Uyuni Cultural Atracctions
Cultural Atracctions in Uyuni
Uyuni : The Salt Lake
The Salar de Uyuni is located between the parallels 20º and 21º, South latitude and 68º West longitude. It has a total reserve of 9 million tons of lithium and other evaporative minerals. The Salt Lake is formed by a series of stratum-saline layers, most of which are of highly pure and with an approximate depth of 6 meters each.
The salt lake was caused by the disappearance of an inland ocean that covered most of the Altiplano and it extended all the way to the Titicaca Lake. This body of water disappeared 13,000 years ago.
There seems to be two “eyes” in the middle of this large extension of salt. These are basically two holes, each one of them is 10 to 15 centimeters in diameter and each one has 120 meters of depth.
There are a lot of patches of hay scattered all over the area. In those places there is a bit more of humidity and there are “Tholares” (Tola: (Bot.) Baccaris Tola – Short species of hay or straw, very strong type of wicker) and “Keñuas” (A typical species of desert flower from the Andes).
An extraordinary experience is to go across this lake of salt by car, especially during the winter, because at that time the sky is completely clear and the bright blue color of the sky contrasts brilliantly with the salt. On a cloudy day there is a “white-out” effect, the horizon seems to blend in with the sky and you can hardly tell where the salt lake actually ends.
Amid this shiny white desert there are idle polyhedral figures that seem to emerge from the ground; these forms have been formed by nature, mostly by the aeolian movement of the air.
The islands that are in the center, are also attractions that marvel all visitors, this includes:
Isla Pescado ( Fish Island )
The Cujiri Island, better known as Fish Island, is located at 74 kilometers from Colchani, right in the middle of the salt mines. It has a total extension of 100 hectares and very picturesque scenery.
The layer of granite and organic has yielded a strange breed of giant cactus (6 meters in height) which has developed an interesting ecological system.
On the island’s summit there is a cave, the internal walls of the cave present a geological cut that provides information of the various layers of the ground. This is perhaps one of the best places to take wonderful pictures of the island and the salt mines as well.
Isla Incahuasi ( Fishermen’s Island )
The Incahuasi Island, known as the Fishermen’s Island, is formed on top of the remains of a volcano, and it is at 120 meters above the surface of the salt mines.On this island there are 7 archaeological sites that belong to the culture of Tiwanaku this includes two Inca ruins, 30 caverns, 12 natural tunnels and 1 forest of cactuses (quirucolumbar, pillaya, piscallu, thulo, huajraguaya, añaguaya, etc.).
Alfredo Lazaro (a resident from Llica) has been living in the island since 1987 as a protector of this natural wonder. He has personally counted 4,030 adult cactuses, 5,000 cactuses that are still developing and 16 which are either burnt or dry. The island is also a nest to several species of birds and vizcachas (American species of rodent, similar in size and form to gophers).
This is a perfect place to contemplate an amazing landscape and to take very unique pictures.
Town of Uyuni
In this town's main attraction is the “train cemetery”, which has tons of machinery of trains from 1890.
Pulacayo
Located at 22 kilometers from Uyuni, Pulacayo was one of the most important mining centers of the country towards the end of the 19th century, this is the place where the “Thesis of Pulacayo” was announced and presented internationally, which was also used to regain the rights of the working class world wide.
Here, we can also find the remains of the first train ever to have functioned in Bolivia.
Colchani
The town of Colchani, known also as “Puerto Seco” (Dry Port), is the main means of access to the whole region. It is located at 22 kilometers from Uyuni, at the brink of the salt mines. This is the mining center from which salt is extracted.
Visitors can see here rustic homes made with adobe or salt blocks and covered with roofs made of straw; these components have been proven to be excellent natural materials used to retain heat, which is of great importance when facing the freezing temperatures of the area.
Straw is abundant throughout the area, making it easy to grace llamas, vicuñas and other species of mammals.
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