Balcon del Pissis | Tourist Attraction

March 11th, 2024 by marieke_michiel

Wow don't miss this beautiful place with "out of this world" scenery. Also the drive to this point is very scenic. All these colourfull mountains, vicuñas, flamingos etc. The whole trip took us 6,5 hours (50 km up, 50 km down), including a lunchbreak at the viewpoint here.

January 16th, 2024 by jacint4

We were able to reach Balcon del Pissis in our 2WD motohome. In the tourist center in Fiambalá they will try to shell you the tour saying that it’s only accessible with 4x4, but we did it with any problem, the gravel road is in very good condition.

July 19th, 2023 by krapattontheroad

And I forgot to tell that there is around 60 km between the pavement road and the balcon and 5 km between the split of the road for the mine and the bacon (and not 90 and 20 km as wrote in previous descriptions).
As it was a beautifull day we were not Aline at all in case of problems. We met around 30 4x4, 4 cars, 2 others vans....

July 19th, 2023 by krapattontheroad

We went here with our 2WD van. As said, the road is well maintained by the mine, except the 4-5 last kilometers.
It took us about 2,5 hours to rise up, and à little bit less to come back down until the pavement road.
The landscapes are really unbelievables along the road, we even prefer the road than the summit's view.

April 18th, 2023 by unquatredeux

We went to Balcon del Pissis with 2 motorbikes (tenere 700). There are no particular difficulties, the track is well maintained! We only passed a few trucks returning from the mine, the rest of the time we were alone on the track. Just be careful with the temperatures, it can be very cold making the ascent difficult on a motorbike.

April 9th, 2023 by vladtravel

As mentioned, the road is very well maintained by the mining company, but the last couple of kms after the fork-out to the mine are a bit worse with a couple of surprise sand patches there. I made it through to the lake well just to meet a friendly Argentinean couple who broke an aux light on their KTM there and then proceed drop my bike on the way back.

January 24th, 2023 by QuarePampa

very nice views!
no 4x4 or high clearance needed. the gravel road is in very good conditions.
In the tourism office they will tell you it's necessary a guide but there's no chance to get lost.

January 19th, 2023 by RTWriders.com

Our second visit of Balcon del Pissis. The road is very busy this time, because there is a very active mine a few kilometers more. So during the day, you have a lot of cars and trucks passing now. However, the road is almost like a motorway now - not comparable to one year before. A bit after the Refugio 2, the road to the mine and to Balcon del Pissis splits up and you don't have the mining cars anymore on the most beautiful part. Also the road leading further to Laguna Verde and Monte Pissis is in a very good condition now.

December 31st, 2022 by journeytoinnerself_

Amazing. Nature showing all its wonders. Dramatic landscapes, snowed peaks, colorful lakes, salar... And wind! A lot! Even though maps shows less, you'll do around 90km to get here, plus 90km to go back to RN60. Be prepared! Low temperatures. I would also say mornings are better, be it to go or to return, since the road is really dusty. In our Defender, we were constantly overtaken by the cloud of dust we produced. In the morning, the winds are generally calmer. Plan to go early in the morning, staying at the Balcon or in one of the shelters, then come back the morning after.

November 11th, 2022 by adiantes

Amazing place, landscapes from another planet. We came in our Defender, but we think the road is in good condition, we saw a lot of tractors tidying up the road - remember only that you will gain a lot of altitude (from 3300 to 4700 meters), so it will go up a lot! Some heavier cars may not be able to climb. Besides, we don't think it's a very nice place to spend the night here - besides the altitude, it's very cold and very windy, especially at night!
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Lugar incrível, cenário de outro planeta. Viemos de Defender, mas achamos que a estrada está em boas condições, vimos muitos tratores arrumando a estrada - lembre-se somente que você ganhará muita altitude (de 3300 a 4700 metros), então subirá bastante! Alguns carros mais pesados podem não conseguir subir. Além disso, não achamos que aqui seja um lugar muito agradável para passar a noite - além da altitude, faz muito frio e muito vento, principalmente a noite!

April 19th, 2022 by offtoseethe.world

Amazing, spectacular scenery! A lot of washboards, but definitely doable for most vehicles (and the roads are very wide, so also big rig friendly).

December 5th, 2021 by xtgfamily

From the road to Los Seismiles, follow an off road track that winds between the mountains to reach a view of different high altitude lakes with varied colors. The track is as nice as the viewpoint. The track rises to 4700 m at most and the viewpoint is at 4500 m altitude. If you want to go back and forth during the day, plan not to leave too late in the morning. Avoid going off the slopes You can stay bogged down in the salars.

depuis la route de los seismiles, suivre une piste off Road qui serpente entre les montagnes pour rejoindre un point de vue sur différent lacs d’altitude avec des couleurs variées. la piste est aussi sympa que le point de vue. la piste monte au plus à 4700 m et le point de vue est à 4500 m d’altitude. si vous voulez faire l’aller retour dans la journée prévoir de ne pas partir trop tard le matin. éviter de sortir des pistes vous pouvez rester embourbé dans les salars.

March 2nd, 2020 by axel

Increadible trip. Pretty steep on some parts of the track, 4x4 recommended. Perfect for a Defender!
Balcon is reached on 4565m when you see the blue and the green laguna.

February 4th, 2020 by donmoto300

as described, 50kms of well maintained ripio above Laguna Azul, in the wet would be not as nice.

May 16th, 2019 by natalie.neagu

Definitely worth the trip. Beautiful. Balcon del Pissis itself is on the ridge south to laguna azul where this point is marked. Just continue another 4 km with the road. We were surprised of how well maintained the route is. There was no snow when we visited. Apiece of cake for 4wd. If you have high clearance, good tyres and the road is dry we it seems doable also with a 2wd. The route is mostly above 4 km with the highest part at 4750 m. Can get very windy.

May 6th, 2019 by mr.andrea.filippi

The road is mainly rocky (big ones I mean, not normal ripio). Average speed 20km/h. Our Fiat Ducato 4x4 could do it but we prefered to go back.

April 3rd, 2019 by barbara.scheucher11

one of the most beautiful places, we have seen, lugunas in different colours, snowcaped mountains, and on the way back the mountains had amazing colours, its a 50 km dirt road to this place, that takes about 2 hours, but really worth the way We did not sleep there, but there are many places on the way, where you could camp.

September 6th, 2018 by espritsoutdoor.com

You can reach this beautiful scenery surrounded by colorful lakes and 6000 peaks by driving a 50km on a dirt road.
The road is really well maintained by the company nearby. We did it in September and some parts were a bit muddy and icy. Ask in Fiambala about the road conditions.
The last 4 km were still full of snow, so we parked at laguna Azul and finished with a beautiful hike.
This road is really beautiful and you can wild camp almost everywhere.
We saw nobody expect the friendly workers, flamingos and vicuña !