Salta and the North of Argentina

After Córdoba, I was happy to arrive in Salta. It is still quite a big city, but much quieter than busy Córdoba. I had a really good time in Salta, seeing the city and its museums, meeting nice people at the hostel and meeting up with some people I knew from other places , going out at night - we went to a peña (a traditional Northern Argentinean bar where Andean dances and music are performed), heard an amazing cover band, went to a couple of bars and went dancing in a club on Saturday night - and having a lazy Sunday at the hostel.

Plaza 9 de Julio

Salta

Iglesia San Francisco

Night out in Salta

Salta is also the main starting point to see the North of Argentina with its beautiful landscapes. Tours take you to Cachi, Cafayate, the Salinas Grandes, Humahuaca and many other places.
I started off with the tour to Cachi. On the way to this small town South of Salta, we passed through the Quebrada De Escoipe, drive up the Cuesta Del Obispo to the Piedra Del Molino, at an altitude of 3457m. When we arrived in Cachi, we had lunch at a very nice local restaurant where I tried the cabrito, baby goat, which was delicious. I also had ma first try of coca tea, which tastes a lot like green tea. The town is very small and quiet, but very nice to spend a couple of hours in on a sunny afternoon and buy some local products. On the way back we made a stop in the Parque Nacional Los Cardones, where we found ourselves in the middle of a massive field full of huge cacti.

Cachi Tour

Cuesta del Obispo

At the Piedra del Molino

Cachi Tour

Nevado de Cachi

Cachi

Parque Nacional Los Cardones

The next day I took the following tour, the one to Cafayate. On this tour we passed through the Quebrada de las Conchas, visited the Garganta del Diablo and the Anfiteatro, admired many unique rock formations such as Los Castillos. Around Cafayate is also located an important wine region, so we went to 2 bodegas to do some wine tasting. In Cafayate, we had lunch, walked around the plaza looking at the Artesanías and I finally bought myself a mate. Un fortunately, there was nothing new to see on the drive back from Cafayate to Salta so that the ride in the small car with 5 people seemed very long and we were happy when we arrived back in the city.

Cafayate Tour

Garganta del Diablo

Anfiteatro

Cafayate Tour

Cafayate Tour

After (quite a lazy) a weekend spent in Salta, I then took the last one of my tours, the one up North to Humahuaca. More amazing landscapes could be admired here. We drove through the Yungas, a forest growing along the slope of the mountains, saw the fascinating 7 coloured rocks around Purmamarca, visited the ruins of a pre-Inca fortress in Tilcara and stopped in the small and very traditional towns of Purmamarca, Tilcara and Uquia.

The Yungas

7 coloured rocks

Purmamarca

Me and a llama in Purmamarca

Humahuaca Tour

Humahuaca Tour

Pucará de Tilcara - pre-Inca fortification

On the Tropic of Capricorn

Uquia

In Humahuaca, our group went for lunch and we ate llama with mustard sauce - very tasty! I then did not drive back to Salta with the tour group, but stayed in Humahuaca for the night to take the bus to the Bolivian border from there the next morning.