Gran Lago Salado Salt Pan

The salt flats of the Patagonian interior occupy low, closed basins where water gathers and evaporates in the dry climate. Fine sediments and salts accumulate on their floors, while winds sweep the surrounding steppe. The wider country east of the Andes includes shallow lakes such as Colhué Huapi, whose changing waters expose sediment to the wind. Such basins stand out against the open grasslands and plateaus of Chubut.