Salar de Surire, Salt pan in Arica y Parinacota Region, Chile.
Salar de Surire is a salt pan situated at about 4,260 meters elevation across roughly 144 square kilometers. The landscape displays white salt crusts and shallow lagoons distributed throughout the terrain.
The area became a protected monument in 1983 when it was designated as Monumento Nacional Salar de Surire, covering roughly 11,298 hectares. This designation marked a turning point in safeguarding this fragile ecosystem.
The name Surire comes from the Aymara language and refers to rheas, the large flightless birds that once roamed this region. These animals shaped how local people understood and experienced this landscape for many generations.
Access requires four-wheel-drive vehicles via Route A-235, which connects to the CH-11 international highway toward La Paz. Visitors should prepare for rough road conditions and the high altitude, which demands special precautions.
The site contains geysers at Polloquere that release visible steam columns at around 4,225 meters elevation. These geothermal features become especially noticeable during cloudy weather and create a striking natural display.
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