Horse riding in Oaxaca, Mexico

Horseback Mexico

This post reflects my own opinions.

I rode at Horseback Mexico with Mary Jane Gagnier during my trip to Oaxaca. I had a bit of a stressful morning trying to get there as I was waiting for ages for a taxi at my hotel (Hotel Fortin Plaza) and managed to make it down there for 08.36 to the pickup point in town (phew the driver was waiting for me!). The drive was not far, around 30 minutes and I arrived at 9ish. The journey was really pleasant and I saw many beautiful local homes and vegetation. I rode in January time and the weather was sunny, warm and pleasant, and not unbearable for riding.

The entrance to Rancho Pitaya, Horseback Mexico.

On arrival I met Mary Jane, she was a very interesting lady from Canada who had moved to Mexico when she was in her twenties. She was amazing to talk to and I really enjoyed her company all day, she had the most fascinating stories and life experience. She has even written a book about Oaxaca which you can find here on Amazon!

We talked about Mexican literature and artists, as while in Mexico I read the book ‘Like Water for Chocolate’, written by famous Mexican writer Laura Esquivel which I absolutely loved. The genre is magical realism, with a lot of Mexican historical culture woven into the narrative, including traditional recipes and customs.

Fascinating book with the author’s life story and perception of Mexican life in Oaxaca.

 I went to the bathroom and got myself ready for the ride. I caught a glimpse of this beautiful guest room. How peaceful it would be to have a few nights to stay here! I also thought the decor was very authentic.

I started off by getting on a horse called Midnight, who was actually an Arab horse that Mary Jane had bought from Texas. I generally don’t enjoy riding Arabs as they tend to be a bit ‘looky’, and stare at everything when out on a trail ride, which can be quite off putting, but to be fair Midnight was quite good throughout the morning ride and only shied away at something scary (a tyre) once, which is pretty decent for an Arabian horse.

Mary Jane told me that they are built to work and they enjoy getting a job done, and can get quite pent up if they aren’t ridden often and properly.

Mary Jane was very strict about safety, and I really appreciated that. It is so important when out riding that you feel safe and can tell that the stables cares about safety.

We did some exercises out on the trail, crossing across the track, looping round, and generally keeping the horses engaged with us so they weren’t just plodding along. I thought this was quite good and it seemed to help the horses mentally as well.

We stopped to let the horses have a little snack on some fresh grass that was available, which was a nice little break for them and us.

We rode out past the alfalfa fields where I saw men cutting with scythes in the traditional way. We passed beautiful flora and fauna, including all sorts of birds. Mary Jane actually also offers a birdwatching trip, and she was really knowledgabel about all the birds we came across. We saw hooded orioles and mourning doves.

 We had a couple of nice canters, not too long but long enough to enjoy them, and they were safe and controlled along the dirt tracks with great mountains looming up in front.

We returned to the ranch for a snack mid-morning which was welcomed. After a short break we went out again, I rode an older horse (>20 year old) and Mary Jane rode a small donkey called Bonita. While I didn’t mind doing a walking ride, the slow pace led me to getting a bit sunburned, and I think I would have enjoyed it more doing a bit more of a faster pace, however we did get to see some fantastic huge cacti.

We returned to the beautiful ranch and had a lovely lunch, of tortillas and salsa with a lovely salad served with local cheese.

Mary Jane was also kind enough to let me use the shower in the guest room before I caught my onward flight to Tuxtla, as she had also helped arrange for me to go straight from the ranch to the aiport. I enjoyed looking at the book she had published and reading about her story.

The tack room, and Mary Jane has all her endurance rosettes displayed here.

Like any good riding trip there are always things that I enjoyed and things that maybe could have been better.

Pros

The ranch was absolutely stunning, there were huge cacti, chickens roaming around and also hummingbirds flying around the feeders.

The guest room and bathroom were beautifully decorated.

The horses were well kept and responsive.

The training was excellent and the company.

The food and snacks, and drinks were lovely.

Most importantly I felt safe riding there.

Huge cacti back at the ranch.

Cons

Maybe I should have given the second horse I rode a bit of a brush before going out, as he does look a little scruffy in the photos! My old instructor Bec would have told me off…

As we all know, horse riding is not the cheapest hobby, it is a little bit expensive but I think the memory of a gorgeous full day of riding in such a scenic location it is worth it.

Little bit slow on the second ride but may be different if you have a bigger group.

Hope I look as good as this horse when I get old.

Thanks Mary Jane!

I had a fantastic time with you and will always cherish the memory!

Check out her website here!

Inspired :) thank you!