Rancho El Topo: Saddle Up for Adventure in the Sierra Juarez

Have you ever felt the tug of a forgotten dream, an ember smoldering beneath the ashes of the day-to-day practicality of the routine of life? Something that you really wanted to do, but somehow just never did? One of those ‘one day I will _____’ dreams for me has been to go horseback riding in the mountains. On the back burner I have had this desire to combine my love of horseback riding with another of my favorite activities - backpacking in the Sierra backcountry.

Like a puzzle piece clicking into place, one day fate intervened by way of a conversation with a weathered vaquero. "Have you been to Rancho El Topo?" he asked, his eyes alive with the memories.

And just like that, the dream moved to the front burner.

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