I go up to Palm Springs. Also, I think this is something only beginners would enjoy. It's not challenging for people who know about horses (I know next to nothing - so it was great!) read more

Smoke Tree Stables - Trail - Horseback Riding Near Me - Palm Springs, California

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I was very happy that this was the only horse stable that doesn't take reservations. I called probably 10 ranches and most were booked which didn't bode well for our last minute trip to the desert. We arrived 30 minutes early as requested to fill out some paperwork and there was plenty of parking even on a Saturday at 10:30am. The staff was so friendly and made us feel very welcome. We opted for the longer trail ride and it was totally worth the money. We followed the horse trailer a short ride to the canyon and it was a beautiful ride. The instructor will give you riding tips depending on the terrain. Overall, we were very happy with our experience and I will definitely come back for some more riding next time I'm in the area. A million thanks! read more

Smoke Tree Stables - Horseback Riding Near Me - Palm Springs, California

Wonderful and relaxing experience. Staff very friendly and well informed. Highly recommend to do while in Palm Springs!

Had an amazing time! Very clean and well-kept barn. The horses were easy-peasy! I'm advanced and my husband is a beginner and we BOTH had a blast! We will definitely be riding again soon. read more

Smoke Tree Stables - Horseback Riding Near Me - Palm Springs, California

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Stacey and the team at Smoke Tree Stables are great. We had a ride for 10 of us and it went smoothly and was fun. The trail is beautiful and it is a great overall experience. read more

We booked a private trail ride for 7 family members and it was the best horseback riding experience that we have ever had (and that includes rides out of stables in Santa Barbara, Maui, Scottsdale and others in the Coachella Valley). The trail itself is incredibly varied by elevation, topography, vegetation and views. And our guides were first rate. A fantastic day all around--we will definitely return. read more

Smoke Tree Stables - The end of a great trail ride from Smoke Tree Stables - Horseback Riding Near Me - Palm Springs, California

Amazing experience! We went as a family reunion trip! I'm a beginner rider myself and my horse Raven was fantastic! Highly recommended! read more

Incredible experience with beautiful views. The staff was really great. Highly recommend if you enjoy relaxed, scenic horseback riding.

The guides ,horses ,canyon ride and the scenery were all beautiful and safe I had a great time and will return as soon as i can read more

Highly recommend the Murray Canyon ride from the great folks at Smoke Tree Stables! Took my wife on a surprise ride while down in Palm Springs for a month. Everything about it was perfect. The guides were nice and knowledgeable. They made sure each rider felt comfortable. I also can't say enough about the ride itself - we rode around 3.5 miles through Indian and Murray Canyon and it was absolutely stunning. The views were spectacular and I couldn't recommend it enough! 5 out of 5 - would definitely do it again! read more

We had a great time riding the horses on the trails! The day was warm and sunny, but not too hot. My 11 year old daughter enjoyed her first real ride on a full size horse. The horses were mellow, and the staff was helpful and informative! It was all trail riding, and the environment was rugged but beautiful. We will do this again! read more

Beautiful views and friendly staff! Thanks for a fun ride!! Loved the cowgirl helmets!

The Murray Canyon Haul was phenomenal! Miss Stacey. Hannah and every one of the three trail guides/wranglers were incredible! My ride on handsome Romeo was one of the best I have had and I've been on plenty. Not a single thing could have been improved upon Highly recommend à read more

This experience is in my Top 5 Things to do in Palm Springs. The horses are beautiful, the staff is friendly, and the trail includes spectacular views of the Coachella Valley, vistas, mountains, desert, wildflowers, and even an oasis with a sparkling stream. I highly recommend Smoke Tree Stables. read more

We have done a couple of these Desert trail rides before, and this ride was hands-down, the best all-around. The staff was extremely friendly and the horses were fantastic. The trail itself was beyond beautiful. This was the first trail ride, where we were able to not only take in the Desert, but the oasis as well- just beyond beautiful. read more

We had an absolutely marvelous time with the horseback riding trip. I definitely highly recommend them. The guides very nice and they did everything they could to keep everyone socially distance while at the same time making it feel like the whole world wasn't falling apart. Great time had by all! read more

