Where We Be
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| Late afternoon shadows creep into the multicolored Canyon of Cafayate |
| Cafayate, Argentina |
| We walked to three different wineries on the edge of town |
| Feeling good in Cafayate on my 46th birthday |
Our last stop before returning to Buenos Aires
turned out to be one of our favorites. We instantly
fell in love with the small town of Cafayate. In fact,
we wish we had discovered it sooner as we would
have happily stayed a month.
Cafayate is known for its torrontes wine, some of
the most floral and delicious white wine in the
world (we think). Vineyards surround the town and
are within easy walking distance. The town is quiet
enough you can hear birds chirping from the
central square, and more people ride bikes than
drive cars.
We had our most authentic "parilla" experience in
Cafayate. The grill had no name and was definitely
no-frills, but the steaks and chorizo sausages
were to-die-for delicious. The inside of the place
was filled with a light haze of smoke, and a soccer
game was playing on the TV. The owner beckoned
to us and we walked over to the grill and picked
out our selections of meat. There were no menus
and no prices, but when we asked for the bill they
told us 32 pesos, just $9 for everything including
the wine. You can't beat that! For dessert we tried
wine-flavored torrontes and cabernet sauvignon
ice cream at a local ice cream shop.
The magnificent Quebrada (Canyon) of Cafayate
lies just outside town. This gorgeous stretch of
road is reminiscent of the best scenery in Utah or
Arizona. At one point we got out of the car and
hiked with our guide 3 km into the canyon and saw
amazing colors – some of the best mixes of red
and green (not to mention yellow, blue, white, and
black) we have ever seen in rocks. At the end of
the hike we climbed a steep hill for an amazing
overlook that is often pictured in the local tour
brochures of the area.
turned out to be one of our favorites. We instantly
fell in love with the small town of Cafayate. In fact,
we wish we had discovered it sooner as we would
have happily stayed a month.
Cafayate is known for its torrontes wine, some of
the most floral and delicious white wine in the
world (we think). Vineyards surround the town and
are within easy walking distance. The town is quiet
enough you can hear birds chirping from the
central square, and more people ride bikes than
drive cars.
We had our most authentic "parilla" experience in
Cafayate. The grill had no name and was definitely
no-frills, but the steaks and chorizo sausages
were to-die-for delicious. The inside of the place
was filled with a light haze of smoke, and a soccer
game was playing on the TV. The owner beckoned
to us and we walked over to the grill and picked
out our selections of meat. There were no menus
and no prices, but when we asked for the bill they
told us 32 pesos, just $9 for everything including
the wine. You can't beat that! For dessert we tried
wine-flavored torrontes and cabernet sauvignon
ice cream at a local ice cream shop.
The magnificent Quebrada (Canyon) of Cafayate
lies just outside town. This gorgeous stretch of
road is reminiscent of the best scenery in Utah or
Arizona. At one point we got out of the car and
hiked with our guide 3 km into the canyon and saw
amazing colors – some of the best mixes of red
and green (not to mention yellow, blue, white, and
black) we have ever seen in rocks. At the end of
the hike we climbed a steep hill for an amazing
overlook that is often pictured in the local tour
brochures of the area.
| Playing with shadows during our canyon hike |
| The church in Cafayate's quiet central square |
| Posing inside a natural rock window on a picture-perfect day |
| This rock formation looks like the steam engine of a train |
| We took off our shoes and waded through shallows to approach this "castle" of rock |
| Soaring red pillar of rock |
| Panorama of striking beauty just a few miles north of Cafayate |
| Up to my ankles in cool water on a hot day |
| Our guide, Walter, waits for us near a rock formation called "The Obelisk" |
| We stayed at the Rusty-K Hostel in Cafayate and found it delightful |
| We loved the incredible initensity of colors during our 3 km hike into the canyon |
| This was the first stop on our tour of the Canyon of Cafayate, only a few miles outside of town |
| A steep climb brought us to this amazing overlook with stunning beauty in every direction |
| Deep shadows highlight how red the hills are |
| Striations of color are permanently etched into the rock -- red for iron, green for copper |
| Some of the most colorful rocks we've seen |
| Shadows encompass all but the top of this narrow canyon called the "Amphitheater" |
| Gorgeous view from the Tres Cruces (Three Crosses) overlook |
| The road winds lazily through the colorful red rocks of the Canyon of Cafayate |
| Lovely mix of green vegetation and red rocks at the Tres Cruces overlook |
| The chef / owner prepares to serve us an enormous steak at this tiny parilla -- our favorite grill experience in Argentina |
| Funky "llama" building on the outskirts of Cafayate |
| Even the ice cream is wine-flavored in Cafayate -- torrontes on the left, cab sauv on the right |
| High noon in the sleepy town of Cafayate, where bikes outnumber cars |
| This artisan is engraving names into silver keepsakes we bought as gifts |
