The trekking in the Northwest includes the Puna, the Quebrada de Humahuaca in Jujuy, the Calilegua National Park in Salta and San Pedro de Atacama region in Chile. In the Northwest of Argentina we can walk around the oldest villages of Salta and Jujuy, discovering native cultures such as the Incas or Kollas.

We have the Calchaquí Valeys and the Cafayate wines and the Yungas of Calilegua in Salta, and the Quebrada with the prehispanic villages, such as Tilcara, Iruya and Purmamarca in Jujuy, where we will find the Cerro de los Siete Colores (7 Colours Hill). Another attraction are the Salinas Grandes (Big Salts), a white and amazing spectacle, from that point we will go down through the Cuesta del Lipán, a zigzag and steep strecht which takes us to Purmamarca, famous area because of the Cerro de los Siete Colores.

We will be able to know Iruya, which is another picturesque destination because it is surrounded by hills and little houses in the mountains. We will be delightful with the reliefs of the land, where we will cross ourselves with typical animals of the region, and the costumes that the villagers have kept for over 250 years, preserving its narrow and paving streets, houses of adobe, stone and straw.

Another village is Nazareno, whose villagers are sheperds or small country producers, showing their beautiful hills´landscapes. La Quiaca is part of some itineraries and it is a town located in Jujuy, in the limit with Bolivia. We will be able to visit Yutos Pampa, Abra del Potrero, an incredible green postcard impossible to miss!, San Lucas, were we will be surrounded by woods of mountains and we will go through a jungle of yungas.

Finally, we will get into the Calilegua National Park, whose typical vegetation are the yungas and it is the habitat of yaguaretés, ocelotes, tapires and lobitos de río (river little wolves), the red acutí and the tuco-tuco yungueño, apart from a great quantity of birds.

Following the paths of the Chilean-Andino Altiplano.
Chile waits for us with a desert landscape with very beautiful altiplanic lagoons. The Desert of Atacama is one of the most dryness areas of the Earth, their lagoons, such as Miscanti or Miñiques are at an altitude of over 4000 metres, where we can appreciate the condors´flight or the colourful pink flamingos which live in the lagoons. We will discover their salts and geysers, which are geothermical fields with continuos activity, that emits steam´s eruptions.

The regions where the trekking are made are the Moon´s Valley, called this way because it looks like the surface of the moon and there are formations of stone and sand that the rain and the wind gave the colours and texture to them, which are delightful. Río Grande, very close to Machuca village, is a place plenty of typical animals such as vicuñas, llamas, chinchillas and burros (donkeys), in an arid and dry climate.

Then, we will go to Machuca, a picturesque village because of its little houses made of stone and straw, in contrast to the blue sky and its reliefs, to get an impressive view of the volcano Licancabur, which is next to Laguna Verde (Green Lagoon), a paradise, where great quantities of andino flamingos get together.

The Salar Grande (Big Salt) is another place that we will visit during the trekking, which is formed by little lagoons of different colour tones such as blue, turquoise, pink or grey that give a special shade to this region which is really beautiful. The Catarpé Valley will be another visit that we cannot miss, it shows us a green valley surrounded by reliefs and rocky formations of reddish colour which makes immerse ourselves in a peaceful environment. The Geysers del Tatio are another great attraction in the Atacama region, where we will enjoy the craters from where the water emerges at a temperature of 86º C.

There are 6 different Trekking in the Northwest:

1) Puna & Atacama Trekking Full (intermediate)
2) Puna Trekking Full (intermediate)
3) Salta, Uyuni & Atacama Trekking (intermediate)
4) Atacama & Humahuaca Trek (light)
5) Atacama Trekking (intermediate)
6) Puna & Yungas Trekking (intermediate)

These trekking are intermediate in an intensity level, which means that they are accessible to anyone who wish to know the north of Argentina and Chile because it doesn´t require previous experience. Even the Atacama & Humahuaca Trek is an easy program, of a minimum difficulty. The itineraries can be done between the months of October and April, except the Atacama Trekking which can be done all the year.

