02/18/09

Great Date Night for Valentines

by hslacker

Talk about a different Valentine's day. My boyfriend reserved a ride through this ranch last week. We came up to the ranch and were matched with two other couples and a guide and spent two hours riding up to Mt. Hollywood. As the sun decended upon LA, we made our way back to the ranch where they had a catered bbq dinner waiting for us with live music. So much better then a crowded restaurant! We ended up hanging out with our guide and two other couples during dinner. What great fun. I would only recommend a couple more layers of clothes as the temperature got down around the low 50's. Thanks Sunset Ranch.

• Pros: Friendly guides, amazing scenery
• Cons: have to park down the hill since there is no parking at the ranch

02/12/09

what are these people talking about?

by dppch

I read the below write up and know for a fact that its completely bogus. I have ridden at Sunset Ranch numerous times and they totally do NOT abuse their horses. Whenever I go up there, guides and guests are always brushing the horses and giving them a carrot out of the 50lb bag sitting by the tack shed. Those horses, yes, are rental horses and of course its somewhat of a tough life. But they DONT run their horses, they shoe all their horses, they adopt out their older horses, and they DO provide them with the best life they can for being volunteers. In the speech they give before EVERY ride, they go over all the rules of the park and with the horses. They DO match all of the riders abilities with the horses. Thats the first thing they ask is your experience. They would never put you on a horse that you could not control. YES the get a little stubborn and will try to eat the grass but they are HORSES. Besides, it gives them character. As for the crazy lady, if she was not wearing a helmet, in a line, with other horses, then she was NOT a guide or a guest. It was a privately owned horse and those people are allowed to ride at their own discretion. The guides would not allow that to happen on their ride...trust me...Rules are rules. So, if you want a relaxing scenic ride, I would totally recommend the 2 hr to Mt Hollywood. Its great. Horses are happy, people are happy. If you have never ridden there, give it a try. If you havent, and know nothing about the place, dont write reviews on something you know nothing about. Go up and ask a question next time, and maybe you will get an answer you didnt expect. Hope to see people up there real soon!!

• Pros: beautiful scenery, happy horses, nice people
• Cons: parking

01/26/09

If you like your life and if you like horses, DO NOT GO!

by Cherinoute

I stopped at the ranch the other day after a hike in the hills. I love horses and having moved to LA only 2 years ago, I had heard about this landmark but never had the opportunity to have a look at it. What an horror!

These people abuse their horses and they are completely irresponsible with clients. It is very dangerous for the riders. They take people of all levels on the same ride without explaining them the basics.They don't even try to match the experience of the client with the temperament of the horse. They do not observe any safety rules. They make you wear helmets but the helmets are beaten up, which means if you fall, they are useless.

The horses are filthy and they stand all day long with the saddle on their back. They do not look underfed as I've read in some reviews but on the contrary they are fat. They clearly need exercise and a horse that lacks exercise is a time bomb!!! A particular incident shocked me. During our hike, my husband and I crossed the same woman on a horse twice. She looked completely stoned as if she had taken a cocktail of alcohol, pills and illegal substances. She was over excited and out of it at the same time. She had no control of the horse and the animal didn't know what to do. You could see he was going following the trail because he knew he was supposed to do so. Luckily he wasn't responding to her commands at all or they would have both ended in the ravine or run over hikers. When on our way back to our car we stopped at the ranch, there she was. The same woman on the same horse but this time in the big pen. She was being crazy, pulling on the reins as much as she could, yelling at the poor animal that was now completely scared. Worse, a group of people, apparently ranch staff and friends, were encouraging her!!! Unfortunately there was nothing we can do to release that poor animal but I swore to him I would spread the word. If you like horses and if you like your life, DO NOT GO!

