Cerro Uritorco is a

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

(''cerro'') located next to the Calabalumba River, in the city of

Capilla del Monte Capilla del Monte is a small city in the northeastern part of the province of Córdoba, Argentina, located by the Sierras Chicas mountain chain, in the northern end of the Punilla Valley. It has about 11,281 inhabitants as per the . Tourism is th ...

, in the northwest of the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

Córdoba Córdoba most commonly refers to: * Córdoba, Spain, a major city in southern Spain and formerly the imperial capital of Islamic Spain * Córdoba, Argentina, 2nd largest city in the country and capital of Córdoba Province Córdoba or Cordoba may ...

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, t ...

. It is the highest peak of the Sierras Chicas mountain range. It is 3 km (1.9 miles) away from the city center and its summit is at 1,949 m (6,394 ft)

above mean sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the Vertical position, vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric h ...

. The name ''Uritu urqu'' means "Male Hill" in

Santiago del Estero Quichua Santiago (, ; ), also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile as well as one of the largest cities in the Americas. It is the center of Chile's most densely populated region, the Santiago Metropolitan Region, wh ...

, which is, however, not the

aboriginal Aborigine, aborigine or aboriginal may refer to: *Aborigines (mythology), in Roman mythology * Indigenous peoples, general term for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area *One of several groups of indigenous peoples, see ...

Comechingón Comechingón (plural Comechingones) is the common name for a group of people indigenous to the Argentine provinces of Córdoba and San Luis. They were thoroughly displaced or exterminated by the Spanish conquistadores by the end of the 17th cen ...

language.

Cerro Uritorco is under a private administration and it can be accessed by the public for a fee. It is considered a medium-difficulty ascent, taking around three hours to reach the top, provided the appropriate

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A His ...

path is followed. On December 21, 2012, the mountain was closed, since a mass suicide had been proposed on

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin ...

to take place there due to the

2012 phenomenon The 2012 phenomenon was a range of eschatological beliefs that cataclysmic or transformative events would occur on or around 21 December 2012. This date was regarded as the end-date of a 5,126-year-long cycle in the Mesoamerican Long Count cale ...

. The mountain is believed to be a center of extraterrestrial activity and home to an underground city named Erks, which is inhabited by extraterrestrial beings. The mysticism around the alleged UFO activity in the mountain and its surroundings have made the area a popular landmark in the province of Córdoba.

References

External links

Cerro Uritorco
(non official website) Mountains of Argentina Landforms of Córdoba Province, Argentina 2012 phenomenon {{CórdobaAR-geo-stub