Riding at El Saltamontes Lodge
Thundering hooves and wind envelop you as you gallop across open Pampas. A blur of blacks, bays, duns and greys take up your peripheral vision while the Andes Mountains loom up ahead. Gusts of wet earth, horse sweat and beech forests fill your nostrils. We have not even started the day’s ride yet, this is just ‘arreando’ (herding) the horses to the corral in the morning!
 
As a fully working cattle ranch, horses have always played an essential part on the ranch or estancia on which El Saltamontes lodge is based. Most of the estancia is only accessible by horseback. Cattle work has not changed much since this area of Patagonia was colonized. Horses are still our neighbour’s main transport; we will meet more than one riding past in goatskin leggings, gaucho berets, woollen ponchos and jingling silver spurs.

The Riding:
You will ride through landscapes rarely (if ever) visited by other humans.

Tackle the steep Andes Mountains and be rewarded with wild riding and breath taking scenery; eternal snow with condors soaring above, dramatic peaks spreading below and in the distance, the Argentinean pampas stretching as far as the eye can see. Return to the lodge for a well deserved wood fired hot tub soak, ‘pisco sour’ cocktails and sumptuous Chilean cuisine.

Alternatively, take leisurely scenic rides through local valleys. Enjoy a picnic lunch and fine Chilean wine next to the river, visit our neighbours, sip ‘mate’ (a strong local tea) and see alpaca and sheep’s wool garments being made by hand.

For those seeking to go further in to the wilderness we can head deep in to the Andes and overnight in comfortable satellite camps. We will ride up the mountains, out of our home valley and in to ancient ‘nirre’ and ‘lenga’ forests covered in dwarf’s beard moss. We will pass imposing granite peaks, canter over grassy valleys and ford glacial rivers. Relax around a crackling fire with a glass of red wine and hearty meal at the end of the day.

Whatever ride your heart desires we will try to make it happen (subject to weather conditions – it is Patagonia after all!)  

Our Horses:
You will ride one of our mountain bred horses. Our herd is mix of sturdy Criollos (local mountain ponies), Arabian and Holsteins.
As children we used to ride these little Criollos to school every day. Brave, obedient and sensible, they safely took us around jumping courses as we grew up, eventually qualifying for the Chilean National Show Jumping team. We are sure you will enjoy riding them as much as we do!

Seeking to combine their temperament with a little more height we introduced world class Holsteins and Thoroughbreds to our herd. We also introduced an Arabian stallion for endurance. His offspring (from Criollo mares) are all grey, stronger than their sire and well suited for long haul rides.

We will make sure you are teamed up with the best horse to suit your abilities and experience.

Taming wild horses:
We allow our horses to remain wild until they turn 3 years old.  Every summer we bring around 10 of our unbroken horses down from the mountains to be broken in.
Our gauchos break them using a unique form of rational horsemanship that produces extremely responsive work and trail horses.
 
Most of the work takes place in corrals a short walk from the Lodge. Guests are welcome to watch and take part in this process.