Barreal Blanco, Natural depression and tourist site in San Juan Province, Argentina

Barreal Blanco is a natural depression with a vast expanse of hard-packed white sediment across the Pampa del Leoncito region. The flat terrain is composed of compacted minerals and deposits that create a distinctive light-colored surface.

Barreal Blanco is the dry bed of a Holocene lake basin in the Quaternary period, formed when the water evaporated and left whitish silts and clays cemented by salt. The plain lies beside the road linking Barreal with El Leoncito National Park, 20 km from the town, in Calingasta department, San Juan. Torrential rains and runoff from the Sierra del Tontal, its eastern limit, occasionally flood it again.

Landsailing (carrovelismo) began at Barreal Blanco in the 1970s, and the first competition was held in 1975. Small three-wheeled carts with sails run on the flat, wind-swept surface and reach speeds above 120 km/h. Since 2016 adapted vehicles have allowed people with motor disabilities to take part.

Barreal Blanco lies beside the road linking the town of Barreal, 20 km away, with El Leoncito National Park. The plain is about 10 km long and 3 km wide, with no vegetation inside its limits. Winds from the south and north-northwest can gust up to 100 km/h, and summer storms can briefly flood the surface.

The flat surface and steady winds here make it a perfect spot for landsailing, allowing vehicles to reach high speeds across the open space. These wind conditions have made the place a destination for this unusual sport.