Salineras de Maras

Monday, 20 August 2018

Near Urubamba, a salty spring (1.8% salt) spills out of a mountainside. For centuries (at least 1500 years), the water has been trapped in small lagoons and evaporated to recover the salt. Visitors are welcome (for a fee, of course), and walking through the salt works is a fascinating experience.

A small, salty spring is the source for over 3,000 evaporation lagoons.

The lagoons cascade down the mountainside.

The salty water is diverted through small channels to each individual lagoon. When the lagoon is full, the channel to that lagoon is blocked with a rock or two.

Lon is walking along a path between salt lagoons. A water channel is to the right, and bags full of salt are on the ledge in the middle of the photo.

Each lagoon has a surface area of about 2 m² and is about 25 cm deep. Salt is scraped from the pond after 3 to 4 weeks of evaporation.

The color of the ponds is due to the reflection of the mountainside lit by the late afternoon sun.