Estancia Huechahue

Day 1 (D)

On arrival in San Martin de los Andes you will be met and transferred to Estancia Huechahue. If time permits there will be an afternoon ride. A chance to familiarize yourself with the horses and tack and the style of riding.

Day 2 (B,L,D)

A full days ride on Estancia Huechahue with an 'asado' lunch. Follow the Huechahue stream through its basalt canyons, riding as fast as you want across the water-meadows, sending the plovers and ibis screeching, before returning over the top of Chenque Hill, where the Andes rise up behind you and the vastness of Patagonia stretches out before you.

Day 3 (B,L,D)

A day spent working cattle with the gauchos. Lunch with the gauchos is strips of beef ribs threaded onto a stick and cooked over the open fire. A siesta in the shade and a chance to separate the cows on horseback or try your hand with a lasso.

Day 4 (B,L,D)

A full day's ride on Estancia Huechahue to visit the Indian burial caves. The caves were formed when the glaciers carved the valley opening an entrance to the lava flow tunnels formed during previous eras of volcanic activity. The Tehuelche Indians laid out their dead, surrounded by their weapons, where they could see their enemies coming. They decorated the walls with designs. The remains have disappeared, but the petroglyphs and the view are still there.

Day 5 (B,L,D)

A morning's ride to see the stallion with the mares and new foals, and a chance to herd horses. After a late lunch there will be an evening ride to the cliffs where the condors and eagles nest. Enjoy a cocktail and as the sun goes down, the condors return, soaring above and below you before settling for the night.

Day 6 (B,L,D)

A day's ride through the neighbouring Indian reservation. The saddle rugs and saddlebags are woven by some of the Indian women and the skins from the cows butchered on the estancia are worked into rawhide and then bridles and halters by the men.

Day 7 (B,L,D)

A full day's ride to a different part of the Estancia. There are 15,000 acres in all so there is still plenty left to explore. Lunch will be on the river. On the way home there is a chance to see guanaco, deer, wild boar and "peludos" - the baby armadillo.

Day 8 (B)

A final ride on Huechahue before transferring to the airport.

Between November and March a 3-day pack ride into the wilderness is included. The exact itinerary will depend on the time of year and weather/snow conditions. You may depart from the estancia itself or you may go into the mountains by vehicle. You will ride through the spectacular scenery of the southern Andes with its snow capped volcanoes, crystal clear lakes and pristine forests. Nights are spent camping in carefully chosen, picturesque campsites by a lake shore or at a stream's edge. These are rides into the wilderness. Everything is carried on pack horses and the camping is simple. The terrain itself generally dictates a slow pace. At the end return transport will be waiting to bring you back to Estancia Huechahue for baths, dinner and good beds!