Barreal

Barreal sits in the Calingasta valley at the foot of the Andes, a strip of orchards and poplars between the desert and some of the highest mountains in the Americas, the Mercedario and the Cordillera de Ansilta among them. To the south, the Parque Nacional El Leoncito keeps two astronomical observatories under skies that are clear almost every night of the year, and the Pampa del Leoncito, a dry lake bed flat enough for land sailing. North of the village, the coloured rock walls of El Alcázar rise near Tamberías and Calingasta.

The drive from Mendoza or San Juan takes four or five hours. Two or three nights leave time for the observatory at night, land sailing on the pampa, rafting on the Río de los Patos and trekking or riding towards the high peaks. From here the road continues north through the Calingasta valley to Rodeo.

Spring and autumn are best, with mild days. Summer is hot in the afternoons; winter brings cold nights and the clearest skies.