The trekking in the Northwest.
Like the trekking in the Patagonia, some of the programs in the northwest are mixed with the Atacama region, in the north of Chile. The Salta, Uyuni & Atacama trekking includes the most interesting points of Argentina, Chile and Bolivia, that is why we especially recommend this trek.

These trekking shows us unbelievable landscapes and they make us get closer to very old cultures by walking down the paths that the Kollas and then the Incas toured a long time ago. For those who wish to do hiking in these beautiful valleys, being surrounded of endless rivers, hills, green landscapes and picturesque villages, the place is right here.

1) Puna & Atacama Trekking Full
This is the longest trekking of all the programs in the Northwest, not only because it tours both countries, from the Atacama Desert in Chile to Humahuaca in the North of Argentina, but it also crosses the most important places of every named area. It starts in San Pedro de Atacama, Chile, by visiting the Cordillera de la Sal and the Moon´s Valley. Then, we will do a trekking in the Salar Grande (Big Salt) and the San Bartolo´s Valley, and the village of Río Grande until getting to Vilarejo de Machuca at an altitude of 4100 metres, from where we can see the Libancabur Volcano.

Following the trip to Chile, we will tour the Geysers del Tatio to go back to San Pedro and leave the chilean territory going to the east to Tilcara in the quebrada. We will get into Humahuaca, where we will visit Tilcara, Garganta del Diablo, a picturesque mountain village, such as Iruya. Then, we will go to Abra del Colorado, Chiyayoc and Rodeo Colorado.

We will do a trekking in the Nazareno river before starting the last stage of the trip, travelling to La Quiaca. We will return to Tilcara to do some trekking in Campo Grande and go down to Veranada of Yutos Pampa. In the final stage of the trekking we will go to Calilegua National Park, famous because it protects the area of the Yungas and jungles of the northwest of Argentina.

2) Puna Trekking Full
This trekking goes through the argentinian northwestern in an exclusive way, we will do the Caminos del Inca between valleys and quebradas. It is similar to the previous hiking, in which the paths of the Chilean Altiplano are not included. It starts in Salta by travelling to San Antonio de Los Cobres in the Puna and then, we will go to Salinas Grandes (Big Salts) in Jujuy. The rest of the path is done in Jujuy, in the Quebrada de Humahuaca and in the jungle and yungas of the Calilegua National Park.

3) Salta, Uyuni & Atacama Trekking
This hiking is the one which includes more quantity of destinations, because it tours the Salar de Uyuni in Bolivia, together with Atacama in Chile and Humahuaca in Argentina, making the most interesting region because of all the attractions. It is an excellent mixture of quebradas, salts and deserts, which show the typical landscapes of the Altiplano.

The paths take us to know the prehispanic villages, which made the Camino del Inca journey, discovering habitats of millenium living, following the paths that the Kollas and Incas walked many years ago, where we will be amazed with the terraces that we will be able to see in the highest valleys and the animals´ sheperding above the quebradas. This picturesque trip is framed in a warm environment full of kindness from the villagers.

4) Atacama & Humahuaca Trek
Another trip which explorers Argentina and Chile, Atacama and Humahuaca, which doesn´t include the jungle and yungas of the Calilegua National Park and it differs from the Puna and Atacama Trekking Full. Its attractions are the Desert and the Atacama Salt with its altiplanic lagoons (Miñiques and Miscanti) and Geyser del Tatio with its high waters vapour. Once in Argentina, we will cross Paso de Jama, by travelling to the Quebrada de Humahuaca, where we will visit prehispanic villages until finishing the trekking in Salta.

5) Atacama Trekking
Trekking to the oasis of the andino altiplano: the Atacama Desert. We will find here the most strange landscapes: from the Moon Valleys, huge salts, such as the Atacama Salt or the strange geysers, such as Geyser del Tatio, known because of the water vapour that emerges from the inside of the geyser. We will trek by the classic destinations of the area, we will visit La Cordillera del Salar, the Moon´s Valley, we will do some trekking by the San Bartolo´s Valley and Rio Grande.

6) Puna & Yungas Trekking
We will join the most important attractions of the north of Argentina, the Quebrada de Humahuaca in Jujuy and Calilegua National Park, the yungas and jungle region in Salta.