After a few days of worrying that we wouldn't be able to visit the Salinas Grandes salt flats due to road closures, we finally got the green light for the tour on our last day in Northern Argentina, as the road was reopened to daytime traffic the day before.
So we were picked up at the hostel early in the morning at 7:30 am. To our surprise, our guide informed us right at the beginning that we would be taking the tour in the opposite direction. Up until that point, we had believed that we wouldn't see the 7-colored hills of Purmamarca, as we had assumed that the return route would be the same as the outbound route. After a short drive, we saw the full extent of the recent natural disaster and the reason for the road closure. Due to continuous rain, a mud and rock avalanche had buried a town and the road. There were piles of debris up to almost 2 meters high beside the road, which had already been cleared, and we could imagine how terrible it must have been and still is.
We then continued to the beautiful but also very touristy village of Purmamarca, where we could admire the unique colors of the hills and rocks, which are caused by different minerals and ores, such as the 7-colored hill. After a short stay, we continued uphill on a steep and winding road, and at one point, we were actually accompanied by 2 Andean condors. In a distance of 35 km, we ascended about 2,000 meters in altitude to the highest point of the tour. Arriving at the highest point on the tour at an altitude of 4,170 meters above sea level, we made a short stop for a proof photo. On the way up, we had been chewing coca leaves to prevent the headaches caused by the altitude, as they support the oxygen transport to the brain. Taste-wise, it wasn't a highlight, but at least we didn't have any problems =) Just as there is a tree line in the mountains, there is also a cactus line in the Andes, which is at about 3,500 meters. Despite the high altitude, the temperatures were very pleasant. After that, we continued to the long-awaited salt flats. The Salinas Grandes del Noroeste are located in the border area between the provinces of Salta and Jujuy in a high valley. The approximately 212 km² large lake was created 5-10 million years ago as a result of tectonic changes on the eastern slopes of the Andes, causing several rivers to lose their outflow and become the main source of the Salinas Grandes today. The salt flats were also another absolute highlight, and we were able to take some beautiful pictures, including using the wine bottle we bought on the last tour =) Unfortunately, the stay of about 30 minutes was too short for our taste, so we couldn't try out some motifs. A goal for future trips is still the large salt flat Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia =) After visiting the Salinas Grandes, we continued our journey to San Antonio de los Cobres. Our guide hadn't promised too much in the morning when he said that we would be on an "unpaved road" for 2-3 hours in the afternoon. The drive was anything but comfortable and definitely not for the faint of heart. We often feared that we wouldn't make it through unscathed, as even the driver, who was obviously used to such road conditions, was not necessarily driving slowly =D The route was not entirely safe, as the following picture proves... Nevertheless, we were able to admire countless wild llamas during the drive and finally arrived safely in San Antonio de los Cobres (the starting point of the train above the clouds). Here, we had a stay of about 1 hour before heading back to Salta. For the return journey, we had to cross the opposite mountain range and once again exceeded 4,000 meters in altitude. Then it was mostly downhill until we reached Salta at 1,187 meters. We made some very nice stops on the way back before crossing another area damaged by landslides. According to the guide, this is not uncommon during the rainy season, and the roads could also be in worse condition. But we definitely do not want to experience that ;-) The helpfulness of the tour companies was also admirable. The drive on the gravel roads had caused the bus in front of us to lose a wheel, and the resulting flat tire was repaired by a team effort of 4 bus drivers from different buses. After that, the journey continued for all buses. After more than 13 hours of incredibly diverse and adrenaline-filled hours, we were still glad to have arrived safely, but tired, at our hostel in Salta. We had booked the tour through Tiamar Travel, and both the organization and the guide come highly recommended. The entire tour cost us about €50 per person, which was a real bargain considering the experience. Side note: We had already booked the tour for 790 pesos, a few days later it would have cost 895 pesos per person, so €6.75 more. At this point, we get a small insight into the local inflation rate :-P
