Lookbook estancia ride

10-day Estancia Ride

Autumn in Patagonia.

An introduction to Horse Riding Patagonia, our home and the 10-day Estancia ride we offer.

Estancia Ride - 10 days • • • • • • • • • •

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Tour starts and finishes in Puerto Natales Accommodation in comfortable hotels and authentic estancias Includes a boat trip up Last Hope Sound Includes eight, full-day rides on Criollo-mix horses with Chilean tack Ride to the Glacier Grey beach, with optional boat trip Experiencing breath-taking views of the Torres del Paine mountains Ride through woodland, over mountains, cross rivers & around lakes Spectacular views everyday of the mountains, glacial rivers & lakes Ride close to the Argentinian border in the Sierra Baguales mountains Eat typical Patagonian food and wine and meet some of the people who live in this beautiful place See many local birds, animals and plants

Day 1 / Arrive Puerto Natales. Dinner and briefing. Night in Hotel If. Arrive into Puerto Natales. Clients will arrive today and in the evening will be escorted to dinner by their guide (dinner not included) for the trip briefing. Night in Hotel If. Day 2 / Transfer to Consuelo. Ride from Estancia Consuelo to Estancia Perales. Night Estancia Perales.

In the morning clients will leave their luggage, taking only enough for one night’s stay, and take a transfer of approximately 20 minutes to Puerto Consuelo where they will have their first encounter with Criollo horses. This Estancia is still the home of the Eberhard family who have much history in Magallanes. From this lovely Estancia clients will ride along the fjord until they reach Estancia Perales, the neighbouring estancia. Guests will enjoy a welcoming meal and be able to relax next to the waters of Last Hope Sound. Night in Estancia.

Day 3 / Boat to Balmaceda. Ride from Balmaceda to Rio Serrano. Night Hotel Rio Serrano.

After breakfast, guests will say goodbye to Estancia Perales and hop on the boat which will dock especially to take them for a great ride up the Last Hope Sound. Guests will enter the Bernordo O’Higgins National Park. Shared by the regions of Magallanes and Aysen, this is the largest National Park in Chile and one of five of the most expansive in the world (over three million hectares). With access only via the water, the mountains or the southern ice field itself, it remains a remote and pristine corner of our planet. It also contains the third largest mass of ice on earth after Antarctica and Greenland, so the climate is understandably extreme.

We will disembark our boat here and enjoy the stunning views which combine old growth forests of evergreen and deciduous southern beech, fire bushes and cypresses - a stunning contrast to the snow capped peaks and glaciers in this region.

We will meet our new horses and have some lunch before setting out on a beautiful trail through thick forests passing pristine rivers and streams in the shadow of the Chacabuco and Balmaceda range of mountains. A fairly slow ride today gives us the opportunity to find our riding stride while enjoying the dazzling scenery on our route into the Torres del Paine National Park. Towards the end of the trail, we will cross the Nutria river and come out onto the pampas which marks the end of today’s ride, as we approach our hotel for the night, Hotel Rio Serrano.

This hotel is only a few years old and offers very comfortable rooms and great views of the Paine Massif. A large living/dining area with log fires and a comfortable bar and good restaurant. For early risers, it also offers some of the best sunrises in all of Patagonia!

Day 4 / Ride to Grey Glacier and Lake. Optional boat trip. Ride back to Rio Serrano. Night in Hotel Rio Serrano.

After breakfast we will be meeting our horses and preparing for the pampas ride to Grey Lake. Our view will be dominated by the jagged peaks of the Paine massif as we ride out along the Grey river to the largest glacier in the park, Glacier Grey. On reaching the trailhead we will tether our horses and walk out across the swinging footbridge through the forest to Grey beach.

The view that greets us is memorable - the pebbly shores of the beach form an almost surreal contrast to the blue of the floating icebergs that have calved off the nearby glacier. Glacier Grey protrudes off the southern ice field and is quite simply a wonder of nature. Measuring 28km in length and covering a total area of 270 square km with its frozen walls of blue ice towering almost 35 metres high, it never ceased to impress.

After some time walking along the beach and enjoying our picnic lunch, we will walk back to our waiting horses for the ride back to Rio Serrano. *Note for those who would like to get up closer to the face of this marvel of ice, we can arrange a trip out onto the lake in the Grey II boat. This is an optional excursion available Return to Hotel Rio Serrano for the night.

Day 5 / Ride the up and over across the heart of the park to Estancia Tercera Barranca. Night Tercera.

