NOA, the northwest of Argentina, is one region that
Argentines rave about. The area comprises six states - most notably Salta,
Jujuy and Tucuman – where the Wild West sits among Andean peaks and pristine
vineyards.
We went at the beginning of May, when the weather is usually
cool, but pleasant enough to sit outside. With so much to explore, but with so little time, we narrowed our trip down to the provinces of
Salta and Jujuy. The people, the food and the dramatically changing landscape - the range and richness
of its colours and its sheer immensity - will leave you in awe. Hand
on heart, I'm enamoured with NOA and already want to explore more of the less-visited provinces.
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| Driving along Ruta 40 |
We pre-booked our accommodation, which is particularly advisable in the summer months (winter in the southern hemisphere) as places can get booked up. We also reserved a hire car from Avis (there are several car-hire companies, but decided to go with a well-known one after a slight mishap in Cordoba) and had arranged to pick it from the town of Salta.
Day 1 – Salta la Linda
From Buenos Aires, we flew into Salta city, also known as Salta la Linda (Salta the Fair), because
of its impressive historic buildings and a buzzy atmosphere set among breath-taking scenery.
The city of Salta was ok. It’s colourful, vibrant and perfectly pleasant to stroll
around for a day or two. It's also a good base for seeing the rest of the province if you don't want to move around too much.
Unfortunately, not only did we arrive on a Sunday, but also on International Workers’ Day. Clearly, this meant very little was open, not even the cathedral.
Nonetheless, the weather was perfect. It was 18 degrees, the blue skies were spotless and the sun was shimmering brightly. There wasn’t much to do, but we ambled around
the main plaza and admired the colonial buildings, particularly the stunning
red and yellow-adorned Neoclassical Iglesia San Francisco.
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| Iglesia San Francisco |
Accommodation*: We stayed a night at Carpe Diem, a lovely little B&B with great attention to detail. It has
stacks of DVDs that you can take back to your room as each room had a
computer; fantastic and varied breakfast with very generous portions.
Day 2 – Salta to Cachi; 155km (~3 hours)
Our road trip begins! Any visions I had of cruising along
RN-40 (also known as Ruta 40 or La Querenta), Argentina's longest road, in a stylish convertible mustang
were quickly dashed as we collected our ordinary-looking Chevrolet Classic.
From Salta we headed towards the cute little village of
Cachi in the Valle Calchaquíes, a series of picturesque highland valleys where the sun shines almost all year round. We took RN-68 towards the south of the province,
and joined the provincial RP-33 at El Carril. We even picked up a couple of hitchhikers.
Lush green vegetation soon gave way to arid burnt orange
and red earth. We climbed the zig-zaggy mountain road, known as Cuesta del
Obispo, which provided stunning views of the Sierra del Obispo, including velvet
green valleys, deep ravines and numerous birds of prey. Just before arriving at
Cachi we went past mile after mile of cardones, large cactuses, as we zoomed through the Parque
Nacional Los Cardones. I have never seen so many, such huge and phallic cactuses up
close.
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| View from Cuesta del Obispo |
While Cachi really is no more than a village, it’s a nice spot to watch the world go by. One of the highlights was visiting a cemetery,
a kilometre out of town, at dusk as colourful artificial flowers littered over
graves and tombstones glistened ethereally in the hazy sunlight.
Eating/drinking: Oliver Café Wine Bar - a great little venue serving good coffee,
food (although we didn’t eat here) and excellent selection of regional wines.
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| Cemetery in Cachi |
Accommodation: One night at Hostería Villa Cardón – a cute little
guesthouse with very friendly staff offering a good breakfast. It was just a
shame there was no proper heating in the room and the water was tepid (it was cold).
Day 3 – Cachi to Cafayate; 157km (4 hours with lots of
stopping along the way)
We were back on the legendary RN40. While in some places it
was no more than a narrow dirt track, the views alongside the mountainsides were
simply spectacular. This was certainly a day for taking your time and appreciating the scenery.
On our way out of Cachi, we caught several glimpses of crimson red chilli drying
along the roadside. Red was a dominant theme, with red sandstone cliffs providing
the backdrop to jagged, arrowhead-like rock formations, followed by structures
that could have belonged to Mount Rushmore. We knew we were soon approaching
Cafayate as extensive vineyards came into
view.
Although the town of Cafayate is not amazing, the vineyards
and wineries were a real treat. I’m by no means a wine connoisseur, but
these vineyards, at around 1700m, are some of the highest in the world. Malbec
and Cabernet is grown here, but the region tends to specialise in the local
grape torrontés, allegedly a grape for all seasons, to produce a delicate, floral white wine.
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| Llama joins us for lunch at El Esteco |
There are many bodegas to choose from, but we were starving so we stopped at the first bodega we came across. As luck would have
it, we had arrived at Bodega El Esteco, a luxurious wine hotel and winery. This
is what holidays are about: good, reasonably priced food and scrumptious wine
served in a well-kept grounds. To top it off, a couple of llamas even
decided to join us for lunch (not as part of the meal). My only complaint was that the wine tasting was a bit sparse as you had to pay by the
glass just to try the wine.
Accommodation: Casa Árbol - a hostel with private rooms but shared bathrooms; friendly staff and great value.
In such an immense country, blessed with incredible landscape, I only hope the photos have done it justice. The roadtrip's not over yet though, so please join me for the second part in Jujuy province. Coming soon!
* Please note that this is only the accommodation we stayed in and subject to our opinions.
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