TUESDAY 12/28/10 – WEDNESDAY 12/29/10
As I stated before, the landscape in the northwest region changes constantly, but just to see the diversity within a 50 kilometer radius, it was impressive and left me wanting to see more.
the drive into Cafayate
Quebrada de las Conchas
On our first morning in Cafayate, after a wonderful run in the rain with vineyards on either side and mountains all around, the sky cleared and Meri, Javi, our friend from the hostel, Jon (Nottingham, UK), and I went on a guided tour of the Quebrada de las Conchas. A “quebrada” es a ravine, and the Quebrada de las Conchas is part of the Calchaquí Valleys (named for the native population of the region).
La Punilla
the train
the plants of the Quebrada de las Conchas
el obelisco
The next morning, I woke up, rented a bike, and headed up 5 kilometers, again with vineyards lining the dirt road, to the base of the Río Colorado. There, I hired a native guide, Franco, to take me through the series of three waterfalls. I had been advised that it was easy to navigate on one’s own, but I’m so glad that I decided to go with Franco. Being raised in the mountains, he had the knowledge of the side routes and quick paths up the side of rock faces. He also knew that we would have to start at the farthest fall and work our way down if we didn’t want to climb straight up cliff sides.
bike ride up to the Río Colorado
irrigation system from the river to the vineyards
hallucinogenic frog...lick it!
we climbed up pretty much straight from the bottom
Franco told me about the first white man that he saw – he was fishing along the river with his friend and a tall, large man showed up with a huge camera. After communicating through gestures, they understood that he wanted them to guide him through the mountains. They led him around and at the end, the tall man motioned that he wanted to take them out to eat to thank them. This was lost in translation and they understood that he wanted to eat at their house. They brought him to their home, but he clarified that he wanted to invite them to the pueblo to eat. Having never been to the pueblo, they didn’t know how to act. They changed clothes and went down with him. Upon sitting down, they didn’t know what to order, so they ordered the same as the man – milanesa with papas fritas. With the nerves that they had, however, they couldn’t eat the meals. And now, Franco continues to lead foreigners through his mountains.
Franco
3rd waterfall
I took a chilly dip
2nd waterfall
1st waterfall
leaving Cafayate
No comments:
Post a Comment