Its name is an Araucanian word that means \u2018rock, boulder that sounds or talks in the language of the earth\u201d<\/strong>, samples of an\u00a0unique aquiferous reserve\u00a0<\/strong>sprout here, a place of exceptional fauna with unique species and, above all, an open book that tells stories and old traditions.<\/p>\n The Somuncur\u00e1\u2019s Plateau, denominated by the geologists as \u2018an island in firm land<\/strong>\u2019, is a\u00a0volcanic rock high plateau\u00a0<\/strong>of approximately 15.000 square km. between the provinces of R\u00edo Negro and Chubut.\u00a0It is 300 millions years old, an estimate, and it appeared when the ocean still covered most of south America. <\/strong><\/p>\n This plateau spreads across like tongues over the immense environment of surrounding lower parts of the terrain. Inside of it, there are gorges, lagoons, hills, water springs and streams.\u00a0In the places between the gorges and the corners by the foot of the hill, there are micro-valleys and there, their little towns.<\/strong><\/p>\n The model they probably had in mind, was the one from the traditional National Parks, in which it is forbidden to live or remain inside. Perhaps the sound of\u00a0the Mapuche\u2019s claims\u00a0<\/a>resounded in their ears; old inhabitants of the territory that today comprises\u00a0the Lan\u00edn National Park\u00a0<\/a>and who had to manifest their protest very strongly in order to be able to regain their right to carry on with an ancient tradition involving a religious ceremony that can only be made in an specific place, between the mountains and the lakes of the National Park.<\/p>\n A step forward, in the project of the natural protected areas: not only the inhabitants with a way of life completely adapted with the environment and in interaction with it, not only they are not displaced but they are assigned an important role: the protection and the surveillance of the lands. Thus,\u00a0part of the investment is oriented to education and formation of the inhabitants<\/strong>, only through knowledge they will be able to be fully aware of the surrounding and daily value.<\/p>\n Somuncur\u00e1 is one of the barely explored options in Patagonian tourism, with uncountable spots and places without contamination that allow the visitors to have a personal experience in intimate contact with nature<\/strong>. It is one of the places with the lowest population density\u00a0 The outings to the plateau\u00a0can be made with guides or Baqueanos, by horse, in 4×4 vehicles, car or bicycles.\u00a0The activities offered are: photographic safaris, lunches in huge natural grottos, walks along footpaths carved by hand, pickaxe and shovel by the villagers in order to be able to contemplate the immensity in all its splendor<\/strong>. All these options will take you to the encounter with the real, wild and primitive Patagonia that, protected by rocky and abrupt walls of lava, resembles a castle or fortress where once Tehuelches and Mapuches inhabited.<\/p>\n Upon arrival, go to the Municipality of Valcheta (Tel. 02934-493163) or to the Museum building, where you will get information on this guided visit to the <\/b>Somuncur\u00e1<\/b><\/span>\u00a0Plateau. Rides on horseback and trekking are a good option for this unforgettable photographic safari.<\/b><\/p>\n The challenge awaiting the traveler is unexpected: a \u201cnatural tourism<\/a>\u201d in order to experience this land free of structures and going across desolated landscapes of complex and uneven geographies, finding the richness of everything and everyone\u2019s origin<\/strong>. Feeling the nexus between the past and the present, accepting the challenge of living the nature and discovering any of its several mysteries.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The stone that speaks the language of Earth Such as the villagers tell,\u00a0the stones roll by themselves during the nights and the wind whispers when playing with them in the heart of\u00a0Somuncur\u00e1. This Patagonian plateau is filled with much beauty and mystery, where the sonority of the silence of the barren landscape becomes almost touchable,… Read on<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7431,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_editorskit_title_hidden":false,"_editorskit_reading_time":0,"_editorskit_is_block_options_detached":false,"_editorskit_block_options_position":"{}","footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[117],"class_list":{"0":"post-6851","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-meseta","8":"tag-rutas-y-rincones-para-conocer"},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6851","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6851"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6851\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6854,"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6851\/revisions\/6854"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7431"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6851"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6851"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6851"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Somuncur\u00e1: natural protected area<\/h2>\n
![\"Somuncur\u00e1's](\"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/images\/mesetasomuncura.jpg\")
The plateau is a\u00a0natural protected area, declared in 1993, as the Natural Integral Reserve of \u201cMeseta de Somuncur\u00e1\u201d.<\/strong>\u00a0The reasons for this declaration are given by the geomorphological, climatic and palaeontological importance it has.\u00a0The existence of unique species found nowhere on the face of the earth but here, such as the \u2018mojarrita desnuda\u2019\u00a0<\/strong>and other subspecies like the\u00a0little frog of Somuncur\u00e1<\/strong>, the \u2018pilquines\u2019 inhabitants of the rocks,\u00a0 guanacos, avutardas,\u00a0 eagles, swans, etc., comprised an important field of study for biologists.
\nThis new protected area represents, thereby, a land of varied expectations for scientists and environmentalists. But, at the same time,\u00a0it was perceived as a threat\u00a0 by the inhabitants of the area, who felt this declaration would menace their rights over the lands they occupy and their possibilities of remaining in the same place.<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"Somuncur\u00e1's](\"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/images\/pp-puestolujan240.jpg\")
Nevertheless,\u00a0the chosen option in this case, closely to the characteristics of the program
\n\u201cThe man and the biosphere\u201d from UNESCO<\/strong>, contemplates the incorporation of the inhabitants in the environmental care and preservation.\u00a0The particularity is that human beings are not considered as intruders but as another factor of change, highly integrated to the surrounding nature such as animals, plants and the water streams to be protected<\/strong>.<\/p>\nTraveling to Somuncur\u00e1:<\/h2>\n
![\"Somuncur\u00e1's](\"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/images\/pp-porfia500.jpg\")
in Argentina, a painted steppe with historical towns born around the water springs, in the middle of\u00a0one of the purest atmospheres on earth<\/strong>.<\/p>\nThe excursions:<\/h2>\n
![\"Somuncur\u00e1's](\"https:\/\/www.patagonia-argentina.com\/images\/pp-puestolujan500.jpg\")
Most of the\u00a0excursions depart from the town of Valcheta<\/strong>, located in the valley of the namesake stream. From there, numerous tourist, ecological and adventure activities depart. Guided tours to\u00a0La Gotera\u00a0<\/strong>and its mineralized water streams, to\u00a0Chipauquil\u00a0<\/strong>to catch sight of the\u00a0mojarrita desnuda\u00a0<\/strong>along the way or towards the\u00a0Cerro Somuncur\u00e1 Grande\u00a0<\/strong>(the big hill of Somuncur\u00e1). From Valcheta until the Corona Hill, the mystic axes of the Tehuelche\u2019s culture, that dominates the plain of the plateau as its maximum height (1900 m.a.s.l), there are 160 km. in between and it can be taken in full day excursion or with the option of spending the night. During June,\u00a0the national celebration of La Matra and the handcrafts\u00a0<\/strong>is held. The artisans of the place outstand for their knitted autochthonous Mapuche works of the province, the wood carvings, the leather or stone works can also be added.\u00a0The celebration is accompanied by folkloric spectacles which highlight local and regional values<\/strong>.<\/p>\n