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Peru’s Unique Salt Ponds Left Us Drooling
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Peru’s Unique Salt Ponds Left Us Drooling

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There are some places on this magical planet that leave your jaw on the ground, whilst you drag it along like an old car dragging a broken bumper. The Maras Salt Ponds, located in the ancient Inca Sacred Valley (we are happy to say), is one of such places.

Over the past two and a half years, we have traveled to 41 countries, and we’ve been fortunate enough to pick up our jaws off the floor, at least a few times. Our trip to Namibia comes to mind, the waterfalls of Iceland had us drooling too, and the Benagil cave in Portugal was beyond anything we could imagine. This time, however, we did not expect to see such a unique landscape appear in front of us, as we drove along the main road from the modern town of Cusco.

Your first impression of the ponds is from a high vantage point, so you get to see the 3000+ ponds in all their glory. We were soon told that each one of these pools is owned by a different family. How they tell each of them apart from the others, well, we can only guess.

As you drive down the valley and get closer, you begin to see the detail of the structures, that are essentially fed by one subterranean stream, which, as you guessed, is very, very salty. The process of creating the salt is really simple of course – the sacred water runs into these pools (which are not deep at all), and then evaporates to leave a thin crust of what has become some of the world’s most desirable salt.

We spent a good few hours navigating our way through the maze of pathways, and it will certainly go down as one of our favorite places to get lost.

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miralda-kuils avatar
M
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This goes straight to my bucketlist! I'm confused though. Why is she wearing a summer dress and he's in a winter outfit :P

zori-i-iana avatar
Zori the degu
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is something out of this world! Unimaginable, stunning, awesome! Your photos captured this magical place perfectly. I'm sure that all Pandas would be happy to hear more about your adventures and see other stunning photos!

howfarfromhome avatar
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yay thanks so much!! We promise to share more of our adventures for Pandas...alternatively people can find us on Instagram: @howfarfromhome ;)

Load More Replies...
anat_ avatar
Ana T.
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

so they tell you to walk in top of the rocks but she just walk inside the salt pond anyway.

onemessylady avatar
Aunt Messy
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I can't help it, I married a chemical engineer. What is tinting the salt? I'm guessing mineral deposits, but that pink says algae to me. In fact it looks like the same algae that grows in areas that have extraordinarily clean water. I live in Chicago, where there are very few chemicals needed for the water, and that exact shade of pink shows up in fish tanks and in my toilet bowl when we come back from vacation. It's harmless.

anne-colomb1986 avatar
cassiushumanmother
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is micro-organism, depending on the salinity of the water. Differents species of algae indeed, bacteries and little sprawns. I'm french we have some really beautiful salt ponds here, this peruvian one is amazing.

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aiden-eidan avatar
G.
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Looks like a place of gnomes in world of warcraft

miralda-kuils avatar
M
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This goes straight to my bucketlist! I'm confused though. Why is she wearing a summer dress and he's in a winter outfit :P

zori-i-iana avatar
Zori the degu
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is something out of this world! Unimaginable, stunning, awesome! Your photos captured this magical place perfectly. I'm sure that all Pandas would be happy to hear more about your adventures and see other stunning photos!

howfarfromhome avatar
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yay thanks so much!! We promise to share more of our adventures for Pandas...alternatively people can find us on Instagram: @howfarfromhome ;)

Load More Replies...
anat_ avatar
Ana T.
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

so they tell you to walk in top of the rocks but she just walk inside the salt pond anyway.

onemessylady avatar
Aunt Messy
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I can't help it, I married a chemical engineer. What is tinting the salt? I'm guessing mineral deposits, but that pink says algae to me. In fact it looks like the same algae that grows in areas that have extraordinarily clean water. I live in Chicago, where there are very few chemicals needed for the water, and that exact shade of pink shows up in fish tanks and in my toilet bowl when we come back from vacation. It's harmless.

anne-colomb1986 avatar
cassiushumanmother
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

This is micro-organism, depending on the salinity of the water. Differents species of algae indeed, bacteries and little sprawns. I'm french we have some really beautiful salt ponds here, this peruvian one is amazing.

Load More Replies...
aiden-eidan avatar
G.
Community Member
6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Looks like a place of gnomes in world of warcraft

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