Argentina is shaped like an inverted triangle with its base at the top; it is some 880 miles (1,420 km) across at its widest from east to west and stretches 2,360 miles (3,800 km) from the subtropical north to the subantarctic south. The eighth largest country in the world, it is the second largest country in South America after Brazil, and it's about one-third the size of the United States.
Salta City is the capital of the province of Salta and the seventh largest city in Argentina. It is the hub of commerce and tourism for the province. One of Salta’s top export products is tobacco. The beauty of the landscapes throughout the Province of Salta - that is what draws people to one Argentina’s most beautiful destinations.
Cerro Tin Tin & Cerro Negra
The start to a totally amazing five day road trip begins with a drive through the Parque National Cordonas. Off in the distance you see the first mountains of colour. Each day of our trip brought unbelievable vistas and views of landscapes totally different from the one before - stunning is the only word I can describe this part of Argentina . My blogs of Salta will be about these five days of traveling to places where the photos will tell the story. I am sure you will enjoy these photos as much as I did seeing the landscapes in person.
The photos above are of Cerro Tin Tin (Cerro means small mountain). There are some very interesting historical facts. Just before the mountains is a 19km section of the road called the Tin Tin Straight. It is totally straight and follows the exact route that was built by the Incas between 1480 and 1535 - over 500 years ago. The Incas built over 60,000 kms of roads from South America to the Caribbean for trade, almost all have disappeared - but not the Tin Tin Straight.
Los Cardonas National Park
As you drive past Cerro Tin Tin you enter the National Park. Here you will see a landscape that has many Cardonas (cactus very similar to the Saguaro found in Arizona). If your’e lucky you may see wild mules & guanacos (a smaller version of the Llama).
As you slowly climb out of the desert - the mountains turn a beautiful green. You are on your way to the top, no straight lines here.
