The only direct way to get from San Pedro de Atacama in Chile to Salar de Uyuni (the Uyuni Salt Flats) is in a 4x4 across the desert and mountains, so we signed up for the 3 day/2 night trip. We left San Pedro in a minivan with other travelers headed for the Bolivian border. After about 45 minutes, we arrived at the border crossing, which was nothing more than a shack. The border itself was literally nothing more than a line drawn in the sand. We entered the building, got our passports (already containing Bolivian visas) stamped, then switched vehicles. Our new ride was a four wheel drive Toyota Land Cruiser. There were seven of us in the vehicle, including our driver/tour guide Gilmar. Our bags went on the roof along with the gas cans and water jugs. Along for the ride was, Mari from Brazil, Iva and Charlotte from Norway, and Tahlia from England.
As we departed the border, it became apparent why we were in a 4x4. There aren’t really any roads. Instead, there are tire tracks in the sand and dirt which suggest where to drive. At times tracks went off in different directions with zero indication of where they were headed. It seemed completely impossible to navigate in this environment, so I asked Gil how he knew which way to go. “GPS”, he replied and pointed to the display in the dash. Ah that makes sense. But after examining the display, it only showed what was playing on the radio. I think he just said that to make us feel more at ease.
On our first stop after crossing the border, we visited the green and white lagoons. These are picturesque lakes surrounded by the tall peaks of the Andes. They were incredible, but didn’t blow us away, because we had recently seen similar lakes in Chile. Next, we went to the salt lagoon where the draw is a natural hot spring that you can soak in. Jesslyn and I tested the water temperature and decided that it wasn’t hot enough for us since the air was about 40 degrees and we didn’t want to freeze to death after getting out. Instead we decided to try our luck getting some pictures of the nearby vicuñas, the wild ancestor of the domesticated alpaca. We had seen many of them before, but they have always been very skittish, so we never got a close up photo. Luckily, these guys didn’t mind our presence too much. I am a little disappointed in myself because I forgot to turn the vibration reduction on my lens back on after turning it off for use on the tripod. So, the pics aren’t as sharp as they should be.
A vicuña checking out us gringos.
The next stop was at the Morning Sun Geyser Basin. Technically, there are no geysers here, because the water doesn’t shoot out of the ground. Instead, thermal pools of water and mud steam and bubble on the surface. This area is incredible for the thermals but also because there are no barriers between you and the boiling hot water bubbling from the earth. Sometimes I think we get too carried away with safety in the U.S. and that it detracts from the enjoyment of natural beauty. However, I would have felt better if some of the people hopping around the edges had something between them and their plummet to certain death. Just another reminder, we’re not in the U.S. anymore, and we have to take responsibility for our own safety.
Don't fall in! Thermal pools with boiling water at the surface.
The highlight of the day came at the last stop. The red lagoon is so-named because of the micro organisms that give it an eerie red color. It is still strange to see flamingos high up in the cold mountains and even stranger to get a picture with both llamas and flamingos in the same shot. We hadn’t seen many llamas up to this point. They let us get right up close to them and seemed to enjoy getting their picture taken. They look like they are always smiling.
The llamas roam free, but are apparently owned by someone. The colorful yarn indicates who the owner is. They let you get within a couple feet of them. When they get thirsty, they would make their way down the hill to drink from the lake they share with flamingos.
That night we stayed in a tiny village called Villa Mar. Bolivia has no coast, so I don’t need to mention we were not by the “mar” or “sea”, so I asked why it was called that. Well, it just happens to have more water than anywhere else for miles. So it is sort of a tongue-in-cheek name. The accommodations were, um, well, budget. It was freezing, and there was no heat. The floors were concrete. Some rooms had only cloth for a roof, and you had to go outside to get to the bathroom. I just told myself that we were camping, but without the campfire, or beer, or s’mores. Besides, it is the only accommodations for many, many miles, so if you want to see this place, you stay there (or sleep on the ground). That night I had a headache, due to the altitude. During the day, we spent a significant amount of time over 16,000 feet above sea level. Villa Mar, where we slept, is at 13,000 feet. The altitude was very obvious any time we tried to do something remotely physical, like walk up a hill. Even after spending close to a week near 8,000 feet in San Pedro, the altitude still got to us. I am not sure if all the coca leaves we chewed helped, but I enjoyed the mouth numbing effects anyway.
