Horseback Riding in Mexico

12/16/09, 3:30 pm

I’m taking a ‘siesta’ in Starbucks after having a great time horseback riding earlier today. Paul and I met up outside on the pier, and we went on a 20 minute bus ride with about 10 other guests to “Ranchero Los Bandidos,” a horse ranch owned by a really nice American lady. She briefly told us how she had turned the property into a ranch and was in the process of building it up for use as a bed and breakfast, as well. It was a really pretty place, up on top of a hill, and overlooking part of the city and the bay and the ocean. I was afraid for a little while, because the brochure we read on the ship said ‘maximum 220 lbs. per rider.’ I’m not a contestant in waiting for “The Biggest Loser,” but I’m not quite at 220. That wasn’t really an issue, I just felt a little sorry for the horses there. None of them were as big and strong as the horse that I rode in the beginning of November with Emily (I’ll show pictures of both horses and you can compare). The ranch employees were somehow systematically pairing riders with horses, and when I wasn’t initially brought forward to get on what to me looked like the bigger horses, I got a little nervous. But, they brought out another bigger horse, named Dos Equis (like the beer). Ironically, I was wearing a Corona shirt that day, so there was a brand-name discrepancy there; sorry, I don’t own a Dos Equis shirt. Maybe that’s why we were paired together – we’re both big because of all the beer we drink… Once everyone was mounted and ready to go, we were on our way. Giddy-up! ¡Vamanos! We went on about an hour long ride, up and around a mountain. It was a bumpy ride – there were lots of rocks, and lots of trotting. As we went higher up the mountain, we continued to see some great views of the ocean and the city. When we got back to the ranch, we had some beef tacos on fresh corn tortillas and some really good hot salsa. Emily would be so proud of me for riding a horse!

Philippe from Georgetown, KY

Ranchero Los Bandidos

The stables

The main building on the ranch

The landscaping was really nice to see

Bringing out the horses

The tour guide’s horse

A GIANT cactus!

My horse – Dos Equis

The pack of horses

Lots of good scenic views!

Side of the mountain

The coastline of Ensenada

The Pacific Ocean

It was a great day outside!

A look down the mountain

Thanks to Paul for getting good pics of me!

Cowboy face

My butt was only a little sore at this point…

Thumbs up!

Smilin’ for the camera

Paul, Me, and the better halves of our horses

Almost back to the ranch

Thumbs up!

Paul and me

Paul and his black horse

Me and Dos Equis

Me outside the ranch

Paul outside the ranch

Paul and Me! Good times at Carnival!

Snake skins inside the ranch

The Black Pearl! Arrrrgh!!!

The picture of the Black Pearl is from the actual movie (according to the tour guide). There’s an extension of a movie company here that does some filming off the Ensenada coast, and apparently, some of the shots from Pirates of the Caribbean were done here, using that ship. Cool!

And I forgot, here’s a picture of my horse from November – compare it to Dos Equis!

Philippe from Georgetown, Kentucky

Dos Equis from Ensenada, Mexico

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