Arrival day into Punta Arenas airport in southern Patagonia. Take a taxi the short distance from the airport to the Hotel Rey Don Felipe, Armando Sanhueza 965, Punta Arenas, Chile. Telephone: +56 61 617500. www.hotelreydonfelipe.com.

Meet leader in hotel lobby at 7.30 p.m. to be escorted to restaurant for dinner. Trip briefing and welcome dinner. No meals included today.

Today we are going to be starting our drive across the wide open pampas and land belonging to some of the huge estancias in this area as we head towards the Torres del Paine National Park. After a short lunch stop in Puerto Natales, where clients can choose from a variety of restaurants and cafes, we will continue our drive north. The road takes us along beside the waters of Last Hope Sound with the bobbing heads of the black necked swans to our left. Our first estancia for the night is Estancia Tres Pasos, now a comfortable Hosteria situated at the head of a magical flower filled valley. A working ranch this wooden, chalet-style property consists of a number of barns and outbuildings, pretty gardens and beautiful views down the valley. There will be a chance to unpack and relax a little before meeting our horses for an afternoon introductory ride in the vicinity of the estancia. Riders will get a chance to adjust to the style of riding and tack as we run through the paces and enjoy a relaxing afternoon's ride in this beautiful area. Return to the hotel for dinner in the lovely restaurant. Most of the food in this delightful family run establishment is home produced. Breakfast and dinner included (excluding wine/drinks). All rooms en suite. Hours in the saddle: 3-4.

Today after breakfast, riders will once again be saddling up for a full day's ride. This time, we will be heading north west to the outpost town of Cerro Castillo. This is a beautiful open ride across grassy meadows and welcoming pampas. Riding towards the dramatic mountain range of Torres del Paine enables us to fully benefit from the incredible mountain and lake views. There will also be opportunities for your first long 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 Hosteria el Pionero come into view. Surrounded by the customary layer of trees, the villa has the look and feel of an English country home and was built by European settlers to Tierra del Fuego at the beginning of the century. Once home to one of the most important and influential estancieros in the region it offers comfortable accommodation and an excellent restaurant offering a variety of typical local foods and international cuisine. The fireside bar is an excellent place to enjoy a pisco sour while getting to know your new friends and discussing the adventures to come. Comfortable en suite accommodation (some rooms with fireplaces). Dinner in the comfortable restaurant. All meals included (excluding wine/drinks). Hours in the saddle: 6-7.

After a breakfast of home baked bread and cakes served in the bright dining room, we will be saddling up for the long ride north east across the pampas. This is a classic Patagonian ride with the seemingly never ending pampas stretched out in front of us. Our journey takes us north towards the spectacular and dramatic La Cumbre and Baguales mountain ranges that separate Chile from Argentina with the mountains of the Paine Massif to the east. We will be crossing the land belonging to various local farmers and with luck may be invited to pop into a local estancia for tea or mate. After 7 or 8 hours riding with lunch taken in one of the many picnic spots en route, we will be riding onto the land belonging to Estancia Cerro Guido. Located to the north east of Torres del Paine, this estancia offers very comfortable accommodation, views of the fabulous Towers and a number of historic buildings to wander around. Founded in the late 19th century, Guido is one of the largest estancias in the area and the owners have undertaken a sensitive refurbishment resulting in very comfortable guest accommodation while preserving the heritage of the original estancia. Comfortable en suite accommodation (some rooms with fireplaces). Dinner in the pretty restaurant. All meals included. Hours in the saddle 7 - 8 hours.

Today is a shorter ride as we saddle up in the pretty gardens before our beautiful ride out towards Estancia Tercera. This is an exciting ride and one that again offers different scenery. Surrounded by the wide open pampas and grassy valleys, our route takes us towards the huge granite peaks of the Paine mountain range as we head south west to the land belonging to Estancia Tercera. The terrain today is perfect for lovely long canters while we relax on our horses and enjoy the spectacular views. Our base for the night is the estancia known as Estancia Tercera Barranca and the comfortable ranch house belonging to this working estancia. Pretty rooms and cosy ccommodation in this authentic country house with fabulous views of the  towers from its large west facing windows. Fireside living room/bar and traditional quincho (wooden dining room with outside BBQ area). En suite rooms. All meals included (excluding wine/drinks).

Hours in the saddle: approximately 5 - 6.

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 themselves. Our ride takes us 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 before crossing the area known as Canadon Macho with its Vega Nandu normally inhabited by large groups of both Guanaco and Rhea. This is a great area for spotting and photographing wildlife. We then ride on before dismounting and walking out to see the beautiful Salto Paine, a very pretty waterfall where glacial waters thunder over the rocks in their journey out. We will ride past Estancia Laguna Amarga and around the salt encrusted shores of Laguna Amarga (bitter lake) with its emerald green waters acting as a mirror as the surrounding mountains reflect in its surface. Continue east onto the land belonging to Estancia Tercera and our base for the second night. Night Estancia Tercera. All meals included (excluding wine/drinks). Hours in the saddle: approximately 6 - 7.

