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Location Date Buenos Aires 1362873600 Cordoba 1362614400 Salta 1362441600 Villa De Merlo 1359504000 Mina Clavero 1359158400 La Falda 1358812800 Rosario 1269216000 Merlo 1268956800 Villa Carlos Paz 1268524800 La Cumbre 1268092800 Purmamarca 
1267488000 Punta De Mahr 1267315200 Tucuman 1266969600 Mendoza 1266710400 Villa Pehuenia 1266105600 Junin De Los Andes 1265932800 Epuyen 1265587200 El Bolson 1265500800 Bariloche 1265414400 -
Location Date Tue, 02 March 2010
1267488000 Mon, 01 March 2010 1267401600
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.
- 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 make 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!