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Keen travellers and seasoned riders, we have explored most parts of the UK, Spain, Germany, France, Iceland, Mongolia, Egypt and Jordan on horseback. So when Horse & Rider offered us the opportunity to visit Rancho Ferrer in Andalucia, we jumped at the chance. What Alison did not tell us was that this is definitely not a package holiday. We rang Bill Brash**, the English proprietor, in Spain (dead easy - 0034 958 349116 and you are straight through) to arrange dates round our very awkward schedules. Then it was down to the local travel agent to book the flight to Malaga, (we could, alternatively, have flown to Almeria) and the deal was done. All we had to do then was confirm the arrangements with Bill.
Bill explained that they take a maximum of only six riders out at any one time, and always with both Bill and his wife Margaret riding with the guests. The horses, all locally bred there in Andalucia, are carefully matched to the size, experience, fitness & expectations of the riders. With this in mind, a chat in the bar on that evening, after a delicious home-cooked meal, was an important prelude to our first day's riding. This could have been anything from a quiet hour to a full day trek. Although the choice is very much down to the individual, it can be difficult making decisions when you are on holiday! Bill and Margaret will have assessed your potential in the first few minutes and will help the undecided plan the most fulfilling riding experience.
This is not an exaggeration. Accessed by a long winding unmade track, the peace and tranquillity of this beautiful spot has to be experienced to be appreciated. It's set amidst arid, semi-dessert terrain with a fascinating wildlife quite different from that at home. The steep, stony tracks switch-backing up the mountains looked unrideable to us at first, but the amazingly sure-footed Spanish horses treat them with disdain. If you suffer from vertigo, it is better not to look down for the first few hours, which is all it takes to become accustomed to the dramatically steep sided valleys. The saddles are either English or Western, although
the general style of riding most suited to the terrain is more Western.
Margaret is concerned with the day-to-day management of the horses
and stressed that Time has stood still on these rugged slopes, inaccessible
to machinery, ploughing between the pink-blossomed almond trees is
done by mule. The shale tracks hosted no travellers, and in a whole
day's riding, A longer day's trek took us even higher in the mountains, above 4,000 feet, we suddenly saw grass, nourished by heavy dew from the sometime present clouds. As our horses carried us even higher, the mountainside became even steeper, and at one point, we had to lead the horses for a short distance as they scrambled up on tip toes.
The stripped trunks of the cork oaks stood out, rusty red against the beige ground and deeply bottle green leaves. With cloud descending, it was like riding through an enchanted forest. Our mountaineering took us to a roadside café with a handy paddock to tether the horses and a water trough shared with two giant farm mules. After a delicious lunch of local specialities (ham, omelette, cheeses, bread, wine…..) the horses were glad to see us again and to be taken back down the mountain, below the cloud line and into the sun. Happy Horses To stay at Rancho Ferrer is to enjoy rural Spain. It is breathtakingly quiet and unspoiled yet with the luxury of running water and electricity. Because Bill and Margaret are prepared to be so flexible, it is possible to make this a part of a wider travel experience. Just £4 and one and half hours on a bus will take you to Granada and the Alhambra palace for the day. Bill will take you to the bus stop, or to the village or down to the beach. We walked out in the early evening to enjoy the solitude that is such a feature of this isolated spot. In a short time, we developed very strong feelings for this place. ** Bill & Margaret Brash retired in July 2001, and the ranch is now owned and operated by Mike and Annemarie Shaw Roberts.
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He
arranged for us to be met at the airport from our flight, and taken
directly to the ranch. This is the system he uses with all his visitors.
On arrival we were shown into one of the typically Spanish style houses
in the village, which was ours exclusively for our stay. There is
no sharing at Rancho Ferrer - each party or individual has a whole
house with no supplements for single travellers. 
What
sets Rancho Ferrer apart from the rest is the stunning, timeless mountain
setting. When a ruined village was advertised for sale in Exchange
and Mart, Bill and Margaret's curiosity was aroused and effectively
they never looked back. Stage by stage, they resurrected this tiny
white village from ruins to a red-tiled, bourganvillea-decked paradise.
the
horses go best if you leave them alone. They are then free to pick
their way along the stony tracks and frankly, there is nothing better
than to be able to settle back with loose reigns and let the horse
take responsibility. Between us, we rode four of the horses over two
full days' riding from the ranch. They were all willing, comfortable
and easy rides, Camanche and Fortuna being a little sharper and Terrano
the youngest. He can carry an Australian drover's saddle, which is
very comfy and supportive on the steep slopes.
we
spoke only to a hermit tending his ancient donkey. Beneath the horses'
hooves, crushed thyme released its unmistakable scent. The air was
always full of aromas, some familiar, most new. Above, soaring on
thermals, we could occasionally spot an eagle or falcon. Lunch, taken
in the shade of an old almond tree above an abandoned village while
the horses contentedly grazed the dry scrub, was an oppurtunity to
rest and enjoy the rare treat - for us anyway - of warm February sun
and cloudless skies. 
At
this altitude, the climate is cooler and the ground is damper. Grapes
grow on the ground-hugging vines, to be made into delicious rose wine
(stocked in the bar at the ranch!). Boar roam wild, browsing in acorns
from the cork oaks. They also contribute another local delicacy, ham
dried in long, ventilated sheds by the constant breezes. 
on
their return, nor fed until they have cooled down. They are all very
well, fit, sound, free from galls and certainly seem to enjoy their
work. 