Quote: Salta is built around a beautiful green hill called Cerro San Bernardo; it dominates the city landscape and it is hardly possible to find a place in town from where it cannot be spotted.

The Cable Car

The "Teleferico" cable car to the hill's summit leaves from the San Martin Park, just west from the bus terminal and some twelve blocks away from the central plaza. The trip costs 8ARP (less than three American dollars) for a return ticket or 4ARP for a single trip and longs around five minutes.

Climbing Up

The best way to reach the summit is climbing through the staircase to heaven. The access is located at the eastern end of Paseo Guemes Street, where the Guemes Statue stands; behind it the wide stairway begins its way to the peak.

Soon it becomes a quite narrow path surrounded by dense, moist foliage, which mercifully obscures the sunlight; the path gently climbs at angles that never let the pilgrim see much of the way ahead or behind. The stones path is occasionally replaced by short sets of steps.

After such half an hour of pure delight, the summit is reached. There, a beautiful cascade of artificial waterfalls visually refreshes the visitors and provides a pleasant prelude to the city views.

Summit

At the summit, there is a coffee shop, which is open only at the afternoons and an additional set of stairways, which allows descending through the hill opposite side, leading to a residential area of the city.

View

From above, it is possible to distinguish the rectangular, colonial grid typical of Argentinean cities; in a clear day, the central plaza, the Franciscan Church, the cathedral, the basilica, the San Martin Park and all the other landmarks of the town can be recognized easily.

The Fountain

Due to the way the summit fountain was constructed, it is possible to enter below it without getting wet and see a distorted view of the city through a thin curtain of refreshing water.

The Milestone

At the summit, a milestone states with almost milimetric precision: 284.92m above the city and 1458.42m above sea level.

Nepal

A worldwide pilgrim cannot avoid making comparisons from time to time; especially, when the setup of two remote places is so similar. While climbing Cerro San Bernardo, pictures from Nepal kept coming to my mind. Despite the obvious differences, the lush vegetation, humid climate and steep slopes were remarkably similar, reminding me that we all live in one planet and that each one of us is responsible for keeping it green and healthy.

From journals Salta la Linda