After breakfast in the hotel we will pack up and start our ride eastwards towards the heart of the park. We will now be riding directly towards the Paine Massif mountain range so the views are dramatic and beautiful. Our trail skirts the southern edge of the mountains on a rarely trodden path as we pass azure and turquiose lakes with the huge granite mountain peaks standing behind. After a picnic lunch taken in one of the pretty valleys we will continue east onto the beautiful soft pampas of the Patagonian steppe. Here we will have a chance for some cantering as the light fades and the shadows lengthen until we arrive at our destination, the intimate and authentic Estancia Tercera Barranca.

Typical of the estancias of the area, Estancia Tercera Barranca is a working sheep ranch situated in an enviable position on the park border offering fantastic views of the granite mountains and of the Paine Massif. With land extending to 6,454 hectares it offers quality accommodation close to Torres del Paine National Park in addition to its continuing work as a Patagonian ranch. Sleeping just 14 guests in 7 rooms, the ranch house has a lovely intimate feel. There is a comfortable living area warmed by the welcoming log fire where you can read and relax before dinner which is served in the adjacent wooden quincho. All rooms have private bathrooms.

Day 6 / Ride out to Laguna Azul around the lake and back to Estancia Tercera Barranca. Night Tercera.

Today’s ride takes us west towards the peaks of Torres del Paine as we approach the stunning deep blue waters of Laguna Azul framed by the Towers themsleves.

We ride through native forests and grassy flower-filled meadows as we follow the route round this beautiful lake with its stunning mountain backdrop. We then head south crossing the area known as Cañadon Macho with vega nañdu normally inhabited by large breeding groups of both guanaco and rhea. This is a great area for spotting and photographing wildlife.

We then ride on to the south before dismounting and walking out to the beautiful Cascada Paine, a very pretty waterfall where glacial water thunders over the rocks in its journey through the park. We will ride past Estancia Laguna Amarga and the salt encrusted shores of Laguna Amarga (Bitter Lake) with its emerald green waters acting as a mirror to the surrounding mountains which reflect in its surface.

Continuing on a different route to our home for a second night at Estancia Tercera Barranca.

Day 7 / Drive out to the remote Baguales area close to the border with Argentina.

Ride at the small Estancia 3R and into the surrounding mountains. Return to Estancia Tercera Barranca.

Today we will hop into the van for the drive that takes us literally to the end of the road known as ruta 9 to a mystical area known as La Cumbre (The Summit) at a height of 850m. Our destination is Estancia 3R situated in the heart of Sierra Baguales, a wild mountain chain that extends from the north eastern limit of Torres del Paine penetrating the border with Argentina. The name of the mountains, “Baguales� translates to mean domesticated animal gone wild, such as a cow, bull

or in this case, horses. Its distinctive peaks of basalt are cathedral-like in their forms.

The area is also famous for its marine and land fossils which document the passing of geological eras.

Here we will meet our new horses for the day and ride out into these grand peaks climbing up high towards the Tetas Las Chinas where, with luck, we will spot the famous wild horse herds of Sierra Baguales. After a few hours riding, we will return to the estancia house for tea with our charming hosts before driving back to Estancia Tercera Barranca for dinner and our comfortable beds.

Day 8 / Ride south across the pampas to Cerro Castillo. Transfer to Laguna Sophia.

Today after breakfast, riders will once again be saddling up for a full day’s ride. This time, we will be heading south to the outpost town of Cerro Castillo.

This is a beautiful open ride across grassy meadows and welcoming pampas.

Riding south with the dramatic Paine mountains to our right enables us to fully appreciate the distances that the original pioneers encountered and which the estancieros still encounter to this day. There will also be opportunities for lots of canters on your responsive and comfortable horses. With the wind in your hair and a smile on your face you will experience the sheer joy that is riding in Patagonia!

During late afternoon after a leisurely picnic lunch and an afternoon’s riding we will see the welcome site of Cerro Castillo come into view. Here we will say goodbye to our trusty steeds and jump in the van for a transfer to Laguna Sophia. (Approximately 30 minutes).

The comfortable country house, situated next to the fabulous Laguna Sophia, is a place where you will feel warm and comfortable. The huge roaring fire and big soft sofas will invite you to relax and reflect on your holiday experiences so far.

The water is taken from the river which is maintained from the rain which falls in the mountains, the stream which falls down the mountain side also powers a turbine enabling you to have electricity 24 hours a day and a welcome hot shower!