A tour of the Quebrada de Cafayate

On our first full day in Cafayate, we toured the Quebrada de Cafayate, also known as the Quebrada de las Conchas because it follows the Rio de las Conchas.  Full credit to the Puna Turismo agency, through which we booked the tour, and especially to Marcelo, the tour leader.

Our first stop was this set of rocks (not signed so far as I could see).

 Marcelo took us on an exploration of the rocks was he explained the area's geology as well as discussing the plants were were seeing.  Because the explanation was in Spanish, we only caught some of this :-(

 We marveled at some of the amazing rock formations

Rock formations with windows in Quebrada de Cafayate

and walked into narrow canyons for a closer look

Canyon in Quebrada de Cafayate

Our tour in one of the canyons in Quebrada de Cafayate

 

This formation is called Castillos, or castles

Los Castillos in Quebrada de Cafayate

And this is the official Las Ventanas:

Las Ventanas in Quebrada de Cafayate

This one, called The Obelisk, is ringed by a fence as a warning not to climb on the rock:

El Obelisco in Quebrada de Cafayate

Some amazing color variations in the rocks

Greens, and even blues

I liked these little cactuses

Marcelo told us that the reason for the fence around this next feature, El Sapo (the toad), was a different one -- that there used to be two, but the other one hopped right onto the road and got schmushed by a passing car

Here is the Rio de las Conchas looking southward from near El Sapo

Finally, we approached the last two, and perhaps the most dramatic features of the Quebrada -- the Amphitheatre (Anfiteatro) and The Devil's Throat or Garagantua del Diablo -- a rather drier affair than the version we had seen a few days before at Iguazu.

The Amphitheatre in Quebrada de Cafayate

The Amphitheatre is a small slot canyon with nice acoustics, allowing musical performances, as demonstrated by one tour participant who  had brought along his guitar and gave an impromptu performance for us

The Amphitheatre in Quebrada de Cafayate

The Amphitheatre in Quebrada de Cafayate

The Amphitheatre in Quebrada de Cafayate

Finally, the Gargantua, where we could climb through the rocks\

Gargantua del Diablo in Quebrada de Cafayate

The path took us up the rock face where tour guide Marcelo in standing, showing the proper foot placements

Gargantua del Diablo  in Quebrada de Cafayate

and around the corner to the right that can be seen in this photo

Gargantua del Diablo  in Quebrada de Cafayate

Looking back down to the bottom of the Throat

Gargantua del Diablo  in Quebrada de Cafayate

Gargantua del Diablo  in Quebrada de Cafayate