TOOK THE 2100 Flechabus cama service from Corrientes to Salta, arriving on time at 1000 the next morning. The fare of 180 pesos each made it more expensive than most of the hotels we stayed at, but it was comfortable enough with functioning toilet and decent food.
Then we jumped on the 1030 Balut service Salta to Tilcara (46 pesos) and settled back for the scenic four-hour drive along the Quebrada(Canyon) de Humahuaca(sit on right hand side for the best views).
The bus station at Tilcara is small but chaotic. The nearest Tourist Information is several blocks up the hill(next to the ugly, modern Hotel de Turismo). Don’t make the mistake I made of heading to the information point you pass just after crossing the bridge into town. There’s nothing there. So we stepped off the bus with no idea of the whereabouts our hotel – Posada con los Angeles – or how big the town was. There was a long line of people waiting – presumably – for one of the town’s scarce taxis, so I left The Wife with our luggage in the shade and headed up the hill to find a map. It turned out our hotel – as well as being a little, luxurious oasis amidst all the bustle – was just a 10 minute walk from the bus station. (Just about all other hotels are much further and uphill….)
Tilcara was in the middle of its carnival celebrations. That meant wandering bands of drunken musicians and regular ambushes by the locals wielding spray foam and talcum powder. And it got pretty chilly once the sun went down(we were 2,500 metres above sea level). By the way, the town’s only ATM is just off the main square.
Then we jumped on the 1030 Balut service Salta to Tilcara (46 pesos) and settled back for the scenic four-hour drive along the Quebrada(Canyon) de Humahuaca(sit on right hand side for the best views).
The bus station at Tilcara is small but chaotic. The nearest Tourist Information is several blocks up the hill(next to the ugly, modern Hotel de Turismo). Don’t make the mistake I made of heading to the information point you pass just after crossing the bridge into town. There’s nothing there. So we stepped off the bus with no idea of the whereabouts our hotel – Posada con los Angeles – or how big the town was. There was a long line of people waiting – presumably – for one of the town’s scarce taxis, so I left The Wife with our luggage in the shade and headed up the hill to find a map. It turned out our hotel – as well as being a little, luxurious oasis amidst all the bustle – was just a 10 minute walk from the bus station. (Just about all other hotels are much further and uphill….)
Tilcara was in the middle of its carnival celebrations. That meant wandering bands of drunken musicians and regular ambushes by the locals wielding spray foam and talcum powder. And it got pretty chilly once the sun went down(we were 2,500 metres above sea level). By the way, the town’s only ATM is just off the main square.
WALK TO THE GARGANTA DEL DIABLO (DEVIL’S THROAT)
Our purpose for visiting Tilcara was to walk in the Andes. We’d originally looked at a company called Caravan de Llamas. They offer a range of walks ranging from four-hours to three days, providing food and water(and llamas for carrying your bags). But the price for their shortest walk – to the Garganta del Diablo, a narrow gorge in the hills above Tilcara – seemed a bit extortionate at US$60 per person, even if it did include lunch on folding chairs and tables. So after getting the bloke in tourist information to draw me a rough map, we opted to do it on our own.
At this point, most guidebooks will give the name and telephone number of a local guide instead of providing a detailed, accurate description of the route(which kind of defeats the object of a “guide”-book, don’t you think?). I am now not only going to describe the route to you, I am going to describe a BETTER route than the one used by Caravan de Llamas and most other guides.
The route they use starts off at the bridge across the (dried-up) Rio Huasamayo on the south side of town. This sees you walk along the north side of the river for a couple of hundred metres and then veer off to the right along a footpath that leads, straight as an arrow, directly to the Garganta. This is the most popular route. We saw dozens of walkers take it. Its main advantage is that it is a footpath, so you don’t have to worry about motorized traffic. But its one big disadvantage is that it is enclosed in a narrow gorge for the whole route, which means the only views you have of the Quebrada are directly behind you(or in front of you on the return journey). There is no 360 degree panorama available. However, if you follow the route we pioneered…..
We turned left out the tourist information office and continued up the street(Belgrano) until it peters out at the foot of some steps. Continue up the steps. At the top there is a maze of dusty footpaths running between half-built homes. You want to bear 45 degrees to your right, i.e. in a south easterly direction. In the cresent of hills above you, you will see a track leading from left to right. This is where you are heading for. The walk from the top of the steps to the start of this track is a bit hit and miss and steep in places, but it should take you no more than 20-30 mins. Have a stick or couple of rocks handy for any hostile dogs(though a shout out to the nearest house will usually summon the animal’s master). This is the trickiest bit of the whole route, but is well worth it.
Once you are on the mountain track – a gravel path wide enough for the occasional taxi or truck – it is plain sailing all the way. From here on upwards, you will get great views of Tilcara and ever increasingly spectacular vistas of the Quebrada stretching toward the horizon in the north(and the border with Bolivia). The track soon forks. Take the left(uphill) route. This gradually snakes upwards, past a telecoms station and to the Garganta. It took us about two hours, including frequent stops to take in the views all around. To the north are the fertile green plains of the valley. To the south you will see the mattress of cloud as the valley narrows towards Jujuy. And across the valley you will see the stunning rainbow of pinks, reds and browns that make up the mountains’ distinctive rock formations. So, unlike the more popular route, you get stunning views in all directions. The minor disadvantage is that you’ll occasionally have to make way for taxis bearing fat North American tourists, but we counted barely more than a handful during our entire journey up and down(and we passed just a couple of other walkers).
