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Northern Argentina by bike had been a travel idea I had for a long time. In fact, since I had visited Salta in 2016, I had had the idea of returning to northern Argentina to bike. That way, I would be able to take my time visiting the Cafayate and Cachi areas.
In May 2023, therefore, I well and truly decided to do this wonderful tour of northern Argentina by bike! I rented the bike in Salta, at the MTB Salta store: the cost of the one-week rental was about one hundred euros. I rented a MTB as I knew that much of the route would be unpaved. Especially, I knew that the section of Ruta 40 towards Cachi would be quite troublesome.
Northern Argentina by bike: from Salta to La Vina
I therefore left Salta on Sunday, April 30, heading south. Having said goodbye to the beautiful city of Salta, aptly called ‘la linda,’ I started pedaling toward Cafayate. The points of interest on this first day in northern Argentina were relatively few. I passed through large and small towns: being Sunday there was no shortage of typical parrillas, where locals cooked immense barbecues of meat.
After about 30 kilometers I stopped in the town of El Carril. In this village there was a real festival: concerts, karaoke, games and endless empanadas, the typical food of northern Argentina.
After a hearty lunch, I continued pedaling along RN 68. In Coronel Moldes, a small town characterized by some nice arcades, I met Koen, a Belgian cyclist who had been pedaling for 1,500 kilometers. After about a kilometer I punctured for the first time: Koen and I stopped in front of the house of an Argentine family, who stuffed us with sweets while I changed the inner tube.
After about 85 kilometers we arrived in La Vina, a small town that hosted us for one night.
Northern Argentina by bike: from La Vina to Cafayate
From La Vina to Cafayate is a hundred kilometers of road. Before embarking on this road I had calculated the rest stops: I would only find food after 35 and after 75 kilometers. In the remaining part of the stage I would most likely find nothing.
Koen and I decided in the morning to proceed together. The first thirty kilometers of the stage proved to be quite boring; however, the music definitely changed as we entered the Quebrada de las Conchas. A viewpoint at the 30th kilometer, in fact, was the appetizer of the canyons we would see in the following kilometers.
At the 35th kilometer, the Parador las Abritas stuffed us with empanadas, necessary for the subsequent climbs. As we pedaled, the feeling was clearly that of entering more and more into a canyon. After about fifty kilometers we stopped to admire two stupendous viewpoints: el Anfiteatro and the Garganta del Diablo are well worth a stop! Just after these viewpoints, a very steep climb leads to Mirador Tres Cruces: the view at the end of the climb is spectacular!
At the 75th kilometer we stopped to eat in La Yeseta: there are peculiar colored rock formations nearby. In fact, you enter a part of the road called Los Colorados: cycling here is spectacular! The Quebrada da Cafayate offers various viewpoints, among which Las Ventanas and Los Castillos stand out for their beauty.
Koen and I arrived in Cafayate tired, but happy with the wonderful 102-kilometer stage: the elevation gain exceeded a thousand meters!
Northern Argentina by bike: from Cafayate to Angastaco
In Cafayate Koen and I got separated. I would take Ruta 40 north, while he would head toward Tucuman. The first twenty kilometers of this day took me to San Carlos: Ruta 40 in this part is still paved and goes through the typical vineyards of northern Argentina.
As soon as you leave San Carlos, however, Ruta 40 becomes unpaved. In many sections, the road is not well maintained: gullies often form, making it uncomfortable to ride the bike.
From San Carlos to Angastaco there are only small villages: with no bars and no places to eat anything. In these small villages, like La Merced or Payogastilla, you generally find only a church and a school. In one of them I found schoolteachers: to go to school they would drive forty kilometers of dirt road every day…hitchhiking!
The last kilometers of today’s stage were wonderful. In fact, Ruta 40 passes through the Quebrada de las Flechas: the canyon is simply spectacular! Here I found an Argentine couple, whom I would see again in the following days: I received their compliments, which I returned after learning that he had run the entire five thousand kilometers of Ruta 40.
Northern Argentina by bike: from to Angastaco to Cachi
The leg that took me from Angastaco to Cachi gave me a surprise.
