Horseback Riding in Pinamar and its Surroundings

We left Pinamar along Av. Bunge and turned into Intermédanos street. We had been instructed that, at the end of that street, we would find don Ismael and, with him, his horses. They were waiting for visitors to take them around for a ride.

What we did not know, but perceived as soon as we arrived, was the pleasure you feel when you meet don Ismael. From the very beginning, his smile, the hardened skin of his hand stretching out to kindly greet us, and the accent typical of country people let us see that that man, who was wearing a scarf, a maroon beret and a girdle with a typical Pampas pattern was every inch a local. He was in charge of providing us with everything necessary, and maybe more, so that we would enjoy that experience to the utmost.

Pinamar has such things. "Glamorous" city, destination of mega fashion parades and exclusive sports, such as playing golf in one of the best courses in the country. It knows how to combine part of that beauty with this more natural, calm and tranquil beauty, with people that give everything for the sake of the tourist.

After arranging the riding harnesses and the stirrup height, with the reins in our hands, we left towards the bowels of the forest of pines, acacias, aromos and eucalyptus. This kind of rides offers deep silence, ideal for relaxing and reflecting or simply enjoying nature with intensity.

The horses that we were riding were used to carrying strangers. They even seemed to know the path by heart! It was better to ride in long strides and not to get far from the group or from don Ismael, of course. Thus, we listened to the loquacious explanation about the different sites we were going through. That assured us that such excursion was suitable for the entire family.

On horseback, we moved along a little path that little by little started to challenge us.

The dunes started to appear and, along with them, our eagerness to climb them, conquer them and feel the wind and the roar of the sea. We did not take long in tapping the horses with our heels. They rapidly responded to our command and in the wink of an eye they left us on the top of the dune, beholding the leaden horizon.

Watching both sides from the imaginary party wall was an amazing experience. To one side, we could see nature, maybe at one of its maximum expressions: wide and yellow sands seemed to welcome an eternal blue ocean, similar and different at every second. To the other, we saw how, in the 1940's, the joint efforts of architects Jorge Bunge and Héctor Manuel Guerrero gave shape to the Montes Grandes de Juancho, which once belonged to José Suárez, transforming them into the paradise Pinamar is nowadays.

A cold rain blessed that instant. We smiled. We let the drops that spectacularly fell from the sky make us wet. It was time to go back. Ismael encouraged us to ride and quickly get to his home, our shelter.

Mate and tortas fritas made by his wife invaded the scene while as we were covered with grey blankets in a rural house in the outskirts of Pinamar, our life was knitting one of the simplest and most beautiful moments in our story.