Wednesday 10 October was largely a driving day when we moved north to Abra Pampa close to the border with Bolivia. However, before we set off for the long drive we revisited the Parque Provincial Lagunas de Yala as it had been so productive the previous day. As we started birding before 7 AM, the light was initially poor, making it difficult for photography, but we still got a record shot of a Spot-breasted Thornbird, a bird found only in northwest Argentina and Southern Bolivia. But with improving light it became a lot easier and we saw many birds, with highlights being Dot-fronted Woodpecker, Rusty-browed Warbling-finch and White-barred Piculet.
The drive to Abra Pampa took several hours, but we broke the journey with several stops to enjoy the spectacular scenery as we passed through the UNESCO World Heritage site of La Quebrada de Humahuaca. We even made a detour around the famous Cerro de Siete Colores (seven-coloured hills) close to the town of Pumamarca. e
There was spectacular scenery at many places on our way to Abra Pampa.
Before we entered Abra Pampa we stopped to do some birding at the Laguna de Huancar, which is just off the main Route 9. There were plenty of birds on the lake, but many of them were too distance to get good photographs. However, we did see the only Giant Coot of the trip.
After our session at the lake we drove the short distance to Abra Pampa and checked in to the Hotel Cesarito, where we were staying for one night. The hotel was simple, but adequate and the best place availabe in this remote town.
Soon after checking in at the hotel, we headed out to do some late afternoon birding at several sites around the town. At Laguna Rontuyoc we had very distant views of flamingos but thankfully the birds we saw at other locations were much closer, with highlights being the very cute Andean Negrito, Bright-rumped Yellow-finch and Chilean Flamingos.
Mammals we saw included the introduced European Brown Hare and Vicuna.
We had a very productive time birding at several sites around the town and as the light began to fade we returned to our hotel for dinner, which consisted of the inevitable chicken covered in cheese.