Just before you reach your destination – marked by a wooden sign – there are some unmarked toilet cubicles on your left. There’s a 3-peso admission charge to enter the Devil’s Throat, but we didn’t bother. Instead, we continued up the track, which zig-zags ever higher through huge specimens of cactus, until it curves around the mountain and levels off, revealing another beautiful valley. We continued for about half an hour – convinced some distant huts would harbor a fully-stocked bar and restaurant(alas not) - until the path melded into the dried up river bed. For an hour, we were the only human beings on the planet……
We returned to Tilcara the way we came, and this time the panorama was even better as we didn’t have to keep stopping and turn around. We arrived back in town four-and-a-half hours after we’d left. Apart from the occasional catching of breath, the altitude (3,000 metres at the highest point we reached) hadn’t unduly concerned us. But water and sunblock are essential. You can buy ethnic-patterned sunhats – or Yankee imperialist baseball caps – in Tilcara’s main plaza for 12 pesos.
That night, we treated ourselves to a slap-up meal at our hotel’s restaurant. There were no other diners, yet the full menu was available. Even better, the chef – an Argentine Johnny Depp-lookalike – let us eat in the TV lounge in front of the football(!) rather than have to eat in an empty restaurant. My grilled llama steak in salsa cerveza negra was one of the best things I ate all holiday.
The previous night we’d eaten at the Nuevo Progreso restaurant a block up from the main square. It was OK, but the live music – a couple of locals playing contemporary tunes – was needlessly obtrusive. I couldn’t hear myself chew……
At this point, most guidebooks will give the name and telephone number of a local guide instead of providing a detailed, accurate description of the route(which kind of defeats the object of a “guide”-book, don’t you think?). I am now not only going to describe the route to you, I am going to describe a BETTER route than the one used by Caravan de Llamas and most other guides.
The route they use starts off at the bridge across the (dried-up) Rio Huasamayo on the south side of town. This sees you walk along the north side of the river for a couple of hundred metres and then veer off to the right along a footpath that leads, straight as an arrow, directly to the Garganta. This is the most popular route. We saw dozens of walkers take it. Its main advantage is that it is a footpath, so you don’t have to worry about motorized traffic. But its one big disadvantage is that it is enclosed in a narrow gorge for the whole route, which means the only views you have of the Quebrada are directly behind you(or in front of you on the return journey). There is no 360 degree panorama available. However, if you follow the route we pioneered…..
We turned left out the tourist information office and continued up the street(Belgrano) until it peters out at the foot of some steps. Continue up the steps. At the top there is a maze of dusty footpaths running between half-built homes. You want to bear 45 degrees to your right, i.e. in a south easterly direction. In the cresent of hills above you, you will see a track leading from left to right. This is where you are heading for. The walk from the top of the steps to the start of this track is a bit hit and miss and steep in places, but it should take you no more than 20-30 mins. Have a stick or couple of rocks handy for any hostile dogs(though a shout out to the nearest house will usually summon the animal’s master). This is the trickiest bit of the whole route, but is well worth it.
Once you are on the mountain track – a gravel path wide enough for the occasional taxi or truck – it is plain sailing all the way. From here on upwards, you will get great views of Tilcara and ever increasingly spectacular vistas of the Quebrada stretching toward the horizon in the north(and the border with Bolivia). The track soon forks. Take the left(uphill) route. This gradually snakes upwards, past a telecoms station and to the Garganta. It took us about two hours, including frequent stops to take in the views all around. To the north are the fertile green plains of the valley. To the south you will see the mattress of cloud as the valley narrows towards Jujuy. And across the valley you will see the stunning rainbow of pinks, reds and browns that make up the mountains’ distinctive rock formations. So, unlike the more popular route, you get stunning views in all directions. The minor disadvantage is that you’ll occasionally have to make way for taxis bearing fat North American tourists, but we counted barely more than a handful during our entire journey up and down(and we passed just a couple of other walkers).
Just before you reach your destination – marked by a wooden sign – there are some unmarked toilet cubicles on your left. There’s a 3-peso admission charge to enter the Devil’s Throat, but we didn’t bother. Instead, we continued up the track, which zig-zags ever higher through huge specimens of cactus, until it curves around the mountain and levels off, revealing another beautiful valley. We continued for about half an hour – convinced some distant huts would harbor a fully-stocked bar and restaurant(alas not) - until the path melded into the dried up river bed. For an hour, we were the only human beings on the planet……
We returned to Tilcara the way we came, and this time the panorama was even better as we didn’t have to keep stopping and turn around. We arrived back in town four-and-a-half hours after we’d left. Apart from the occasional catching of breath, the altitude (3,000 metres at the highest point we reached) hadn’t unduly concerned us. But water and sunblock are essential. You can buy ethnic-patterned sunhats – or Yankee imperialist baseball caps – in Tilcara’s main plaza for 12 pesos.
That night, we treated ourselves to a slap-up meal at our hotel’s restaurant. There were no other diners, yet the full menu was available. Even better, the chef – an Argentine Johnny Depp-lookalike – let us eat in the TV lounge in front of the football(!) rather than have to eat in an empty restaurant. My grilled llama steak in salsa cerveza negra was one of the best things I ate all holiday.
The previous night we’d eaten at the Nuevo Progreso restaurant a block up from the main square. It was OK, but the live music – a couple of locals playing contemporary tunes – was needlessly obtrusive. I couldn’t hear myself chew……
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