The estancia proposes entirely personalised opportunities to escape daily mental routine and a genuine chance to close in to nature. This is all about quality and depth of experience, like coming back with a little story from a remote corner of this vast country.
Bathing after a picnic in the Rio Grande at Xmas time.
There are essentially 2 seasons at Pampa Grande: a Dry Winter from mid-April to end of October and a Summer Rain saison covering November through March. Here’s what a typical day might look like:
A typical autumn or winter day from dawn to dusk.
The village rises before daybreak because the days are short and this is cattle weaning season. Temperatures can be below freezing point at night but generally the days are bright and dry with temperatures frequently rising above 20C. From April till August all the cattle has to be brought down to come through the “corrales”or pens to be vaccinated. Then the calves are classified and marked and weaned from their mothers.
A rare case of snowfall in August
You will rise and watch the first sunlight illuminating the “Pirgua” (dominant and sacred mountain to the west). It can be cold, there are quite a few nights with frost. A breakfast with delicious local eggs but also fruits and homemade bread awaits. After that and with the sun progressively warming the atmosphere you will maybe head out on horseback to see the gauchos working the cattle. You may go into the hills to participate in a “corrida” that is the gathering of a herd to bring them down to the valley. This is loud and spectacular business with barking dogs and gauchos shouting.
For lunch you will have the option of having a picnic in the field or returning to the sala for a slice of estancia beef. In the afternoons there is more work with the cattle of course but there are also walks, excursions etc.
Preparing breakfast after a frosty night in August
A summer day at Pampa Grande.
You will wake with the joyous sounds of abundant birdlife in the garden. The night was fresh because you are resting at an altitude of 1700m. Now the sun is rapidly heating the atmosphere and it is possible to have a dip in the pool before breakfast in the Galeria.
After that it is time to put your “sombrero” (hat) on and a highly recommended layer of suncream, and go for a ride before it gets too warm. You may visit a “puesto”, home of a gaucho who looks after a sector of land and see how he takes care of the new born calves (calving season is October through December). Or you be tempted to follow a trail along the river or aim for one of the mountain tops to get close to the circling condors.
Galloping in the grasslands in December.
The children enjoy a quiet afternoon of boating and fishing on the lake.
Lunch may be a picnic in the field, a dip in the river, or a poolside drink followed by a rejuvenating siesta in the shade. Sunset is an opportunity to walk around the lake an watch the birds returning to roost and the shadows of the mountain ridges gradually invading the valley.
Before dinner you will have an abundant choice of appetisers and drinks sitting around a brasero on sheepskins. Through dinner you will be tasting a choice of Argentinian wines from Malbec to Torrontes.