IMAGES: GETTY; TEGAN CUNNIFFE


RANCHES Life in the saddle


Under the open skies of the Pampas, travellers can join Argentine gauchos at an estancia for hands-on experiences that offer a window into a slowly disappearing way of life. Words: Sarah Marshall


Trying desperately hard to loosen my grip on the leather reins, while resisting the urge to cling on for dear life, I attempt to reason with my horse. Negotiating with a nervous 1,000lb animal would be challenging on a flat surface. On a boulder-strewn 45-degree slope, it’s almost impossible. Fortunately, Jonathan ‘Yoni’ Zapata, an accomplished gaucho, comes to my rescue. A few quiet words of reassurance and my horse is putty in his hands. The lauded heroes of Argentine folklore, gauchos


have powers of equine communication far beyond our comprehension. Originally employed to round up wild cattle and horses, these courageous, free-spirited nomads flourished across the grasslands from the 17th century. But their role is about much more than herding cattle. They’re sewn into the fabric of endless steppe and open skies, and the landscape wouldn’t be the same without them. “Sadly, the gaucho way of life is disappearing due to


modern life and more automated farming practices,” says Kevin Begg, who runs Estancia Los Potreros, a 6,500 acre cattle and horse farm that’s been in his family for four generations. With a name like Kevin and an accent shaped


76 NATIONALGEOGRAPHIC.COM/TRAVEL


by a schooling in Somerset, he’s hardly the archetypal Argentine; his origins are actually Scottish. But dressed in slip-on alpargatas (espadrilles), a necktie and slouchy felt boina — an oversized beret typically worn by gauchos — he’s embraced every element of estancia life. Kevin still sells his prized Angus beef at auction every


Monday, but today a large chunk of his income is generated by travellers who visit his farm. It’s 1,100m above sea level in the Sierras Chicas hills, but less than an hour’s drive from Córdoba airport. People come to ride one of his 100- plus prized horses and drink velvety Malbec on the shaded verandah of his 250-year-old farmhouse, where noisy parakeets squabble in the boughs of a towering pine tree. Being almost a total beginner, my clunky start in the


saddle was to be expected. Determined to have a second shot at being a cowgirl, I pull on a pair of chaps and a hard hat in preparation for another ride with Yoni. More accomplished riders can help round up the mares and foals; others can book an Argentine polo teacher for lessons. I’m happy trotting slowly along the gravel path, settling into a slow rhythm and enjoying my surroundings.


From left: A gaucho wearing a typical red boina beret; lunch after horse riding; the lodge at Los Potreros, Córdoba


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