Pampa El Leoncito

The Pampa El Leoncito, often called the Barreal Blanco, is the bed of a lake that dried long ago, leaving a plain of pale cracked clay some kilometres across and almost perfectly level, with the wall of the Andes rising directly behind it. The surface is hard and smooth enough that the valley wind, which blows strongly and predictably through much of the year, can drive wheeled sailing craft across it at high speed, and Barreal has become the national home of carrovelismo, wind-car sailing, with local operators hiring craft and teaching beginners. Even without sailing, the plain is a striking place to stand: white ground, blue sky, snow peaks, and a horizon so flat that distant vehicles shimmer.

What you actually see

• The white plain - the cracked clay lakebed stretching flat to the mountains.
• The wind cars - sail-driven craft racing across the surface.
• The Andean backdrop - Mercedario and the high peaks behind the plain.
• The mirage effect - shimmering horizons on the perfectly level ground.

When to go

September to April, when the wind is reliable for sailing; afternoons are windiest. In winter the wind drops and the plain is simply a place to look. After rare rain the surface softens and access is restricted to protect it.

Honest expectations

There is no shade, shelter or water on the plain, and the sun and wind are punishing. Wind cars require instruction and are weather-dependent, so trips can be cancelled. Driving private vehicles onto the surface damages it and is discouraged.

Nearby

Barreal is minutes north; the El Leoncito national park and observatories lie south.