On day two our first stop was to see some pre-Incan paintings located on some rocks just outside of Villa Mar. We parked the Land Cruiser at a nondescript spot, and walked a couple hundred feet up to a spot were there were four or five red paintings in amazingly good condition. Wait, what? There are 1000+ year old paintings just sitting there on some rocks with no fences, security guards, or ticket booths? Is this a hoax, or are we just in a place where it isn’t that big of a deal? I did a little research on the internet, but couldn’t discern either way. Several websites nonchalantly mention them as something to see in the area. If they are real, they are incredible, and even more incredible that they are still there, unmolested by wind, rain, and man. We were told that the wind comes from the opposite side of the rock wall, therefore these paintings are well protected from the weather. Next, we visited the valley of rocks. I know, it doesn’t sound all that exciting, but it was cool to see all the different pillars and arches. After seeing and getting too close for comfort to the Grand Canyon like Inca Canyon, we stopped off at some wetlands. Here is where the Andean Goose ekes out an existence in the winter by eating its own nest as the water freezes over. We went to the black lagoon where I saw a couple viscachas up close. They sort of look like rabbits, but have a long tail, and appear to be half asleep. We also happened upon the remains of an unfortunate llama.
I should stay behind the camera.
Jesslyn makes a better model.
The rabbit-like viscacha, but with a long tail.
This llama has seen better days, but still makes for an interesting photograph.
I didn’t know that quinoa originated in this area. This trendy grain that your vegan friends subsist on has tripled in price since 2008. Except here it has only been a trend for about 3,000 to 4,000 years, since it requires little water and does well in high altitudes. The reason it is only now popular with the rest of the world is that the Spanish colonizers scorned it as “Indian food”. Today, Peru and Bolivia produce the vast majority of the world’s quinoa.
While driving through the vast open land of the altiplano (high plains), we saw many vicunas, and llamas, but I spotted an animal in the distance that looked like an emu. We stopped and got out of the car for a better look. The driver called them “suri”, and some further internet investigation reveals they are also called lesser rheas or Darwin’s rheas. Along with their bigger cousins on the other side of the Andes, called the greater rhea, they are the largest birds in South America. They are closely related to emus of Australia and ostriches of Africa. I had no idea that large, flightless birds were native to South America.
On night number two, we stayed in a hotel made of blocks of salt that were cut from the nearby salt flats. This place was much nicer than the previous night. There were hot showers, good food, and even some Bolivian wine (I suggest sticking to the Chilean or Argentinian vino). It was still cold and the bathroom was down the hall, but it was clean and had a proper roof and floor.
Day three started with sunrise on the salt flat, the main event of our journey. We drove out to an “island” near the middle and hiked up a small hill before the sun was up. It was great to experience the salt flat this way because we couldn’t really see it until we were already in the middle of it. Salar de Uyuni is 4000 square miles and the world’s largest salt flat. It is so vast that it disappears into the horizon in some directions. The only thing I can compare it to is being on a very large frozen lake. After sunrise and breakfast, we drove out to the middle to take some pictures. I got the serious photos I wanted out of the way pretty quickly, then it was all fun and games. Because it is so flat, and the horizon is unobstructed, it makes for some unique photo opportunities. That combined with the super large depth of field (both near and distant objects are in focus) of phone cameras let you get some deceiving perspectives. We felt like little kids and had so much fun.
We don't really jump that high. This is one of the illusions possible at the salt flats.
Mari is serving the rest of us up in a casserole dish. The large depth of field with iPhones makes it difficult to determine distance of the subjects.
This short journey was one of the highlights of our almost year abroad. The landscapes took my breath away (or that could have just been that altitude). I loved learning about the local history and cultures. It was great being away from the cities and enjoying the fresh air and quiet of this remote region. Even though Gilmar didn’t speak English, his humor and personality broke through the language barrier (well, that and having Mari translate). We were so fortunate to have a great group of people in the car. Land Cruisers are big, but not so much when there are seven of you in it. The others in our group were very fun, kind, and interesting, making for great travel companions. It seems there is always at least one person in the group who is annoying, but not this time. Wait a second... was it... could it have been... oh man, sorry guys! Too many bad jokes? I will work on that.
- Jake
PS: We have been active on Instagram if you want to see some select and most recent photos. Our tag is @_no_permanent_address_