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Riding through the Indian Canyons with Smoke Tree Stables was magical. We arrived at the stable 30 minutes prior to the regularly scheduled 9am ride. This stable is a little different from what I've previously encountered; you don't usually need a reservation to ride! As long as you show up at the right time based on their schedule, you should be good to go. We signed our releases and were given the option of helmets or cowboy hats (for shade). The stable also provided each rider with a free chilled bottle of water and these nifty saddle bags to put your personal belongings in. Since we opted to do the 2-hour trail ride through Murray Canyon, each of our horses was loaded up into a trailer and transported to the Murray Canyon trail.The trailer transported the horses as we drove a short 10 minutes into the Indian Canyons park. We met up with our horses at the start of the trail and started out on the guided ride. The scenery was unreal! We rode through the canyon and up the side of the terrain to an elevation of 1600 ft. So much respect for the hard-working horses who carried our lazy butts through the rocky trail. It's definitely not an easy trail to hike if we had to do it ourselves! The entire team from Smoke Tree Stables was so friendly and made sure we had a great experience. One of our guides was even kind enough to take some photos for us during our ride. Up along the side of the canyon, we looked out and could see miles and miles away... down at the windmill farm, past the fault line, towards the mountain range on the other side. At the heart of the canyon laid a natural oasis of spring water and palm trees. It was surreal to see a genuine oasis and palm grove in the middle of the Mojave Desert! We splish splashed through the streams (to the dismay of some croaking frogs) and made our way back towards the trail head after about two hours of riding. If you're ever out towards Palm Springs and fancy yourself some unbelievable sights, definitely check out doing a trail ride in the Indian Canyons! Hands down one of the top horseback riding experiences I've ever had. read more

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We went this past weekend to celebrate our son's 10th birthday. This is definitely a must do if you love horses. Everyone was so helpful there. Thank you for all you do and the care of your beautiful horses! read more

How did I never know about this place?!? It now will be my go to whenever I visit Palm Springs. My husband and I went with another couple Ann's had a great time. Very nice trail, beautiful scenery in a reservation. Well cared for horses, for all skill levels. read more

Smoke Tree Stables - Beautiful dessert in the winter - Horseback Riding Near Me - Palm Springs, California

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Fantastic ride! My horse was just perfect and the views were spectacular! Great team , highly recommend!!!

We signed up for the private experience online and also spoke to someone over the phone who was knowledgeable and friendly. When we arrived I was nervous, inexperienced and unadventurous, however, I wanted this to be a great experience for my family. The trails are rocky and full of gravel and we climbed and also went down hill through creeks and small climbs. We had break spots for water and our guide would constantly check in on us. He gave us so much information about the history and told us his background. He put us at ease knowing he was experienced and you could tell. He gave us pointers on how to position ourselves for a small climb and descending. He was professional and friendly. I had the horse Shorty and my kids had Red and Rocky, my husband Cole. The horses were great. They were careful and mindful on the trail and you can tell they had done this many times. We had an amazing experience and it was beautiful. My kids loved it. My husband loved it. So I'm so happy I booked this experience as a family. read more

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A fantastic experience! The landscape and nature beauty were great and the ride truly amazing. The staff/horse handlers and guides did a fantastic job! We will be back! read more

We had an amazing private ride for two. End to end experience was fantastic, from booking our reservation to our knowledgeable and friendly guide Ryan. I can't wait to go back again! Highly recommend. read more

Best horse back riding stable I've been to in awhile! Staff is extremely friendly and well experienced for you to feel comfortable. My horse of the day was Ben! He is a gracious and beautiful horse and rode so smoothly! I love these horses with their personalities. Made this experience a lot of fun! Ask for Danielle to be your guide she rocks! read more

Smoke Tree Stables - Ben (left) and Romeo (right) - Horseback Riding Near Me - Palm Springs, California

We had just the best time on our ride yesterday. Flew in from Oakalnd and staying in Joshua Tree so we started our trip off with a ride before heading to our place. It was me and my 8 year old son... everyone here was super friendly and knew so much about the area to share along the ride. The horses were great... the ride was long enough to really take in the desert, relax, daydream and enjoy the ride. We had other people in our group but it didn't at all feel like a big group being herded along. It felt nice. We would definitely return. Thanks for a beautiful afternoon! read more

What an amazing experience!! STS made our day easy, fun, and so enjoyable. I had never ridden a horse before but the people at STS are clearly knowledgeable and have extensive experience so I felt totally confident. This was a highlight of our trip - the adorable dog was icing on the cake! read more

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Great ride throughout Murray canyon! The lady that was leading our group didn't have any knowledge about the canyons or surrounding areas. Her knowledge was only about horses, so we were bummed. We would of loved a tour guide with some knowledge and tid bits of the magical Indian canyons and the surrounding desert area for those that are into history and geeky! read more