La Polvorilla viaduct
64 m above the ravine.
Ministry of Transport of Argentina — CC BY-SA 2.0 · EduWiki — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Alicia Nijdam — CC BY 2.0 · Axel Forgaral — CC BY-SA 3.0
The Train to the Clouds is a tourist trip on the Salta-Antofagasta railway across the Andes, reaching 4,220 metres above sea level at the La Polvorilla viaduct. The line was built without a rack, so it climbs by bridges, tunnels, spirals and zigzags where the train runs forward and back up the slope, with 29 bridges, 21 tunnels and 13 viaducts. Today the trip starts by bus from Salta through the Lerma valley and the Quebrada del Toro to San Antonio de los Cobres on the Puna plateau, where passengers board the train to the La Polvorilla viaduct, a curving span 224 metres long and 64 metres high at 4,220 metres, over a deep ravine. Local people sell weavings and crafts at the stops. It is a full day of about thirteen hours there and back, and it does not run every day, so book ahead. The altitude can bring dizziness and headaches; drink water, move slowly and check with your doctor if you have heart or breathing problems.
64 m above the ravine.
Above 3,700 m.
On the bus route.
Departs from Salta by bus to San Antonio de los Cobres
The altitude passes four thousand metres and can bring dizziness and headaches; people with heart or breathing problems should take medical advice first, and the day is long, about thirteen hours.