Cuesta del Obispo & Cachi — VallesCalchaquíes.
Distance
165 km
Duration
1 day
Climb
2,200 m
Cuesta del Obispo & Cachi — Valles Calchaquíes.
One of Northwest Argentina's most spectacular days in the saddle. Provincial Route 33 climbs from Salta's subtropical Lerma Valley through cloud forest to the 3,348m Piedra del Molino summit, then descends into Los Cardones National Park — a high-altitude desert filled with giant cardón cacti. The final RN40 leg to Cachi runs on legendary gravel through the Calchaquí Valley, framed by the Sierra del Apacheta. Surface alternates paved and graded gravel; altitude can cause headaches.
Quick facts
SurfaceMixed
Distance165 km
Days1
Total climb2,200 m
DifficultyChallenging
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The route.
SaltaStart · Start in Salta (1,187m). Take RP-33 west toward Chicoana. Fuel up — no stations until Cachi.
Quebrada de EscoipeScenic Point · Tight valley with subtropical cloud forest. The road becomes single-track in places — yield to oncoming trucks on blind bends.
Piedra del Molino — Cuesta del Obispo Summit (3,348m)Mountain Pass · Switchbacks rise 2,000m in 20km. Stone marker, hermitage chapel and grazing llamas at the top. Stop the engine and listen — pure Andean silence.
Parque Nacional Los CardonesScenic Point · UNESCO-listed park dominated by cardón cacti — some over 5m tall and 200 years old. The road bisects the park; no off-road riding permitted.
PayogastaRestaurant · Lunch in this Calchaquí adobe village. Locro stew and tamales on the plaza. Last food before Cachi.
RN40 — Sierra del ApachetaScenic Point · Iconic gravel section of Argentina's Ruta 40 framed by red sandstone ridges. Total silence beyond engine noise. Watch for guanacos.
CachiEnd · End in Cachi (2,531m). White-washed adobe village with one of NW Argentina's most beautiful church plazas. Cachi-style empanadas and Calchaquí wine for dinner.
More routes in AR A
Quebrada de las Flechas — Cachi to CafayateAR A · 165 kmAbra del Acay — Ruta 40's Highest PassAR A · 150 kmRuta 9 Cornisa — Salta to San Salvador de JujuyAR A · 92 kmPaso Sico — San Antonio de los Cobres to San Pedro de AtacamaAR A · 340 kmQuebrada del Toro — Salta to San Antonio de los CobresAR A · 165 km
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