The Camargue Ride

Be warned, you should be BESIDE yourself with excitement on arrival day. When planning our exploratory #10rides80days Globetrotting trip in 2018, the Camargue Ride bewitched me and I know it will do the same to you. THIS type of riding experience is exactly what makes my Globetrotting heart beat faster. I’m fascinated with foreign horse cultures and I’ve had the unique privilege of riding shoulder-to-shoulder with Gauchos in Argentina, Baqueanos in Chile, Pantaneiros in Brazil, Cowboys in Montana and now the ‘Guardians of the Camargue’ in France while mounted on their silver, salty-maned, native horses.

You’ll need to arrive at the luxury farmhouse estate (your home for the next 5 days) by 3pm so you can squeeze in a two-hour sunset ride. No doubt you won’t want to spend a moment out of the saddle with the smell of horses and the prospect of exploring new landscapes from our preferred mode of transport right in front of you. Owner and guide, Frédéric,, will match you to your horse and you’ll be away.

After your ride, you’ll settle into your deluxe accommodation before meeting at the on-site restaurant for some French fare. The chef is Grégory Brousse, who serves fresh and generous dishes with the look and taste of the Camargue by selecting products exclusively from the farm and surrounding region. Trust me when I say you’ll be blown away by the quality of food served throughout the week – delicious doesn’t even begin to do it justice! Interestingly enough, your host Frédéric’s mum, Lucille, is an architect and poured her heart and soul into converting a 17th-century mas (farm) into the five-star Mas de Peint boutique hotel and restaurant that it is today.

After a stomach-filling breakfast that will leave you completely satiated, you’ll swing a leg over and set out on a long ride astride your Camargue mount. Today you’ll be exploring one of the biggest estates in the Camargue, where land, sea and air fuse into one. It’s here near the mouth of the Petit Rhône river that you’ll have the opportunity to discover, admire and traverse the beauty of the different Camargue landscapes: salt meadows, marshland, ponds and lagoons fringed by pine forests. This is where your ‘wild, white horses of the sea’ come into their own. They’re so incredibly adapted to the wetlands and marshes, they’ll astound you with their brilliance and tough-as-nails spirit. You’ll arrive at the beach for a magical seaside picnic before heading back to the estate.

Today is the day you’ll be part of a timeless tradition that has been preserved thanks to the passion of the landowners that call this watery wilderness their home. You’ll have the rare opportunity to ride alongside the ‘gardians’ and get a taste of their everyday life working, mustering and drafting the Camargue bulls. Your guide, host and third-generation gardian, Frederic, breeds Camargue bulls for the ‘jeu taurin’ (bull fighting games) – rest assured, unlike in Spain, there is no killing or harm of the bulls in this traditional game. As part of your ‘gardian’ initiation you will have the opportunity to draft a shiny black bull out of the herd on your Camargue steed.

After two and a half hours working with the bulls, you’ll head back to the 17th-century mas (farm) for lunch. In the afternoon, you’ll visit a local Provencal village where you’ll be spectators at a traditional ‘Course Camarguaise.’ You’ll watch the Razeteurs (Camargue bullfighters) come head-to-head with Camargue bulls in this chivalrous game that requires loyalty and valour from both man and beast. Skill and agility, along with a mutual respect, are key to the Camargue bullfight. Unlike with corridas (Spanish bullfights), which show the matador’s name in big letters, posters publicising the ‘Course Camarguaise’ puts the bull’s name before that of the razeteur. The true star of the show is the bull! From fight to fight, his qualities bring him glory and make him a sought-after animal. As for the razeteurs, they are just support acts, their fame being based on the reputation of the bull that they are facing. The razeteurs compete against one another to remove, as quickly as possible, the objects placed between the bull’s horns. These are strings, tassels and a cockade, which each earn the razeteur a cash prize upon removal. But, before cutting and removing each of the objects with his four-bladed hook, he must first tire the bull, which, with good strong legs, often chases the razeteurs right up to the barrier. This results in the razeteurs throwing themselves several feet in the air over the barriers in order to escape the sharp and powerful horns. Sometimes, the particularly agile bulls will also jump over the barriers, making the event even more dramatic and emotional, especially for those lucky spectators in the first row!

After a brilliant afternoon immersing yourself in the culture of the region, you’ll return to the mas for some fine Provençale food, completely satisfied.