North To Salta and Beyond

It's been a beautiful Fall here in Mendoza. The days have been warm and sunny and the nights cool. Justin and Connor joined us from the Chicago area earlier this month. Both Connor and Justin got busy right away learning the ropes in the music studio. Justin plays guitar and writes songs while Connor's focus is drums, drum programming and electronic music. It's great to have them with us.

A week after they arrived, Will, Alex, Justin, Connor and Rich headed north to Tucuman on the bus. After a day in Tucuman admiring the colonial buildings and relaxing in cafes, we rented a car and drove west toward Cafayate. Just west of Tucuman there is an unusual subtropical micro climate with lush forests. We drove through this area up a beautiful winding road. At the top the road flattens out onto a plateau. In a short distance the forest turns to desert with the type of saguaro cactus that you find in Southern Arizona.

Our first destination that day was Quilmes a pre-Columbian archeological site. We hiked all around with a local guide, David, who guided us on an interesting tour, speaking only in Spanish. He described the history of the town that was built between two steep hills. He explained how the Incas came in the late 1400s and helped with the irrigation, communications, defense, and agriculture. Only 50 years after integrating with the Incas, the Indians were attacked by the Spanish. The united Indians were able to hold off the Spanish for 120 years before finally surrendering. They were the last of the Indian settlements to fall to the Spanish in the region. By climbing to the top of both peaks we were able to see how perfectly the town was situated for an effective defense.

After Qulimes, we drove another hour to Cafayate, the beautiful and isolated town which is famous for its bodegas which produce the white torrantes wine. We all enjoyed the relaxed and friendly atmosphere of the town. The following day, we took a tour of the Quedabre de Cafayate with some other travelers from our hostel. We hiked to some very unusual and colorful rock formations which attract photographers from all over. From Cafayate, it was on to Salta, where we stayed for a few days. We enjoyed an asado at our hostel and met some interesting fellow travelers from all over the world. Salta has some elegant buildings and which centuries old.

From Salta, we headed into Jujuy Province to Humahuaca. We were impressed with the town which had narrow cobblestone streets and lots of colorful native clothes and crafts. The entire region north of Salta resembles Bolivia a lot more that the other regions of Argentina. From Humahuaca we headed south to Purmamaca, the town with the most photographed rock formation in northern Argentina. For dinner Connor and Rich tried llama. That night the guys camped out next to a graveyard under a full moon. Before going to bed, we hiked up a ridge to get a view of the moonlight on the Siete Colores mountain.

The following morning, we drove up a winding road, crossing a pass at 12,000 feet, before descending to the salt flats. We had lunch on the salt flats took some pictures and headed back to Salta. The following day we drove back to Tucaman where the temperature was 93 degrees.

(In Order To See All Of The Photos Posted On this Blog, Click On to Next or 2 At The Bottom Of This Page) (Click On Photos To Enlarge)

---

---