Today, now more familiar with our horses, we will be setting off across the wide open pampas towards the heart of the Park with the Towers of Paine and mountains of the Paine Massif dominating the horizon. This is a beautiful ride, not least because we get to ride towards the mountains themselves. Our trail takes us across rivers and past many lakes, all a different shade of blue as we ride through the summer grazing grounds of large groups of guanaco. Plenty of time to take photos and enjoy the athletic antics of these fascinating and agile animals. We can also stop to pick some lovely ripe calafate berries from one of the many bushes that grow around here. Our route then takes us onto one of our favourite trails which takes us south of the Paine mountains following the route taken by the Paine River as we ride towards Lake Nordenskjold. The views are spectacular from here as we see the famous Horns (Cuernos) of Paine piercing the skies with the beautiful turquoise waters of the lake in front. We will ride as far as the Nordenskjold lookout where we will meet our comfortable transfer vehicle for the drive across the Park to the immense Glacier and Lake Grey. We head out on foot across the small footbridge before walking through the forest and down to the lake?s grey sandy shores where we can admire the spectacular and almost surreal views. Measuring 28 km in length and almost 35 metres in height this fast retreating glacier remains the largest in the Park. The views from the beach are dramatic. The grey waters of the lake form an interesting contrast to the blue-white icebergs that have calved off the crystalline ice wall and which float on its surface. Time permitting, interested clients can join the Grey Boat trip that takes you up to the face of the glacier. The cost can be payable locally ($80 per person). After our time spent here we will continue in our vehicle to the nearby salmon stocked waters of the Serrano River where we will spend the night. Our base for the night is the comfortable Cabanas del Paine. This area provides some of the best photo backdrops in the Park with the classic yellow pampas in the foreground and the fabulous peaks of the Horns of Paine (los Cuernos) behind. Night Cabanas del Paine.

All meals included (wine/drinks available at extra cost).
Hours in the saddle 3-4.

We will be making a relatively early start today for the beautiful ride out of Torres del Paine and into the remote and pristine Bernardo O'Higgins National Park. This is a new ride in a virgin area and one where you will see few, if any, other clients. The Bernardo O'Higgins National Park straddles the regions of Magallanes and Aysen. Not only is it the largest park in Chile, it ranks among the three largest national parks in the world. It is one of the least explored corners of southern Patagonia due its extreme climate and its dramatic location crammed between the isolated fjords and the southern ice field itself. The waters of the Serrano River flow through some of the greatest scenery on earth on their journey from Torres del Paine to Last Hope Sound. The river seems to change colour constantly as it joins forces with the Rivers Grey, Tyndall and Geike covering about 36 km of distance before spilling out into Last Hope Sound in the Bernardo O'Higgins N.P. Have your camera at the ready as you ride south along the same route with its exquisitely pretty trails and abundance of snowcapped peaks, crystal clear lakes and lush green forests. As an added bonus today, we will get to see the horses swim the waters of the River Nutria. This always proves fascinating to watch as the horses, completely trusting of their handlers, head into the frigid waters and quite naturally swim across to the other side of the river. Our ride then takes us due south through acres of native forest passing scattered lakes and streams as we approach the abundant and completely pristine waters of Lago Brush (pictured above). There is a small lakeside puesto here where our horses will have a chance to rest while we relax and enjoy a picnic lunch in our beautiful, silent surroundings. After lunch we cross some beautiful grassy meadows as we ride closer to the Serrano River with the dramatic mountains of the Chacabuco range looming up to our left. Our destination is the remote Hosteria Balmaceda with incredible views of the Serrano Glacier and its only access by boat, foot or horse. Night in Hosteria Balmaceda with comfortable but basic lodgings in dorm-style rooms. All meals included (wine/drinks available at extra cost). 

After breakfast we will be taking a boat out to visit two glaciers in this area. The very pretty Serrano Glacier with its meltwater pool home to a number of Floating icebergs and the hanging Balmaceda Glacier that clings to the granite of its host mountain as it spills down the mountainside into the waters of Last Hope Sound below. Return to the dock at Puerto Toro for the boat trip back to Puerto Natales. This is a 3 hour navigation that stops at the remote and beautifully located Estancia Perales for a traditional asado before arriving at the quayside in Puerto Natales at around 6 p.m.
Night in Puerto Natales in Hotel Weskar or similar. Farewell dinner at one of the town's excellent restaurants.

All meals included (with wine/drinks available at extra cost).

After a leisurely morning in Puerto Natales we will be joining our transfer vehicle for the drive back to Punta Arenas via the Magellanic Penguin Colony at Otway Sound. Plenty of time to observe these ute, burrowing penguins as they waddle from their burrows to the nearby ocean to fish.

Night Hotel Rey Don Felipe. Dinner at leisure.
Breakfast only included today.

Taxi to airport for onward flight. Breakfast only.