pukara de quitor ruins

very good infrastructure and info letters to understand what happened there. amazing view of Valle de la Muerte. I suggest bringing water so to go quietly to the very top, where there are some seats to enjoy an amazing landscape.

This is an interesting Atacama Desert ruin very close to a quaint Chilean restaurant. Both have good photo opportunities and the restaurant is worth a lunch. It is close to other interesting sites such as Valley of the Moon. By itself the fort is not spectacular but if in the area worth visiting. Be prepared to do some climbing as it is on the top of a low hill. It is close to the desert town of San Pedro which is also worth visiting.

Go to Pukara de Quitor Ruins by bike. You can know more about history and ancient indians of this region before the spanish colonization. Very beautiful road from San Pedro to this attraction.

We went to Quittor by bike and then to quebrada del diablo. It was a really nice ride. We didn't go up the ruins though... The bike ride through the desert felt more fun than going up.

My husband and I were booked into this tour with Andes Wide by our travel agents at home. The previous three days had been stunning visiting salt lakes, geysers, glacial lakes and The Valley of the Moon. We assumed this would not be as exciting but it was fascinating. Our guide explained the history of the area by telling us a story before we climbed the ruins of the 12th century fortress. Without a guide this attraction is hard to appreciate.

This is a partly-restored (and not completely authentically) pre-Inca fortress/village. A fair amount of spanglish explanation of the history and grisly legends is given to read. Gives nice views of volcanoes, Rio San Pedro and the town, too.

I was surprised how interesting this site was. There is a small 'museum' with a variety of finds and displays. They have also made attempts at conservation here and are keen to keep people to official paths. Bit of a steep climb and little cover or shade, so in the heat of the day sun screen and hats are a good idea. Excellent photo opportunities.

Well displayed and interesting. No crowds. Gave us a glimpse of how the people lived and survived back when under very much less than ideal circumstances.

On our last day on San Pedro we walked to the ruins, which only took us half an hour from the center. The ruins are pretty good but the Mirador is even better. You walk up a serpentine trail for about half an hour and you will be rewarded with a breathtaking view of the valley. Really something if you have some time!

Climbing up to the ruins gives you a view out over one of the last Inca fortresses to hole out against the conquistadors. You can see small farms down below and just relax in the sun wondering about the simple, never changing lives of the people who lived and survived in desolate seeming places like this before the conquest. While we were there an local youngster came and sat just below us, probably he was sharing the same thoughts, but with a much deeper understanding. Not the greatest ruins in technical or historic terms but an important one from an emotional viewpoint.

We had a tour with our rented bikes on the sunset, and worth a lot! You can go up the mount to see the sunset from there, worth a view, almost aerial, to san pedro

Our 2nd day begins with a new bike trip. This time we had first to Quitor, an ancient fort and temple. While the fort does not really impress, the 30 min hike up to the viewpoint rewards us with a stunning view over the Atacama desert, San Pedro and the Death Valley. Come here early to have enough time for the next stops on the bike trip (Shared the full journey in Atacama on Epiclist).

This is about a 45 min. walk along a road from the center of San Pedro de Atacama. It is very much worth visiting as not much has been restored. There is a small visitor center with displays and nice bathrooms. You can also buy a drink there. If you are a little unsteady on your feet, take a walking stick as as walk down is steep. I enjoyed the visit very much.

Half was closed but we still had to pay full price. When I was here many years ago, the site was open-access and so the transfer to private ownership is a bit disappointing. But still worth a visit.

Very nice, short walk from San Pedro de Atacama hostels. Nice view of neighboring volcanoes and an overview of the oasis. If you pay attention, you can see the green in the rocks from the copper.