Puente del Inca

The small town of Puente del Inca is located in the Argentinean Andes in Mendoza Province to 2720 meters.

World The place is known by the same name Puente del Inca (English: Bridge of the Incas ), which is located on the edge of settlements. Unlike the name suggests, the bridge is not a monument of the Incas, but an educated through erosion natural rock arch. The name comes from the assumption that the Incas had penetrated this far. The natural arch spanning 47 meters high and 28 meters wide across the Río Mendoza.

At the Puente springs a hot sulfur spring, which stains the rock reddish yellow. This circumstance led to the establishment of a thermal bath, which was however destroyed in 1953 by a landslide. You could reach until today under the bridge on the way through the ruins, but this access is closed due to the danger of collapse until further since 2005.

Legend

The name comes from a legend. After that lived at the time of the Incas, a ruler whose son was paralyzed to the world. After all attempts had failed to cure him, heard these rulers of healing springs in the south. Then he selected his best warriors and went off with them. On target - today Puente del Inca - arrived, he and his companions, however, were separated by a rushing river from its sources. The brave warrior wanted their rulers not disappoint, bordered each other at the ankles and formed a human bridge together. In this way, the ruler could with his son on the arm to cross the river on their backs away. He found in the thermal water healing for his son. However, when he looked back to thank them to his men, they were petrified. They were covered by the sources completely with minerals from the water and so were the Puente del Inca.