Salinas Grandes of Tumbaya (Argentina)

Hi !

Whenever I’m talking about the places I’ve visited, there’s always somebody to tell me that I shoud have been to this other place, better for it is ignored by the tourists. Today I’m doing this by trying to sell you that these salt flats are better that the Salar de Uyuni. Of course there’s no point trying to make the comparison, but, on the other end, it would be crime not to talk about the journey that took me there.

There are multiple ways to reach the Salar de Uyuni from Argentina, by either going to Tupiza in Bolivia or to San Pedro de Atacama in Chile. We picked the latest. It took us through an amazing journey from Salta (Argentina) to San Pedro (Chile), crossing the border at the Paso de Jama at some 4200masl. At first, the road took us to some high jungle, until we reached the Provincia de Jujuy. From there the rocky Andean landscape replaced the lush green vegetation, offering dramatic scenery. We then drove to the high plateaux, passing salt flats after salt falts, until we were between huge volcanoes (some reaching almost 6000masl), driving at some 4800masl. Then, the descend to San Pedro (at some 2400masl) started, but instead of the usual snake-like mountain road, the 2400m descend was nearly straight, with a change of altitude so fast I started to feel like one of my eye would pop out of my head. But it did not, just my imagination I guess.

Why these salt flats ? The road simply pass through them, which is actually unique, and convenient. Oh, and you are not surrounded by thousand of tourists, so way better đŸ™‚

To finish, here’s a view of the sunrise…

Dramatic_sunrise_over_the_Salinas_Grandes_de_Tumbaya.jpg

Enjoy (or not) and stay tuned !