We drove the Catamarca Altiplano in the north-west of Argentina. We spend about a week in this area; 3 days at the altiplano. It was our toughest, most challenging drive yet. It started relaxed while driving from Fiambala to Las Papas, passing the dunes of Taton.
After Las Papas we drove to the hot springs where we relaxed for two days. The last part of driving to the hot springs already wasn’t easy. Very steep roads, lots of loose gravel and sharp curves, definitely 4×4 only. The hot springs were divine with natural baths with a temperature of around 30°C. Further upstream the water was around 80°C and we took some of it to do a wash 🙂 However it was also really very windy here already and we mostly had to keep the roof down, which meant very little room. After the hot springs we entered the most difficult part of the route. With an altitude between 4.000-5.000 masl, very strong winds, cold (snow & ice) and the sheer remoteness of this area made it very inhabitable. It could have been the scene for a sci-fi movie taking place on another planet.
We saw almost nobody and of course we didn’t have cellphone reception. The road was completely unpaved and very uneven here and there and then there were the 4×4 parts that were so challenging that a few times we weren’t sure we could do it. A lot of the parts were very steep, up to 60% and often the surface was loose sand.
The loose sand together with the strong winds, created dust storms, everything in the van got covered in a fine layer, we literally smelled, breathed and ate dust. In the video it looks a lot easier and less steep than it really was! We have been on the road for almost 4 years so when we say this was the most challenging drive yet, we mean it! It’s just very difficult to film it and it is certainly not something we are very good at. It was also unpleasant stepping outside the van due the very strong winds. But apart from challenging this area was definitely worth the drive! This area has a lot of volcanoes (no longer active) and it was the first time we got to drive through a lava field!
We also saw strange rock formations, created by white lava, called Piedra Pomas. We saw beautiful lakes, some with flamingo’s, canyons and more. And lets be honest, we enjoy a challenge 🙂 Its one of those area’s where we think; “were we really there?