Active Pursuits

Bicycling

Although the Valley of the Sun is a sprawling place, it's mostly flat and has numerous paved bike paths, which makes bicycling a breeze as long as it isn't windy or, in the summer, too hot. In Scottsdale, Arizona Outback Adventures, 16447 N. 91st St. (tel. 866/455-1601 or 480/945-2881; www.azoutbackadventures.com), rents road bikes for $50 to $85 per day, hybrid bikes for $35 per day, and mountain bikes for $35 to $85 per day. Mountain-biking trail maps are also available. This company also does half-day and full-day guided mountain-bike tours.

Among the best mountain-biking spots in the city are Papago Park (at Van Buren St. and Galvin Pkwy.), Phoenix South Mountain Park (use the entrance off Baseline Rd. on 48th St.), and North Mountain Preserve (off Seventh St. between Dunlap Ave. and Thunderbird Rd.). With its rolling topography and wide dirt trails, Papago Park is the best place for novice mountain-bikers to get in some desert riding (and the scenery here is great). For hard-core pedalers, Phoenix South Mountain Park is the place to go. The National Trail is the ultimate death-defying ride here, but there are lots of trails for intermediate riders, including the Desert Classic Trail and the short loop trails just north of the parking area at the 48th Street entrance. North Mountain is another good place for intermediate riders.

There's also plenty of good road biking and mountain biking up in the Cave Creek area, where you can rent a bike for $40 to $45 a day at Flat Tire Bike Shop, 6149 E. Cave Creek Rd. (tel. 480/488-5261; www.flattirebikes.com). If you'd like a guide for some of the best biking in the desert, contact Desert Biking Adventures (tel. 888/249-BIKE or 602/320-4602; www.desertbikingadventures.com), which leads 2-, 3-, and 4-hour tours (and specializes in downhill rides). Prices range from $75 to $97.

If you'd rather confine your cycling to a paved surface, there's no better route than Scottsdale's Indian Bend Wash greenbelt, a paved path that extends for more than 10 miles along Hayden Road (from north of Shea Blvd. to Tempe). The Indian Bend Wash pathway can be accessed at many points along Hayden Road. At the south end, the path connects to paved paths on the shores of Tempe Town Lake and provides easy access to Tempe's Mill Avenue shopping district.

Horseback Riding

Even in the urban confines of the Phoenix metro area, people like to play at being cowboys, and there are plenty of places around the Valley to saddle up your palomino. Because any guided ride is going to lead you through interesting desert scenery, your best bet is to pick a stable close to where you're staying. Keep in mind that most stables require or prefer reservations.

On the south side of the city, try Ponderosa Stables, 10215 S. Central Ave. (tel. 602/268-1261; www.arizona-horses.com), which leads rides into South Mountain Park and charges $25 for a 1-hour ride or $45 for a 2-hour ride. These stables also offer fun dinner rides ($34) to the T-Bone Steakhouse, where you buy your own dinner before riding back under the stars. If you have time for only one horseback ride while you're in Phoenix, make it this latter ride.

On the north side of the Valley, Cave Creek Outfitters, off Dynamite Boulevard at 31313 N. 144th St. (tel. 888/921-0040 or 480/471-4635; www.cavecreekoutfitters.com), offers 2-hour rides for $65 to $80.

On the east side of the Valley, on the southern slopes of the Superstitions, you'll find D-Spur Ranch/Preservation of the Cowboy Way Society, 15371 Ojo Rd. (off Peralta Rd.), Apache Junction (tel. 602/810-7029; www.cowboywaysociety.org), which charges $26 for a 1-hour ride, $50 for a 2-hour ride, and $190 per person for an overnight trip.

Tennis

Most major hotels in the area have tennis courts, and there are several tennis resorts around the Valley. If you're staying someplace without a court, try the Scottsdale Ranch Park & Tennis Center, 10400 E. Via Linda, Scottsdale (tel. 480/312-7774). Court fees range from $4 to $10 for 1 1/2 hours.

Water Parks

At Phoenix Waterworld Safari, 4243 W. Pinnacle Peak Rd. (tel. 623/581-8446; www.golfland.com), you can free-fall down the Kilimanjaro speed slide or catch a gnarly wave in the wave pool. Mesa Golfland Sunsplash, 155 W. Hampton Ave., Mesa (tel. 480/834-8319; www.golfland.com), has a wave pool and a water roller coaster. Big Surf, 1500 N. McClintock Rd., Tempe (tel. 480/947-2477; www.golfland.com), has the country's original wave pool and all kinds of wild water slides.

All three of these parks charge $24 for anyone taller than 48 inches, $20 for seniors and anyone under 48 inches, and $3 for children 2 and under. Phoenix Waterworld Safari is open from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend Monday through Saturday from 10am to 8pm and Sunday from 11am to 7pm. Mesa Golfland/Sunsplash is open from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend Monday through Saturday from 10am to 8pm and Sunday from noon to 8pm. Big Surf is open from around Memorial Day to Labor Day Monday through Saturday from 10am to 6pm and Sunday from 11am to 7pm. Mesa Golfland also has three slides that open at the start of spring break and are open Saturday and Sunday from noon to 6pm. After Memorial Day, these slides are open the same hours as Sunsplash.

White-Water Rafting & Tubing

The desert may not seem like the place for white-water rafting, but up in the mountains to the northeast of Phoenix, the Upper Salt River still flows wild and free and offers some exciting rafting. Most years from about late February to late May, snowmelt from the White Mountains floods the river and fills it with exciting Class III and IV rapids (sometimes, however, there just isn't enough water). Companies operating full-day, overnight, and multiday rafting trips on the Upper Salt River (conditions permitting) include Wilderness Aware Rafting (tel. 800/462-7238; www.inaraft.com), Canyon Rio Rafting (tel. 800/272-3353; www.canyonrio.com), and Mild to Wild Rafting (tel. 800/567-6745; www.mild2wildrafting.com). Prices range from $99 to $115 for a day trip.

Tamer river trips can be had from Salt River Tubing & Recreation (tel. 480/984-3305; www.saltrivertubing.com), which has its headquarters 20 miles northeast of Phoenix on Power Road at the intersection of Usery Pass Road in Tonto National Forest. For $13, the company will rent you a large inner tube and shuttle you by bus upriver for the float down. The inner-tubing season runs from mid-May to September.