UYUNI AND THE GREAT SALT FLAT

UYUNI

It was once a great flourishing town due to the development of trains in the country. Today the city is dedicated especially to the mining of salt and to providing services for tourists visiting the Salar of Uyuni, Laguna Colorada, Laguna Verde, and other magnificent sites in the area.

SALAR DE UYUNI

Salar de Uyuni is the world's largest salt flat. It is located in the Department of Potosí in southwest Bolivia, near the crest of the Andes, 3650 meters high. The major minerals found in the salar are halite and gypsum.

Some 40,000 years ago, the area was part of Lake Minchin, a giant prehistoric lake. When the lake dried, it left behind two modern lakes, Poopó and Uru Uru, and two major salt deserts, Salar de Coipasa and the larger Salar de Uyuni.

PULACAYO

This small town was, at the end of the 19th. Century, one of the most important mining centers in Bolivia. This is also where the Thesis of Pulacayo, that acknowledged the working class rights, was dictated.

The first train that operated in Bolivia is also in this town.

TRAIN CEMENTERY

This area located only a few minutes from the village of Uyuni displays the remains of the trains used in 1890.

COLCHANI

Here they produce the majority of the salt that is consumed in Bolivia. The traditional methods for mining the salt are interesting to observe. Some buildings in this township are constructed almost entirely of salt. Colchani is located some 21 kilometers from Uyuni.

In the surrounding areas we find the unique Salt Hotels.

ISLA PESCADO (FISH ISLAND)

The island, which is located in the center of the Salar, has this name because from a distance its form resembles a fish. Nature here is endowed with a flower of very singular characteristics, a cactus that grows to six meters high. The ground contains many examples of fossilized seaweed known as Estromatolitos. There are also some indications of pre-Hispanic culture in the area.

MOUNT THUNUPA

This is an extinct volcano, considered sacred by local people, and revered by the Aymara culture. It is one of the most important pre-Hispanic sanctuaries, containing some 24 identified archaeological sites. In the lagoon at the base of the mountain one can observe the pink and brown flamingos. The nearby populations are very old and typically Andean.