Bumble Bee Ranch Adventures - Mayer, Arizona

David Kinderyeti

My wife and I were traveling around the Southwest in a van late in 2017 and stumbled upon this place looking for a place to go to ground for Thanksgiving. Both of us having spent most of our lives as farm kids we were immediately drawn to the fact that it was an operational ranch not just a campground. Further we had very little resources and their prices were very reasonable. We met a nice young woman that took care of the place and showed us around. She was incredibly courteous and welcoming and didn't treat us some kind of a way because of the way we looked. In all the years that we have traveled since we have always wanted to return. Never have we been treated so kindly by strangers as we were at bumblebee. All of the facilities were clean, well kept and in good working order. Proximity to stores and stuff, if I remember rightly, was about a half an hour's drive. easy peasy. A word of note. It's a working ranch. If you have children or dogs you best keep an eye on them. They are in no inherent danger but there's plenty of ways they can get themselves into trouble unsupervised. Also the road in was little more than a desert mountain track. If you're asking yourself if you're actually on the road then you're probably on the right road! Plan for a bumpy, Dusty ride from the highway to the ranch. That is unless something has changed. And watch out for speed demons comin the other way! We found not a few!

Thank you so much for the hospitality all those years ago! We are eager to pay a visit again. Maybe we will be able to this winter.

Oh Yeah! You fed us the best steak dinners we had ever had (saying something coming from farm kids!) for Thanksgiving. Somehow you knew we were eating on canned crap or something and surprised us with dinner delivered! We ate those steaks praising God in tears! Ya, it's from the heart. Ms. Kelly, you really are a treasure and that place is too.. We have talked about that place since we left 7 years ago!

Todd Taylor

What an awesome adventure we had on our stay in cabin 1 for 2 nights this May 2024 .great bbq Kelly rocks this place

Tara Goode

This place is MAGIC. You don’t know how many stars are in the sky until you spend the night. Kelly was wonderful; great communication and made sure we had what we needed.

Josh Fravel

5 Star horse ride.
This was one of the coolest Experience's I will remember for a long time, not riding a horse before, wasent sure. But the horses are so well trained it was easy we did two hours, I could have rode all day in the beautiful country side. The staff were so nice and accommodating and helpful made us feel safe and there top priority, we could have stopped if we wanted at a hour, but we were having such a great time we wanted to keep riding they also taught us a lot about that area. Would highly recommend them.

Sophie Woodward

We all enjoyed this place so much. Held a small event here with short notice, Kelly was so accommodating and kind. My partner and I stayed in cabin 6, and some of our friends rented campsites nearby.

The ranch itself is absolutely gorgeous, a perfect little sanctuary to get away. The cabin was well taken care of, newly renovated, and had everything we needed. Getting to meet the pigs and the geese on the ranch made me so happy!! Can't wait to come back again, thanks again Kelly!

Carolyn Lee

Loved it! The grounds are perfect for equestrian events. Staff was super nice and accomidating. The trails were easy to access and stunning views. This is a perfect layover if you are riding the 100 mile long Black Canyon Trail.

megan hawley

I loved it. My opinion is also very biased because they offer horse rides. The rides aren't anything fancy. They are most geared towards new riders or people who havnt riden before. No running or trotting with the horses, just a very nice and easy trail ride.
They offer campsite spots large enough to hold 5 to 10 cars per site and enough for 15 tents per spot so very spacious if you wanted to go in a large party or a small one.
I usually camp with a hammock instead of a tent. They had trees around to provide good amounts of shade.
They have very clean restroom facilities. The shower is so so, just where sandles when you shower and you won't have to worry. The toilets are clean and nice for a campsite. With Ac and heat for the restroom facilities.
They have cabins as well if your not about that tent camping life.

They do also have cattle on their property so you want to be mindfull when you go through the gates and make sure they close behind you.
I wouldn't suggest bringing dogs mainly because of the cattle. At least not young dogs that want to wonder around. If you have an older dog that just wants to stay at your campsite with your people then sure bring that kind of dog, not the young and dumb that go looking for trouble. If you do bring the young dog then just make sure they are leshed so they are not chasing the cattle or horses.

Nicole Phillips

My boyfriend and I came up here for a trail ride for our one-year anniversary. Out of all the ranches I have been to in my life for trails, this one has been the best. First off, Kelly (the ranch director) constantly kept me posted with great communication right from the start. She answered all of my questions and called the day before to make sure we were still coming for the ride. Very efficient! The ranch itself is huge with some cows roaming around the land as you drive up to the office. The horses are extremely healthy and well taken care of. I got to ride Jake and my boyfriend rode Joe (the two Belgian draft mules). They were fantastic mules who gave us so much confidence during the trail -- even after having the whole summer off! We took the 2-hour Zig Zag trail which had lots of ups and downs along with sharper turns and some steeper/narrow sections. The guides were amazing and full of history about the surrounding area of Bumblebee! After not riding for a few years, this has been such a beautiful and wonderful experience. We've already decided we'll be coming back.