• Cons: Abuse horses - Unsafe for riders

12/21/08

poor conditions

by pocketview

i went on the lunch ride with 2 friends. the people were nice, but i was immediately disappointed to see the animal quarters. horses were standing in piles of mud and manure. the horse i rode for 4 hours stopped, jerked his head and kicked quite often. our guide said that was his personality. but he was covered in mud. we asked if the horses get "run" at all, and the guide told us they never get run and that they do constant walks from opening to sundown. i'll never go back, and don't recommend anyone go if you care about animals. (also, the mexican restaurant they took us to was holding a funeral service, and they sat us at the bar. we felt rude but had to rest.)

• Pros: friendtly guide
• Cons: poor animal quarters, poor animal treatment and care, overly priced, pressure to tip, uncomfortable eating situation

11/24/08

morning ride in hollywood

by tsighty

had fun! Went out on a saturday early before it got to hot for a two hour ride. The horses were walking around looking for treats it was so cute. You have to wear a helmit which was a bummer but the people were nice and my horse was cute(fox) anyway it was a good way to see a new part of Hollywood and would recomend it to all my friends

• Pros: horses look happy
• Cons: parking is limited

07/08/08

Read the small print

by CaWilliam

I was really excited to go horse back riding at the legendary Sunset Ranch in the Hollywood hills as I've already walked up there and know how beautiful the view is. The horse I got was very jerky. I've ridden many horses in my life and the one from here was by far the most uncomfortable (painful) ride ever. We did the lunch ride which is 4 hours on the horse and went to a Mexican restaurant and the service was very poor...our waiter did not come back once after we got our food and wasn't even in the room to refill our water/soda and there weren't any other waiters OR customers for that matter). The lunch ride was $80 per person (food/drinks not included) and it was just two of us. Then when we got done, I gave the guide that took us a $20 tip and she said, "where's the rest of it?" Apparently they expect a 20%-25% tip because they volunteer, what I don't understand is:

A.) Why don't they just charge you that up front

B.) the definition of volunteer: "a person who performs a service willingly and without pay"

C.) the service wasn't that great, why would I give them a generous tip if I got bad service

Overall it wasn't too bad, it just ended on a very sour note. I hope by reading this you'll be prepared for what they expect and all in all have a better experience.

07/02/08

Stay away!

by AvaLo

Stay away! A terrible experience. The guides are rude, condescending and arrogant. The horses are sweet, the scenery is beautiful. But the dust on the trail is beyond unbearable. I don't recommend. I wish I could give them less than one star!

06/18/08

I wish you had a no star rating ! - this place not not deserve one !

by Barb1980

i would never recommend this place. They are so rude and the horses are tired. My friend's horse did not want to go - too tired and used up. But they whipped the horse right there in front of us. I was appauled.

I have done some riding before and I know what trail riding places are like . There is a great on in Topanga.

This one in Hollywood is over rated and it is just filthy....

don't bother - save your money.

• Pros: great location
• Cons: very bad business

06/09/08

smoky,1969-1979

by jmw1959

I spent my formidable years at the ranch.The trails are all beautiful, the guides have always been courteous even when we (worked) for "free" as a kid just to be around these magnificent animals. Family fun atmospere, a different kind of outdoor experience. You could always just hang around at the barn sharing your coke with the bees, eventually new people were accepted and became regulars.

Thanks Jute.. Steve..... Bill....... Kathy

05/29/08

NICE, WELL-CARED FOR HORSES!

by missjd

I am a horse owner and tend to be VERY critical about public stables, but I could NOT find much to pick on the Sunset Ranch about. In short, these horses are NOT AT ALL EXHAUSTED; most of them looked like they could stand to lose 50 or 100 pounds! Yes, some of these horses are FAT.

They were also clean (considering the dust), friendly (they'll come up and beg for treats!), and well-behaved considering they probably have to drag yahoos up and down the hills every weekend. The ranch also has chickens, goats, tiny ponies.... it's like a petting zoo.

Oh, and the VIEW on the two-hour ride is spectacular. Not the most exciting ride (those "exhausted" horses walk, and sometimes walk slowly) but so relaxing!

• Pros: Nice horses, relaxed atmosphere, spectacular views
• Cons: Lots of dust, having to wear a used helmet