Argentina Guide
The Northwest
Antofagasta de la Sierra
Perched 3440m above sea level, 260km north of Belén, ANTOFAGASTA DE LA SIERRA lies at the northern end of a vast, arid plain hemmed in by volcanoes to the east and south, and by the cordillera, which soars to peaks of over 6000m, a mere 100km over to the west. With a population of under a thousand it exudes a feeling of utter remoteness, while still managing to exert a disarming fascination. It's a bleak yet restful place, an oasis of tamarinds and green alfalfa fields in the middle of the meseta altiplánica – a harsh steppe that looms above the surrounding altiplano.
The best views of the immediate surroundings can be enjoyed from the top of the Cerro Amarillo and Cerro de la Cruz, two unsightly mounds of earth that look like part of a huge building-site and dominate the town's humble streets of small mud-brick houses. The only tourist attraction in the town is the beautifully presented Museo Arqueológico (Mon– Fri 8am–6pm; $1), recently created primarily to house a perfectly preserved, naturally mummified baby, found in the mountains nearby and believed to be nearly 2000 years old; surrounded with jewels and other signs of wealth, suggesting the child belonged to a ruling dynasty, it exerts a morbid fascination. The museum's other exhibits, few in number but of extraordinary value, include an immaculately preserved pre-Hispanic basket, the pigment colouring and fine weave still intact.
The bus from Catamarca will drop you in the main street. Apart from rooms in private houses, the only accommodation is near the municipalidad, at the basic but scrupulously clean and much improved Hostería de Antofagasta ( 
03835/471001; Price: $45-75), where you can also eat. Fuel can be bought at inflated prices from the pump opposite the municipalidad, so it's better to fill up before making this trip. Antofagasta has no tourist office as such; for visiting the immediate and farther-flung surroundings ask at the municipalidad for the town's most experienced guides, Catalino Soriano, Antolín Ramos and Jesús Vásquez.