This ten day, nine night trip combines a luxury horse riding holiday with a long distance ride that takes you up to our border with Chile. Enjoy four nights at the beautiful lodge at Estancia Ranquilco and five nights camping on the shores of a pristine lake, on mountainside terraces, and on the edges of alpine meadows, in the foothills of the Andes.
Click here for a printable pdf about our 10 Day Pack Trip option.
Day 1
We will meet in the town of Zapala, in the Province of Neuquen at 10:00 a.m. We will then drive 4 hours up into the foothills of the Andes to a place called “Buta Mallin”. This is a cattle outpost on the estancia and the end of the road for most vehicles. Here we will have a mid-afternoon lunch with the gauchos – either an asado or traditional guiso or stew served with fresh bread. Then you will have your first experience saddling and packing the horses for the 2 1/2 hour ride into the heart of the estancia where the lodge is located.
In the evening, settle in to your cottage or room and then join us on the terrace of Casa Grande for wine, traditional food, and good company.
Days 2 and 3
Enjoy a hearty breakfast at Casa Grande featuring homemade yogurt, granola, and fresh eggs cooked to order. We’ll spend these two days at the Ranquilco lodge getting familiar with the horses, the tack, and the landscape. You’ll learn to saddle and care for your horse, and also to help tack and load the packhorses. During day rides, we’ll talk about trail safety, extended horse travel, and specific considerations of the local geography, weather, and culture. There will also be time to enjoy the river, the lodge, and the scenery. Finally, we’ll go over personal gear, group items, food, and pack gear as we prepare to ride off into the mountains. Lunch and dinner will be served family style and will feature traditional Argentine dishes.
Resting on the way
Days 4 through 8
We then head off into the cordillera for a five day tour of the peaks and high valleys that make up the spine of the Andes range. This is the longest mountain range in the world, and our trip will take us right into the heart of it. We’ll visit some of its most remote valleys and ridges. We’ll camp on the shores of a pristine lake, on mountainside terraces, and on the edges of alpine meadows. Our route will take us right up to the continental divide with sweeping views to the west into Chile.
We’ll intersperse long days of riding with base camp days for swimming, day-hikes, and lounging around. We may even climb a high ridge one evening to watch the full moon rise over the steppes of Argentina while the sun sets behind a Chilean volcano.
The only other people we’ll see are the gauchos that follow their goat-herds into the mountains for summer. One of the highlights of a trip out there is to stop at a twig hut and sip mate (tea) with these wonderful people.
Evenings will be spent at the campfire, surrounded by our horses, a ceiling of stars, slow roasting our asado over the coals.
Riding along a mountain ridge with views of Cerro Negro
Day 9
We’ll make our way back down to Ranquilco. This evening we’ll be reunited with the wonderful hospitality of the lodge – hot showers, cold beers and clean sheets, followed by an excellent meal paired with local wines.
Day 10
On the last day, we’ll ride back to Buta Mallin, and drive back to Zapala, to arrive by 4:00 pm. From there, catch a bus back to BA or head to Bariloche or San Martin… or even over to Chile.
