Horse riding holiday in the Andes

near Santiago, trail rides in the Cajon del Maipo

- January to early March: out from Bano Morales - high Andes

     Day rides from Santiago

     or camping for two or more nights

- All year round: El Toyo - Andes nearer Santiago

     Day rides all year and

     camping between October and March

1. Riding out on horseback from Bano Morales, a spa in the Chilean Andes, there is a choice of incomparably beautiful rides for your vacation. There are six complete days' riding to choose from, plus, if you enjoy camping in the high mountains alongside sparkling streams, accompanied by flowers and birds, two days' extra riding, up to the camp site and down again. The individual rides are listed below, and you can choose any mix and match of the first five rides, plus camping. The sixth day's riding goes in a different direction and we recommend spending the night before the trail in the local hotel.

It is impossible to say which day's ride is more beautiful than another. All are magical, and very different from each other. One involves, at certain times of year, such as January, some riding over snow, which is exciting but may not appeal to everyone. Another is breath-takingly steep, although not difficult riding. Another is more pastoral, a valley full of flowers and cattle and horses grazing, with rivers to cross and high mountain scenery. The individual rides are described below with accompanying photographs to help you choose.

Also, if any member of the group does not wish to go on all the rides, the campsite is a lovely place to spend the day and so visitors have complete freedom to do what they like with their holiday- ride every day, or only on some days if they prefer.

See below for descriptions of each day's ride

We can also design a longer ride for you, involving changing campsites from time to time. The route is extremely beautiful along a high river valley with lots of river crossings. Best period is the second week of February onwards. Email us for more information at ridingsantiago@gmail.com

Riding Season for the high Andes rides: Longer rides with camping are usually only possible in the 3 months from January to early March. After a winter with little snow it might be possible in the second half of December. For the rest of the year see El Toyo below.

2. El Toyo: We take other rides all year round and especially from late March to December in the area of El Toyo, more sheltered and also very beautiful especially in winter with snow-capped mountains all around. These are usually one day rides, but camping is possible between October and March

It is important to read the terms and conditions before booking a trip. Contact us to book a trip: ridingsantiago@gmail.com

El Toyo Rides in winter and early spring (late March to December inclusive)

There is too much snow to ride in the high Andes at this time but rides are possible slightly lower down. It is still very beautiful, with snow-capped peaks all around. The mountains are much greener and in spring there are wonderful flowers. In the depths of winter we can do one-day rides, or combinations with overnight in a hostal, but don't recommend camping. But in April, October and mild periods in winter, it is possible and not too cold. Days are often warm and sunny in winter but nights are cold. Usually you will lunch or camp near a place where you can take a dip in a nearby stream.

Riding up behind the mule

Sunset from the campfire

mountains, native trees and clouds

Herding cattle with the arrieros

Bano Morales: Rides up into the high Andes - January to March

Ride 1: trekking up to the glacier on horseback

The Morado Natonal Park of Chile, accessed from Bano Morales, is famous for its red river and its glacier. Many tourists visit it, but we take a different approach, where you will see almost nobody except possibly a mountaineer. This approach is from the other side of the mountain, where the glacier is equally spectacular and where the red river begins its flow towards Bano Morales. The approach after a heavy winter is a ride over snow, while after a dry winter, or later in the season, there will be less snow. It is exciting and surprisingly easy to ride across the firm snow - the horses are used to the snow and have no problem - to the foot of the glacier where there is a lake, blue in late summer and frozen white in early summer. We picnic among dry rocks at the base and enjoy incredible views, both of the glacier and further up into the snow-clad mountains. Riding back gets us into camp in time to relax, read, bathe, play cards, photograph flowers or whatever, before a pisco sour and a hot evening meal in the delightful campsite where the horses are let loose to eat their fill of the rich grass. Or, if it is a one day riding expedition, back to the car to take you down the mountain to the comforts of civilisation.

