It’s been quite a week of travelling. I made my way up from Salta, through Purmamarca, Tilcara, Humahuaca, then Iruya, with a brief hike up to see the village of San Isidro and finally arriving in La Quiaca this morning.
The highlight of the whole journey was definitely Iruya. It’s in the very north of Argentina, very much off the beaten track. Just getting there is an adventure in itself. The 3-hour bus journey winds down through the mountains then up again. I tried not to look out of the windows, as I tend to imagine 100 ways to fall off the cliff face to our deaths. On the way back we started off at 6 a.m. and I made sure I kept my head down and my eyes closed.
If you’re fit the trek up to San Isidro isn’t too bad, it’s not that far but the terrain is rocky, and you have to cross over the river several times, dancing from stone to stone. When I got back I was pretty beat. Although I’m much fitter now (I’ve been up to see the Caves of Waira around Tilcara - the guide almost ran up, and the hills south of Humahuaca offer a spectacular overview of the town.) I still find it hard, perhaps in hind sight the 5 Kg of junk in my rucksack made a difference. Next time, I’ll unpack my crap before I set off!
La Quiaca, on the frontier with Bolivia doesn’t seem like much. The hostel I’m in is very nice, and there are Cybercafes aplenty. Besides that it just looks like a depot for good in and out. Tomorrow, I’ll say goodbye to Argentina, which feels a bit like home now, and start my new adventure off up towards Uyuni and beyond!
