Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
road for the 24-mile (40-km)
circuit inaccessible. Most of
these tours visit the park
in the morning and Talampaya
in the afternoon before heading
back to San Agustín.
In addition to the vehicle
tour, visitors can also take a
3-hour hike to the 5,734-ft
(1,748-m) summit of the
barrow-like Cerro Morado
for panoramic views of
Ischigualasto and north
to Talampaya. Best done in
the morning, the hike
necessitates hiring a guide
at the park ranger station at
the entrance.
La Esinge (The Sphinx) rock formation at Parque Provincial Ischigualasto
The highway continues to the
15,680-ft (4,780-m) Paso de
Agua Negra , the highest pass
between Argentina and Chile.
Open from December to March,
it is one of the best places to
see the penitentes , conical
snow formations resembling
hooded monks.
Natural . Housed in a high-
ceilinged warehouse adapted
as a museum, its lifesize models
of Eoraptor lunensis ,
Herrerasaurus ischigualastensis ,
and other dinosaurs that
roamed the earth up to 228
million years ago are the
starting point for informative
backcountry tours. University
students explain in Spanish the
process of reconstructing the
skeletons before leading 2-hour
vehicle excursions past unique
landforms such as La Esfinge
(The Sphinx) and El Hongo
(The Mushroom).
Due to the terrible summer
heat, most animals are noctur-
nal but visitors may be able to
see the Patagonian hares, rheas,
red foxes, armadillos, pumas,
and the rarely spotted condors.
The main plant varieties found
are four kinds of cactus, native
brea trees, and jarilla shrubs.
Visitors touring the
backcountry must either have
their own vehicles or arrive
with a private operator from
San Agustín del Valle Fértil. Rare
wet weather can make the
0 Parque Provincial
Ischigualasto
Road map B2. 202 miles (325 km) NE
of San Juan. @ from San Juan. n 25
de Mayo y Las Heras, San Juan, (0264)
422-7372. Open museum & park: Apr-
Sep: 8am-4pm; Oct-Mar: 8am- 5pm.
& inclusive of museum price. 8 7
0 - =  ischigualasto.gob.ar
Pre-Columbian petroglyphs at
Piedra Pintada
q San Agustín del
Valle Fértil
Road map B2. 250 km (400 miles)
NE of San Juan. * 3,889. @
n General Acha 52, (0264) 642-0104.
_ Founding of San Agustín (Apr).
sanjuanlaestrelladelosandes.com
Less colorful than the red
sandstone canyons of Sierra de
las Quijadas (see p222) and the
desert parks of the Andean
Northwest, the Triassic sedi-
ments and volcanic ash of
Ischigualasto have brought
about some of the top dinosaur
discoveries of recent decades. In
a country where paleontologists
have not received the
widespread recognition they
deserve, the park, also known
as the Valley of the Moon, is
slowly changing the situation.
With impressive exhibits and
informative tours, it has now
become an imperative stop-off
for both specialists and visitors
in general.
Since its designation as a
UNESCO World Heritage Site,
together with Parque Nacional
Talampaya (see p189) across the
provincial border in La Rioja, the
park has opened a branch of
the Universidad Nacional de San
Juan's Museo de Historia
Unlike the blazing deserts to
its north and south, the cozy
oasis of San Agustín del Valle
Fértil (Fertile Valley) enjoys a
verdant woodland setting at
the base of Sierra de la Huerta.
The place is filled with wide
maize fields, a pasture for goats,
and olive groves. Improved
highways and visitor services
have made it the best place for
travelers to arrange tours to
Ischigualasto in San Juan and
Talampaya across the provincial
border in La Rioja.
A cluster of archaeological
sites nearby includes pre-
Columbian petroglyphs at
Piedra Pintada , just across Río
Seco. Another highlight of the
town is Parque Provincial Valle
Fértil , a large roadless area in
the enticing mountains to the
west and southwest.
Dinosaur display at the museum in Parque
Provincial Ischigualasto
 
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