Puna Jujeña

The Puna Jujeña (3700 m) covers all the area to the west of the Quebrada de Humahuaca. It's a spectacularly remote and bleak place with few settlements, but extraordinary salt flats, lakes full of bird life and plenty of history to be explored. If you have time it's definitely worth spending a few days in the area, The punais high altitude (between 3000 and 4000 m) and it's an inhospitable area to travel alone, so although you could hire a 4WD vehicle and be independent, consider trips with adventure travel company Socompai www.socompa.com, which enable you to explore the punain the company of expert guides without having to worry about practicalities.

Susques and Salinas Grandes

Susques is the only settlement between Purmamarca and the border, lying in a hollow at the meeting of the Río Susques and Río Pastos Chicos. It has a stunning little church, dating from 1598 - one of the outstanding examples of colonial architecture in the region, with a roof of cactus-wood and thatch. Inside is an old bellow-organ.

The salt flats of Salinas Grandes are astonishing - a seemingly endless, perfectly flat expanse of white, patterned with eruptions of salt around regular shapes, like some kind of crazy paving. Against the perfectly blue sky, the light is dazzling. It's safe to walk or drive onto the surface, and you'll find men mining salt, creating neat oblong pools of turquoise water where salt has been cut away, and stacking up piles of white and brown salt blocks, ready for refining. There are plans to create a museum and restaurant on the side of the road: look out for signs.

Casabindo 

The tiny hamlet of Casabindo (3500 m), founded in 1602 has a magnificent church, one of the finest in the whole region, with twin towers dating from 1772. It's beautifully proportioned and contains a superb series of 16th-century paintings of angeles arcabuceros(archangels in military uniforms) like those at Uquía. It's worth trying to visit on 15 August, when there's a lively celebration of the La Ascensión de la Virgen, accompanied by the last remaining corrida de toros(running with bulls) in Argentina. El Toreo de la Vinchatakes place in front of the church, where a bull defies onlookers to take the ribbon and medal it carries: a symbolic offering to the virgin rather than a gory spectacle.

Monumento Natural Laguna de los Pozuelos

Monumento Natural Laguna de los Pozuelos (3650 m) www.parquesnacionales.gov.ar.is a nature reserve 50 km northwest of Abra Pampa and centred around the lake. Laguna de los Pozuelos hosts 44 species of birds, and is visited by huge colonies of up to 25,000 flamingos. It's a stunning landscape, well worth exploring if you have a few days. Be warned though that this is high-altitude puna, and temperatures can drop to -25°C at night in winter; don't attempt camping unless you have high mountain gear and all the food, warm clothing and drinking water you're likely to need, plus spare supplies. There is a ranger station at the southern end of the Laguna with a campsite nearby. At Lagunillas, further west, there is smaller lagoon, which also has flamingos. There are no visitor services and no public transport. Unless you have your own car, the only real option is to go with a guide.