I knew it would be long, hard and totally unpaved: 90 kilometers, 1000 meters of elevation gain and totally unpaved. Pedaling on the dirt road of Ruta 40 is nice…but definitely tough! After about an hour, a car literally stopped me: they were six Argentinians on the road and they were curious about my cyclo-travel. Talking about this and that, they offered me mate, which I more than gladly accepted!
After about forty kilometers I made a small detour to visit the beautiful village of Molinos. Various parts of cactus, the typical local vegetation, were used to build the church! In Molinos, eating the classic empanadas, I discovered the surprise of the stage: the Ruta 40 was closed for works, and I would have to use the old Ruta 40. This detour was a good thing: the oldar Ruta 40 is flatter!
Towards Seclantas I punctured for the second time on this trip: by now it was clear to me that I had a tire problem. I arrived in Cachi literally overwrought, but once again the stage had turned out to be splendid! 90 kilometers, all dirt road and 1000 meters of elevation gain: that’s the stage!
Northern Argentina by bike: rest in Cachi
In Cachi I found myself again with the Argentine couple I had found two days earlier. I well decided to stay two nights in Cachi, as there were various things to see and do in this small town in northern Argentina.
The square in Cachi is very beautiful: it houses a church and a museum with local history. There are two viewpoints in Cachi that are worth a visit. The one closest to the center (a fifteen-minute walk) allows you to admire Cachi from above. The second, however, about an hour from the center of Cachi, allows you to see the Cachi ovnipuerto: legends say that UFOs have landed here.
Northern Argentina by bike: from Cachi to Maray
Once I left Cachi, Ruta 40 became paved again. After about ten kilometers, however, at the height of Payogasta I left Ruta 40 to take Ruta 33. Along this road I entered the wonderful Parque Nacional Los Cardones: at an altitude of 3,000 meters it is impressive to see so many cacti!
Ruta 33 is also famous for the Recta Tin Tin: a straight stretch of about twelve kilometers, endless on a bike! At the end of this straight the weather changed abruptly: cold and clouds accompanied me to the 3,360 meters of the Cuesta del Obispo.
At the summit the asphalt ends and a twenty-kilometer descent begins: the dirt road and the view that led me to Hostaria El Maray reminded me of the famous Carretera de la Muerte in Bolivia!
This stage was, once again, tough but beautiful! Almost 80 kilometers, more than 1,200 meters of elevation gain and 3,360 meters of altitude: not a trivial stage!
Northern Argentina by bike: from Maray to Salta
From El Maray I continued pedaling slightly downhill, crossing a canyon, to El Carril. Here I punctured a third time: a couple of policemen on bikes helped me!
From El Carril I took Ruta 68 back to Salta: the bike tour in northern Argentina was happily over!
76 easy kilometers to finish the tour!
INFORMATION ABOUT NORTHERN ARGENTINA BY BIKE
- In total in northern Argentina by bike I covered 510 km and 5300 meters of elevation gain.
- About 165 kilometers are unpaved.
- There are not many places to eat during the stages: only in the first and sixth stages are there many villages.
- I have always slept in hosterias: the cost is about ten euros for a single.
- The typical cuisine of northern Argentina is based on empanadas and kids: you can definitely eat well. In Cachi, especially, El Bistrรฒ de Cachi and Mi Favorita stand out for goodness. Hotel El Nevado is a great place to sleep: next door is Killary, an excellent brewery.
- Wine is typical of the Cafayate area. Excellent ‘bodegas’ are also found in Cachi, among which Isasmendi stands out.
- The difficulty level of this bike ride is high: the dirt road is really strenuous in places.
- The best day of this bike ride was the second: the road from Salta to Cafayate, especially entering Cafayate, is spectacular.
- The best time to take this bike tour is from April to October.
- I found very good temperatures, around twenty-five degrees. It is cool at night.
- I reached my highest altitude ever by bike: 3,360 meters. It was not that complicated. The descent from Cuesta del Obispo is simply spectacular!
- Along the road there are often small niches dedicated to Gauchito Gil, one of the most popular figures in Argentina. Many people think that Gauchito Gil has healing powers and address various prayers to him.While cycling, I encountered many small shrines dedicated to his figure.
