In old times called it was called the "Rinconada de oro" or the Gold Corner, or The Rich Corner Valley - Valle Rico de la Rinconada, due to the exploitation of gold by the Spaniards in this area between the XVIIth and XVIIIth centuries. You can still visit the old mine entrance tunnel.

Towards the end of the XVIIIth century, Rinconada was made a part of the Encomienda (A system by which Spaniards were given lands belonging to Indigenous peoples and the Indians themselves to be used as slave labour, or as they saw fit) of Miguel Bernárdez de Obando, kin of the lords of Yavi. The village "was a typical one of the Indians with its small houses, irregular streets, built on a terrain as up and down as possible".

Today it is a few small blocks large. In the centre Plaza there is a church in one of its longer sides. This church was built in the year 1670, and then rebuilt in 1791 and repairs were carried out in the XXth century.

A curious and picturesque detail is that in the warehouses you can still find the small scales used to weigh and value the gold nuggets and powder, which the diggers used to exchange for merchandise.

In this small village there is no place where they serve food to the public, and there is only a municipal shelter where to stay overnight.

THE PROVINCIAL RESERVE LAGUNAS DE VILAMA LAKES
In the most northeastern corner of Argentina, close to the three-country border with Bolivia and Chile, in the Department of Rinconada, with an extension of 157000 hectares, you will find the Provincial Reserve of the Lagunas de Vilama.

The Reserve includes more than a dozen alpine lakes, which occupy depressions without outlets or runoffs located at 4500 m.a.s.l. They are all fed by spring or melt waters. The smaller ones are salty and deep. The most important ones called Vilama and Palar are shallow and extremely salty.

Theses lakes are also very unstable as to their existence and placement, according to the variability of the physical-chemical characteristics of each one.

These lakes harbour an interesting bird population, amongst which there are endangered or endemic species such as the Horned Coot and James's and the Andean Flamingo.

It is also a feeding place for different migratory species. In the swampy terrains that surround the lakes, locally called "ciénegas", and here you can also find other endangered species such as vicuñas and Andean ostriches or Suris or Ñandús.

These swamps also constitute grazing lands for the domesticated herds of llamas and alpacas and the sheep of the local population, which practise a nomadic lifestyle.

Apart from these swamps, the most common vegetation is constituted by shrub steppes and alpine meadows.

On September 20th, 2000 it was designates as a RAMSAR site. Argentina has also named it the Provincial High Andean Reserve of the Chinchilla.