If you've ever imagined riding off into the sunset like cowboys and desperados used to do more than 100 years ago, right now could be the perfect time to fulfill that fantasy. With the temperatures becoming more relaxed, September tends to be the perfect climate to see another side of Las Vegas.

"Anytime you mention Las Vegas, people think of the bright lights and big city," says James Hoke, president of TourGuy.com LLC. "But before everybody took an interest in the turn that Las Vegas took, this was very much a frontier town mapped out by legendary mountain man Jedediah Smith and his party in 1827."

Smith is credited as the first, but he was hardly the last. Early Las Vegas was made famous not by the colorful neon lights but rather by rugged men like John C. Fremont, Antonio Armijo, Butch Cassidy, Harry Longabaugh, and, further north in Carson City, "Three-Fingered Jack" McDowell. And those names only round up a few of the better known heroes and villains, mountain men and pioneers who cut through the dusty well-worn territory.

There are only a few places left where you can reclaim the feel of frontier Vegas, well before becoming a notorious place for speakeasies catering to tourists and travelers after 1905. (So notorious that John Calhan, a newspaperman, once said the people of Reno would be happier if Las Vegas seceded from the rest of the state.)

"As an outdoorsman, it is the wild west side of Las Vegas I love best," says Hoke. "As someone who grew up in Boulder, Colorado, putting on a cowboy hat and boots fits just as easily as being a film producer. It's the perfect blend, with a little bit Hollywood and then the great expansive outdoors in my backyard."

The Newest Horseback Tour Takes Place At Sunset.

One of the newest horseback riding tours offered by TourGuy.com departs from a real-life working ranch that has been featured on both the Travel Channel and the Food Network. The reason the ranch is so well known is that in addition to sunset tours, it's cut from the same cloth as the experiences made famous by the movie City Slickers. Even better for Las Vegas visitors, the ranch hands set the right pace for visitors.

Eighty percent of our guests have never ridden before or tell us that they haven't ridden in 20 years," says Wayne Bynum, ranch manager. "Our horses are trained for riders just like you and your friend. But that doesn't mean they are old and lazy."

What makes Sandy Valley Ranch stand out is that the wide open area that includes 197,000 acres of land gives the horses plenty of diversity and room to run (when guests aren't on them). All of them are fit. And, as a working ranch, all of the horses have experience riding trails as well as rounding up cattle.

"I've been on plenty of horseback riding adventures," adds Hoke. "But there is nothing like this one. You ride across the same land that early settlers and explorers rode and might even find yourself reflecting back to the time when Native Americans lived here 10,000 years ago."

According to Hoke, the Wild West Sunset BBQ Ride is perfect for visitors who prefer to sleep in during their vacation. Departure times begin at 1:30 p.m. with a complimentary hotel pick up. The six-hour tour includes an authentic cowboy barbeque with steak or mesquite grilled chicken. Dinner is served around a campfire under the stars.

More unique, Sandy Valley Ranch gives guests as young as six years old the chance to join the sunset excursion (most area horseback rides have a 12-year-old age requirement). It's the only full-scope working ranch experience in the Las Vegas area capable of providing a half-day adventure for all ages. Helmets are even available on request.

For more things to do in Las Vegas, visit TourGuy.com. You can also visit the reservations page for a sunset horse riding adventure tour direct and book online. Several days are already booked to capacity. Save your space early.