Uruguay Blog (Day 4)
Day 4 - After breakfast we were rather sorry to be leaving this lovely place, but we had a good stretch to cover before reaching our next destination, Parada Arteaga. We rode out on our criollo horses across a vast meadow where black angus grazed onto a dirt track and into a forest of eucalyptus. After a few hours of riding through forest and cantering across meadows we met Don Pablo the owner of Parada Arteaga with some of his gauchos and more horses in case we needed a change of mounts. Don Pablo looked incredibly picturesque riding a paint horse and wearing a red lined cape. We were all vastly impressed.
We rode on together after the meeting across rolling meadows with ideal places to open the horses up into a full gallop if we felt like it. Then we were in forest country again and spied some deer across a clearing. The magic morning slipped by too quickly and before we knew it we were riding into Parada Arteaga, another beautiful, historic estancia with magnificent old trees. We were treated to a sumptuous buffet lunch and local musicians played and sang while we ate. Four hours in the saddle had given us keen appetites. After a rest in our spacious bedrooms (each had its own fireplace), we made a short ride around the estancia and came back in time to watch a local version of the rodeo put on by the gauchos of the ranch. Their horsemanship was superb and we all admired their amazing pole bending skills. Riding is still an integral part of life here in the way it was in our West a century ago. While waiting for another great dinner the more talented and energetic members of our group tangoed with the locals.