Riding across snow to reach the glacier

The glacier and frozen lake

Where the clear and the red rivers meet

picnic at foot of glacier

Riding up the valley towards Marmolejo

River crossing

The horses are led along a difficult bit

Riding up the valley towards Marmolejo

a snow patch on the ride to Marmolejo

we stop to picnic, looking back from the base of Marmolejo

Ride 3: Valle Engorda

This is a more gentle day's riding, with nothing very steep or difficult, although the river is crossed twice on horseback. The valley is full of flowers and there are horses and cattle grazing. As you ride further up the valley the flowers get more interesting and a final picnic near the water and below the steep mountain at the end of the valley makes a pleasant end before riding back down.

Wild flowers in the valley (jaborosa negra)

Ride 4: To the fossil lake

This is the most challenging ride as although it is not difficult or dangerous, it is an immensely steep climb. The horses do not find it hard but they need to rest from time to time as we climb the altitude very rapidly. The ride up is past an incredible slab of cleancut stone, casting a dark shadow where it goes in front of the bright sun. When the horses reach the first ridge the view is almost unbelievable. You can actually see, as if reading a map, or a view from an aeroplane, all the routes of the other rides, including the campsite with its little river Clarillo meeting the red Morado river and the tents hard to pick out as they are so small. It is enough for some people to have arrived here, to picnic and look at the view, but the more energetic will want to carry on a short way further, over into the next valley.

The last bit of the ride up from this ridge and over into an almost unknown mountain high valley is a little bit more difficult and for inexperienced riders it may be pleasanter to make the short climb on foot. But the view, the lake and the fossils are sufficient reward for the hardy adventurers who press on this far.

Riding up

View down to Rio Morado and a dirt road

Sharing a beer with the guides after the ride up

The trail zigzags down again

The lake below

Fossils at the hidden lake

The lake below

View from the ridge

Ride 5: To Refugio Plantal

Some of our visitors have voted this the best ride of all. It starts from the Valle Engorda and goes up steeply through what is known as the funnel (embudado)- a narrow steep gorge- and emerges at a plateau with a 'vega' or meadow with cattle and goats and often baby animals of various kinds. Once we actually saw a kid being born. Then more climbing to a second vega with mares and foals and amazing views of all the high cordillera roundabout. The refugio itself is also fascinating. It is a stage for the climbers attempting Volcan San Jose. It was built by a family called Plantal and is always open, because once a climber was descending in a snowstorm, could not get into the refugio and died of exposure. The custom is always to leave a little food or something for future users.

The refugio

The glacier view from the Refugio

Riding to the refugio

Horses living on the 'vega'

Ride 6: El Avion

This ride is so named because an aeroplane crashed into the side of the mountain in 1963, leaving no survivors. The passengers were local taxi-drivers and bus owners going for an expedition. There are fragments of aeroplane on the mountainside still, glinting glass on the rocks and a moving metal cross placed by the families of the dead.

Apart from this historical interest it is a ride full of beauty, to a high point where there is a vega, or meadow. It would be possible to ride on up and the mountain known as the Diablo is accessed from here by mountaineers.

The horse ride goes up quite steeply past banks of incredible flowers. These vary with the time of year but in January and February you should see wild alstromerias as well as ananucas (lily of the mountain) and myriad other flowers.

Looking back we see the secret lake valley across the other side of the gorge and going down there is a bird's eye view of Bano Morales and the Refugio Lo Valdes where you may have passed the night if this day is included as part of a longer riding holiday.

Riding up to the cross at El Avion

Picnic at the vega with the fossil valley high in the background

Riding down to Bano Morales below

Flowers en route - a type of clavel de campo

Alstromeria alongside the ride

calandrinia seen on the horseride to El Avion

Rides 7 and 8: Riding up to and down from the camp

This is a 2 to 3 hour ride, easy but still beautiful and with a small river to cross. The idea is to have an easy day to set up camp, relax, get to know the guides, the horses and the place on day 1 and to have plenty of time to pack up on the day we depart.