Miyak Tribe Trail - North Macedonia

Joe who has been on 13 In The Saddle rides. An exiting, adventurous trail ride on superb horses through glorious forests & mountain scenery. | After reading previous reviews our expectations were high but were totally exceeded on this holiday.
We had a great group , great weather & the organisation & itinerary were excellent. The Sherpa team couldn't do enough for us & were very good company .
Vasko & his team know horses inside out. We were carefully matched with our mounts & their welfare was the main priority throughout the ride. After 6 days of hard riding over 180 km with thousands of metres of ascent & descent the horses were in better shape than we were!
The horses were forward going, well behaved & well socialised & the western saddles were comfortable & secure. The pace is a fast walk which eats up the miles. As the week went on there were plenty of opportunities for steady & fast canters through the alpine beech forests & lots of exhilarating gallops through mountain meadows full of wild flowers & skylarks.
The accommodation was very comfortable & the 2 campsites were in beautiful locations.
The food was some of the best we've had on any holiday both in hotels & on the trail Everything was freshly cooked with fresh local ingredients. The meat was first class as were the vegetarian options & the local sheep cheeses were delicious & often straight from the farm. The team were very careful & considerate in looking after any special dietary requirements & cold beer & decent wine were always at hand.
Macedonia is a beautiful country & the Mavrovo National Park is particularly stunning with steep, wooded gorges & valleys which are heavily forested in beech up to about 1800m which then gives way to grassy valleys , meadows & mountain tops full of wild flowers, herbs , butterflies & insects. Skylarks are everywhere & we saw eagles , wild boar, deer, chamois, wild horses & even a couple of bears. The vistas are huge.
The meadows are grazed by sheep which are milked by hand twice daily for cheese production. The flocks of sheep are minded by shepherds & huge dogs to protect them from wolves. We often ate lunch in the sheep farms & were lucky enough to see the milking & cheese making processes. Vasko worked on the farms as a boy & gave us great insights into the way of life.
An added bonus to this ride is learning about the long & interesting history of the region & the Miyak people. Vasko was born & bred in the area & his family have been there for centuries. He`s extremely knowledgeable about the past & is keen to pass this on to visitors.
The modern day history is no less interesting.
We've been on a fair few riding holidays & this is up there with the best. The horses & riding were first class as were the organisation & the Sherpa team. The location was breathtaking . If you`re riding fit , adventurous & up for some excitement you`ll have a blast.
Thanks to Vasko, Shaipe, Davide, Beatrice,all the team & the lovely Sherpa Shenanigan crew for an amazing holiday.
[Becky from In The Saddle replies: Thank you very much for your great feedback! We are so pleased to hear how much you enjoyed the Miyak Tribe Trail.]

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