LOS CARDONES NATIONAL PARK

EL CARDON - THE GIANT CACTUS
Being the main character of the Park, the giant cactus abundance in this area has granted this plant to share its name with the National Reserve. Outside it is covered with spine-like golden needles that reach lengths of up to 30 cms. Some artisans in the valley still use these spines to knit the llama wool.

The yearly growth rate of the cacti varies between one to five cms and only after reaching fifty years they sprout their white flowers, which die a few days later giving birth to the fruit, the "pasacana", from which over eighty thousand seeds will disperse. Remarkably, the chance is that only one among those tens of thousands will germinate in the jarilla's shelter.

In this Park, some of these cactus have been seen to reach heights of up to three metres, standing as mythical witnesses of the region, with an age estimate of between 250 and 300 years.

Although its wood looks fragile, it is truly used to make roof beams, furniture and crafts. Due to some irrational over cropping, this species came near extinction, but it has later been protected and today it is forbidden to cut down any of them.

WEATHER
Most parts of this area show a predominating arid climate, dry and mild with average temperatures of 11 ºC during the southern hemisphere Winter (with a minimum slightly below 0 ºC). And about 18 ºC during the Summer season, (with maximum levels of 30 ºC).

Rainfalls are scarce, the annual rate hardly reaching above 200 millimetres. And this happens only during the Summer season of the year, from November to March, when more than 90 percent of the yearly rainfall occurs. The rains do not fall in the same amounts throughout all the areas of the Park, and there are differences between the yearly rainfall averages as well.

Only on rare occasions, there are snowfalls in the lowest part of the Park's area, (about 2700 m.a.s.l.) where the yearly temperatures oscillate around 10ºC. Well over 3500 m.a.s.l., in the so-called eastern highlands, there are occasional hailstorms. Towards the East, where the Valle Encantado or Enchanted Valley and the lowland hillsides of the Cuesta del Obispo are located, a transition between the arid climate towards a more humid one can be perceived.

HOW TO ARRIVE
To be able to arrive to the Parque Nacional los Cardones National Park, starting from the City of Salta you have to drive across the No 68 National Route, up to the locality of El Carril, from where you will take the Ruta Provincial No 33, that goesa through the Escoipe Ravine and the Cuesta del Obispo, until reaching the Piedra del Molino at 3600 m.a.s.l.

From this spot, you will access the National Park, going through the Tin Tin straight road until arriving to the picturesque locality of Payogasta, to continue down the National Route No 40 heading towards Cachi. Already inside of the jurisdiction of the Park you will meet the crossroads between the Ruta Provincial No 33 and the No 42, which will take you to Seclantás.

ACTIVITIES
There are many different activities waiting for the visitors, despite the fact that the Park has not yet the basic infrastructure to welcome travellers. Apart from the opportunity to tour across its deserted beauty on a road in good conditions, you will also be able to take amazing pictures, walk across the field, do some trekking or watch the wild flora and fauna.
The cacti, amidst their arid silence, are really impressive as they arise with their upright postures from the ground. They will always be stationed there to delight your eyes in an absolsutely bizarre landscape. Although it is forbidden to cut them down, you will always be able to obtain a souvenir made out of its wood because the guards of the Park pick up the dry remains and save them for the craftsmen, who turn them into real pieces of art that are later sold to the visitors.

What to visit in the National Park Los Cardones:

The Valle Encantado - Enchanted Valley: Some gorgeous ponds are formed during the rainy season and become frozen in Winter. Moreover, an endless multi-coloured carpet of flowers flourishes among the erratic outcroppings of stones while the intensely blue sky covers the soil. There are also some ancient rock paintings and the mighty condors can be spotted surveying their domains.

Dinosaur Tracks: They were discovered due to the surveys done by the Don Otto Mine, the property of the Atomic Energy Programme. The prints were left on clay plates that were later thrust up on a cliff side by orogenic failures. Some years ago, some plates fell off and for a time they could be seen by climbing a dangerous ladder attached to a vertical stonewall of almost twenty ms that formed part of the mine. But the access to it was eventually restricted, as an increasing number of adventurers dared to climb up there.

Cerro Negro or Malcante: It is the guardian that stands between the Lerma and Calchaquí Valleys, magnificent and imposing. From its top at 5050 m.a.s.l. it is possible to see, on clear days, as far away as Cachi and Salta, Cabra Corral, the snowy peaks surrounding it along with the Cachi Mountain range, and also Palermo, Ciénaga Grande, San Miguel and Acay In order to get to the top, you have to enter through Tonco, by an old road that starts towards the right at the end of the straight road of the Tin Tin, by the Nº 33 Provincial Route, coming from Salta.

WHEN TO COME
Any time-