The landscape around Humahuaca’s valley is so interesting and in contrast with all my expectations about Argentina. It’s definitely best explored by car, but I managed to visit the Quebrada de las señoritas by public transport. There were several local buses that made the way South down the valley from the Humahuaca bus station. Since I had no clue at what time they were actually leaving, I just took a chance and waited a while before it left. It was only a short drive to Uquía, from where I walked to the other end of town to reach the start of my hike. It doesn’t take long. If you drive on the highway and blink, you might miss this town!
You can’t enter the hike on your own, so guides are at the parking lot, forming groups as people arrive. I ended up walking with a family from the Buenos Aires region. The hike isn’t so long or strenuous, but we walked slowly due to the nearly 3000m of altitude. In about 3 hours we explored the red valley, its canyon and myths. Legend says that once upon a time, three Inca women were fleeing with some gold. They hid their treasure in the hills around Uquía, in the quebrada, before sacrificing themselves. The women turned into three colorful rock formations: black, white and red.
So that was the first destination of our hike. The kids were getting a bit tired on the way, but they regained their energy when we walked through the narrow and more shady paths in the gorge. We left our backpacks and squeezed through an opening in the tall red walls. The colors instantly changed in the semi-darkness. Afterwards we climbed up some scenic viewpoints for a photo shoot and to enjoy the view. We looked out over the path we’d just walked to get here, with in the distance, above the valley, the even higher mountains of Jujuy.
Another side track led into the red canyon. Due to the harsh light it was a bit tricky to capture the color on camera, but it was a very scenic. The paths snakes through the walls and rocks. Occasionally there’s a plant or cactus sticking out of the rock.
Today was a bit of a gamble, without a steady plan. I walked to the colorful bus stop and just waited until a bus passed. It could be a 5 minute wait. It could be an hour. Then a friendly local stopped and asked if I was going to Humahuaca. They dropped me off very close to my airBnB. The luck of traveling solo I guess!
