Wildfire Stables

Very poor, and irresponsible business — avoid at all cost!
This place IS a scam, absolutely. I purchased through LivingSocial, also, and they have very poor communication and management. Before purchasing I confirmed our dates and their availability and was assured we could schedule for that time, pending weather. After purchasing, they were a black-​hole of non-​communication. I phoned, and emailed, and no response for over a week. When I finally reached someone, it turned out it was the wrangler, not the owner, who said he didn’t know why calls were being forwarded to him, but that he would work things out for us to ride at the agreed time. We phoned or emailed every day for a week prior to our arrival, but all we got in response was the wrangler’s assurance that it wild be arranged. When we arrived at the address given on the website, on a clear and sunny day (60-​deg-​F) at 2pm, nobody was there. Further calls finally raised Meagan (who described herself as the owner), and she said she had no rides planned for the day, that she was at the barn, and that she wouldn’t tell us where to meet to ride. We made every attempt to reschedule within our constraints, but she refused to cooperate. When we requested a refund, she refused saying she didn’t have any money to refund, that LivingSocial had it all. She said she only worked out of a trailer and could only meet us at a trailhead in a few days time (probably after she located some horses). Later that day, I received an Email citing all their fine-​print about «subject to availability» and «merchant right to cancel» and «buyer subject to forfeiture» — good grief. We paid, we were there at the agreed time, and all this guff from the owner? This is not anyone you want to do business with.

This should be 0 stars!
I bought two Wildfire Stables deals on LivingSocial for Horseback riding on the beach. When I scheduled an appointment, they told me they would reach out right before the ride to confirm and give directions. On the morning of the ride, they still haven’t reached out. We tried calling, but it went straight to voicemail. So we drove to the location listed on the Website. When we got there, there was another horse-​riding place there, and they said that Wildfire Stables is no longer at that location. We tried calling several times to figure out the location, but it went straight to voicemail. The lady at the Bodega Bay visitors center said that others have been in looking for the Wildfire Stables that day.
I reached out to Wildfire Stables via email once more to schedule another appointment. I asked them to make sure to let me know the trail information before the ride. The night before the ride, I still did not receive an email from the about the location. I emailed them to send it. When I woke up the next morning, still no email or response. I called them, and the lady picked up. She clearly received my email because she knew who I was and that I had trouble finding them last time, but I guess she just decided not to respond. I asked her where the trail location was, and she said to show up at «Doran Beach». I asked her to email me specific directions, but she refused. She also said that we would have to pay to enter the beach area and not to ask the guard where she was because he wouldn’t know. We drove for 2 hours again and got to Doran Beach by Bodega Bay after paying $ 6 for parking. There were lots of camping trailers there, and we didn’t see any signs for Wildfire Stables. We went to the beach, and did not see any signs of horses anywhere. We called the lady, but it went straight to voicemail.
This is clearly a scam, so I’m getting my money back!

I’m not quite sure yet if this place is a scam. Purchased through LivingSocial and then showed up to the ambiguous location that the woman described. She simply said the name of the beach and then literally said «look for the horse». There were no signs or anything. We then proceeded to walk along the beach, drive through the numerous parking lots searching for horse trailers. I should add that there were about 500 trailers in this park which made it even more difficult to find the non-​existent horse ride.
Then we called the phone just to try and find the woman responsible for the horse ride and it went straight to voicemail. At this point, all I’m lead to believe is that this went from being a legitimate operation earlier this year to becoming a complete scam. We tried meeting twice and are now going to report the experience to LivingSocial.

Best riding experience yet in NorCal! My boyfriend and I took a spur of the moment day trip up to Bodega Bay from San Francisco this weekend, specifically to do a guided ride of some sort. We’re not very experienced riders, so we need a little TLC. Plus we always enjoy meeting the trainers/​guides and hearing about their experiences. They often give the best tips for local eats, too, usually off the beaten path. :-) We’re SO GLAD we found Wildfire Stables. $ 75 per person is not bad for a private ride of this quality. The mother-​daughter duo met us at a scheduled time at a turnoff in the Bay, and all four of us hopped on horses and proceeded onto state park land trails with breathtaking views of dunes and the ocean. The wind was particularly strong the day we went, so our time on the beach was limited. The ladies even posed us for a photo! Absolutely amazing. Thank you, Chari and Megan! Can’t wait to come again!
And…If you’re in the mood for some excellent BBQ oysters and fish-​n-​chips, try The Boat House on Hwy 1. Yum!

3 of us drove up to Bodega Bay from SF for some horseback riding this weekend. It was awesome! …I have never ridden a horse before, so I was really excited and I got to ride Nana, a 20 year old horse who is great with beginners. She was great to ride — slow and gentle. She apparently has a tendency to stick her head in other horses butts and wandering off so I had to stop her from doing that which was entertaining… all in all though she was a joy to ride and I had a blast!
We rode from the parking lot where we met the horses through some beach brush and then onto the sand where we walked along the beach and then back again. It took roughly an hour and we all walked at a very slow pace (I wouldn’t have minded going a little faster…).
It was great though and I highly recommend Wildfire stables to anyone who wants to take a quick weekend getaway (there’s a great wine bar to hit up on the way back).

My boyfriend and I went out for an hour and a half trail ride with Wild Fire Stables. They were great! The horses were extremely well trained and gentle. The staff is very friendly and helpful. The majority of our ride was on the beach, which was beautiful.
The only down side was that my boyfriend and I are both experienced riders, but since the two other riders in the group are not we were not able to lope on the beach. If you are an experienced rider I would recommend making a private appointment instead of going with a group.
On the flip side, if you are not an experienced rider I would definitely recommend Wildfire Stables since the horses are so well behaved and the staff definitely caters to those who do not have horse riding experience.