Day 1
Riding: No riding.
Arrive in Anciles and have a guided tour of the village which dates back to the medieval period. Have dinner with your group.
Day 2
Riding: 6 hours
Transfer from your hotel to the stables to meet your horses and set off on your ride. Today you pass through a mixed forest with a lot of varieties of tree such as birch, oak and wild cherry before reaching Cerler. This village is at 1540m and is the highest village in the Pyrenees.
Leave Cerler and the forest changes to that which is more typical of high mountains, with black pine and firs. If you are lucky you may spot some wildlife such as capercaillie or bearded vulture. Eventually you'll reach an alpine meadow at around 2000m and can admire the beautiful view.
Day 3
Riding: 6 hours
Today you will be riding across to the south of the valley, El Solano (sunny area). Head up a ski slope until you see the south side of Aneto (3404m), the king of the Pyrenees, and the massif of Maladeta. Follow a spectacular scree slope and path to drop down 1000m. The landscape is spectacular and you will discover how glaciers chiselled and eroded the mountains to create the valley millions of years ago.
Continue riding and the view changes so that the massif of Turbon is in front of you. Cross a Roman bridge over a beautiful natural pool to reach the first villages of the Solano - Liri and Ramastue, both of which contain Roman churches.
Day 4
Riding: 6 hours
Today you'll discover different villages and the unique architecture of the Benasque valley. You'll be riding along traditional tracks which link the villages.
Cross the Esera river and sample the natural water which has filtered out of the mountains and then view the best Romanic hermitage of the valley - Virgen de la Gracia. This lombard style building, whose construction originated in Lombardy, Italy, was built in the 12th century and rose up to shelter the pilgrims travelling the camino to Santiago de Compostela. The history of the village, hermitages and fountains will take you back in time.
Day 5
Riding: 6 hours
El Collado of Sahun is a mountain pass at 2025m which connects the two valleys of Benasque and Plan. In the midst of a great alpine meadow you can enjoy the silence, pure air and incredible landscapes. As you descend you discover magnificent waterfalls into Barbarisa lake where you can rest and cool off. A long narrow path then leads through mixed forest to Sahun. Sahun is known for its traditional passage of fire torches "Las Fallas" which celebrate the summer solstice as a pre-Christian festivity. At the end of the day you cross the Esera river again to reach Anciles.
Day 6
Riding: 6 hours
Depart Anciles to ride to the village of Benasque which gives the valley its name. After a few miles you find some remains from the civil war. Within the Benasque valley there are other valleys created by glaciers 40 million years ago - one of them is Estos valley. Within this valley, farmers drive their cattle in transhumance from the high meadows for the different seasons. These cows graze freely in large areas of meadows and forests bathed by the river Estos. The peak of El Perdiguero, one of the most beautiful and unknown in the Pyrenees at 3222m will hold your gaze as you ride through the Estos valley.
Day 7
Riding: 6 hours
Your final day as you ride through the bottom of the valley under the massif of the Maladeta, the highest mountains of the Pyrenees with the spectacular summit of Aneto at 3404m. This scene remains in view as you follow the track to Portillon de Benasque at 2444m and the gateway to France. This iconic place is known for its beauty and history - for many years the population of the Benasque valley used the portillon to exchange merchandise with the French village of Luchon.
Continue your ride through the heart of the Natural Park of Postes Maladeta.
Day 8
Riding: No riding.
Depart after breakfast
Note: All programmes and itineraries are weather dependent; in the face of adverse, or unexpected, weather conditions reasonable attempts will be made to provide equivalent riding. All programmes are accurate at the time of writing. However, the team may adapt or modify details, whilst aiming to provide a similar experience.
