Archeological investigations into the hunter-gatherer groups living in the inland valleys of this territory have been limited, although evidence of these peoples has been found in places such as the Pichasca rock shelter, located in the National Monument of the same name, northeast of the city of Ovalle.
Owing to their mobility, these groups would no doubt have come into contact with groups from across the Andes, with whom they share several cultural traits. This contact would very likely have made them aware of innovations such as horticulture and ceramic making around the beginning of our own era, leading to a profound transformation in their way of life that ultimately led to the emergence of a new semi-sedentary horticulturalist tradition, called the El Molle.