Photo: Courtesy of Claire Gagne
1. Visit a dude ranch
Your kids will feel at home at White Stallion Ranch, just 25 minutes from downtown Tucson. The resort is intimate, with only 43 guest rooms and a five-bedroom house, and the owners, the True family, live and work on the ranch. The focus here is on horseback riding?kids ages 5 and up are able to go on scenic trail rides and take part in ranch activities like cattle sorting. Older kids (8 and up) can try more advanced riding techniques, rock climbing, flat-tire e-biking and learning to shoot Cowboy style Henry Yellowboy .22 caliber lever action rifles and Ruger .22 caliber single action pistols. Other amenities include an outdoor pool, air-conditioned games room with foosball and air hockey, a small movie theatre, petting zoo, as well as basketball and tennis courts. Meals, included in your rate, are served three times a day (you?re called to dinner?barbecued and served outside?with a bell) and nightly entertainment could include an astronomer, line dancing or a cowboy singer. We recommend staying at least five nights to fully take in the different horseback rides, hikes and other activities the ranch has to offer. whitestallion.com Photo: Courtesy of Claire Gagne
2. Meet an elf owl, a javelina and a road runner
If your kid watches Wild Kratts, chances are they?re familiar with the Sonoran desert. The hot, dry area that crosses Arizona, California and Northwestern Mexico is used as a home base in many episodes of the natu...