Ice or Salt?

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Geo: -23.7334, -65.5

After checking into our hotel in Purmamarca we headed up over the pass towards Chile to find the Salinas Grandes, the salt flats.

The road took us up into the clouds on our windy way, then dropped us out onto the desolate alta plano where shepherds gather twigs for a fire to keep warm at night.

We were over 4,000 meters high--13,681 feet in altitude.

These salt flats are about 40 km long and 26 km wide, but this is just one of many areas thick with salt. The whole northern Argentina/southern Bolivia area has gigantic salt flats. Bolivia has the highest salt flats in the world, but then Bolivia has the highest everything in the world.

Local Indians have been exploited for hundreds of years, but now they work in the salt only if they want to. They've found they can earn more money making rock carvings for tourists and in so doing have found some measure of freedom.

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Photos

Over the Top
We're 13,681 feet up and we'll not be hiking! Just walking around can get you winded.

Clouds Play in the Mountains
This storm we're seeing come in really did a job on the road. The next day it had to close because of a mud slide and traffic couldn't get to the salt flats at all.

Low rolling storm clouds threaten
Driving in and out of this storm was so cool because when you were in it you couldn't see a thing--then you'd drive out and find this blazing blue sky was still there. Weird.
Seeing this little dot of a dwelling makes you realize you can find people living anywhere in this country.

Shepherd
We saw this fellow crossing the road with his bundle of twigs and asked him if I could take his picture. He wanted coca leaves, but settled for pesos.

Like the hat?
Rotten teeth are common in anyone over 50 here as dental care is expensive and out of reach of most, but especially this poor shepherd scratching out a living on this rocky plain.
This bundle of sticks was all he had to keep his hut warm during the night.

Water on Salt
It rained the night before and left this lake about 2" deep on the salt flat.

Is it Ice?
This was the weirdest sensation in the world. Inga and I kept testing the "ice" to see if we'd break through. We couldn't get Montana winters out of our heads--this stuff should be slippery.

You sure it's not ice?
We were careful with every step--would we slip and land on our rears? It was like walking on sandpaper--no way could we slip, but it's ingrained. I kept squiggling my shoe in the salt to make sure it wasn't slick--I just couldn't get it into my head.
So weird.

Storm clouds over Salinas Grandes
This small outpost is entirely made of salt--the buildings, everything. That pile of white is salt, not snow.

Comments

[Paul]

How did you get that great photo of the Shepherd up close? Were you in conversation with him?As for the other shepherd...yes, I like the hat. I don't want one, but it makes for an interesting picture. On the other hand, if it didn't say EX-
wife...

[bobnkaren]

Oh, you are very bad...But to answer your question, yes, we were visiting with him. Angie asked if we could take his picture, that we would pay him, but he wanted to be paid in coca leaves and we had none.He settled for being paid in pesos
and I had Angie talk with him, trying to get him to smile so I could get those teeth.

[bobnkaren]

I went back and added some more information to some of the photos--like we learned the next day that the road over the pass had to close because of a mud slide. That storm we saw coming in dumped a bunch of rain in those mountains.

[Jerry]

I have been at the computer for hours and am at 50 in the series. That is when I decided to jump to the most recent post and respond. I have been enjoying the travel log and getting to know you through your pictures and commentary. I did ma
ke another comment around 40 in the series. Stay well.

[bobnkaren]

That's really a lot to handle in one sitting. You could probably get here faster!