New version!: Salta - Tucumán - Catamarca and Jujuy PROVINCES
6 days, 5 nights over one of the most arid areas of the world: the Puna of Atacama region
Day 1
"Into the Calchaquies Valleys"
We
start in Salta city, and our first destination is the Calchaquies Valleys area.
To get there, we will go over a wonderful gorge called "quebrada del río
Las Conchas" where we will see many colours on the sandstone formations
made by wind and hydric erosion.
When we leave the gorge, after driving 120 kms., we will get to the valley and the first city is Cafayate (10.000 habitants) where we will lunch and visit one of the wineries.
After this, we shall continue over our last 54 kms of asfalt road to get into the Tucumán Province, to Quilmes ruins where if you want we can hike arround the ruins, then we back to Cafayate to spend the night in one hotel of the village because the Hotel Quilmes INN now is closed.
Day 2
"Into the Puna"
Leaving
Cafayate we continue now on a earth road until the last day of this trip. Few
kilometers after, we get into Catamarca Province, crossing on the way an
important city called Santa María del Valle de Yocavil, after that, a few
small villages carry us up into the altitude above sea level.
The
landscape becomes arid every hour of the trip. Mountain roads with huge
climbing sand dunes are the scenery of the way to get to the edge of the Puna
region, the big mountain plateau at 3.500 mts. above sea level.
The road now is straight over the desert and the wild life (vicunas and foxes) show us where we are: "in the middle of nowhere". After many hours driving we will get to village call Antofagasta de la Sierra, situated in the area of volcanoes landscape. To get there, the road go over old lava flow of black stones, and many times ask yourself in which planet should you be. It`s hard to explain........
Check at the Antofagasta de la Sierra hotel in double rooms with private bath.
Day 3
"Archeology and volcano's trekking "
We will get up and have breakfast and with a local guide we'll visit two important archeological places nearby Antofagasta de la Sierra: Some caves with rupestrian paintings, dated between 8000 years b.p. and 10000 years b.p. when some nomads groups originating in the dessert areas where searching new places for hunting... (To visit the caves we have to descend walking through a canyon). And from there we'll return to the trucks to visit a place with some incredible petroglifs representing animals, hunters or shields caved in some big volcanic red rocks. Coming back to Antofagasta de la Sierra, we'll have lunch at the hotel or we could have a pic nic somewhere in the dessert on way to Antofagasta's Volcano, where we'll do a short trekking, about 2 hour and a half, that will conduces us until the crater. From there we'll have a great view of the town and the sorroundings. To descend we'll take a different way, visiting another archeological place besides the Antofagasta's Lagoon in an spectacular landscape.... If you don't want or if you can't hike, we can replace (with the group agreement) this with another archeological visit arround Antofagasta de La Sierra, or you can spend the left of the day in the village until the resto of the group is back..
Day 4
"Over the Salt Flat"
Leaving Antofagasta de la Sierra, we continue to the west where we will get our first salt flat "Antofalla". Let me explain "Salt Flat" means a flat area with pure salt........ How?: the natural salto of the earth in the mountains around, during the rains transport sediments to the lowest level of the landscape..........them after millons of years of this process and the evaporation under strong solar radiation, salt concentrates and actually we can see these salt flats. "Antofalla" is a nice one (picture below) and we can see like islands the lava flow from the old Antofalla Volcano (snow caped in the back ground). After crossing over to one of the sides, we get to another small village of the same name where we will lunch in a family house sharing life with local people.
After lunch we continue and we get back into Salta Province, and we shall cross the biggest salt flat in Argentina: Salar de Arizaro. The path to cross it's runs 85kms. on pure salt. During the first part the salt is white and then it's red. It's means you can get a sensation of stayin on the moon first and then in mars. All in the same day and cheaper than on a space tours!.
The space trip finished in Tolar Grande, a small village and a train station. We shall sleep in a new french-argentine refuge with 2 big rooms with 20 beds each and one bathrooms with hot showers to each big rooms. Between the rooms there is a kitchen and dinig-room where we shall breakfast. Dinner will be in a family house of local people.
Day 5
"Over the Altiplano to the end "
Leaving
Tolar Grande, we shall experience a dream: The "Valley of the Dreams".
Red mountains of sandstone, strange rock formations and a few salt flats give a strong contrast of colours hard to explain. It's just a dream, but we are in
it.
Sometimes
like now I can't find any words to give a right description, it's difficult with
my poor English and even in Spanish. So,............. enjoy the pictures of the
valley. After the
Valley area, there is another salt flat called "Pocitos", then we
drive upwards until
to get
to 4.500 mts. above sea level and after that down again to the village
of San Antonio de Los Cobres (famous as the Train
toThe Clouds stop here).
After lunching in a restaurant we continue , now crossing over the high desert until get the salt flat in Jujuy Province named: Salinas Grandes, where we will observe the workers getting the salt out and some local people making handicrafts with it! then descend along the impressive Cuesta de Lipán to the Quebrada de Humahuaca, firstly to the village of Purmamarca, well known due to its location at the feet of the “hill of the 7 colors”, where we will get back next day to appreciate the colors by better day light.
After Purmamarca, and now driving on paved road !...we will reach the small village Tilcara, staying the night at a nice hotel.
Day 6
"Back to civilization...strong contrast "
Today we can wake up late in Tilcara!!!!, which we can't believe ...........breakfast in the hotel around 9:00 hs, then we check out and walk to the main square of the village to visit the historic indian ruins of Pucará and the archaeological museum. Later we follow the Humahuaca gorge until reaching Humahuaca city, crossing the Carpricorn Tropic Line!...
After having lunch we start our return to Salta city, with the time to stop in Purmamarca once again, if you want to see the 7 colours hill at different