Monthly Archives: November 2018

Atacama Desert, La Serena and the Elqui Valley

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October 23, 2018 – November 12, 2018

Entering Chile was such a drastic contrast to our last few days in Bolivia. The highway was paved and had wide shoulders, we were driving 80 to 100 km/hr and there were road signs giving distances to the next town. We were headed for San Pedro de Atacama, a small tourist town not too far from the border, where we were looking forward to warmer temperatures, a shower, and a little bit of village life – maybe a nice restaurant, some interesting shops, that kind of thing.

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Reserva Nacional de Fauna Andina Eduardo Avaroa

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October 19, 2018 – October 23, 2018

We were pleased to be on our way to a reserve that we had been dreaming about since we first started planning this trip.  We had seen many images of Reserva Nacional de Fauna Andina Eduardo Avaroa (I know, quite the mouthful) and were excited at the prospects of being at this really remote, high altitude area in southern Bolivia.

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Tupiza

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October 18, 2018 – October 19, 2018

We camped for a night outside of Tupiza near the Canon del Inca.  We didn’t know much about the area before we arrived, other than it was near to here that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid were killed.  Until we read about this, I had always assumed they were largely fictionalized characters.  But no, they were real, and they are generally believed to have died in a gunfight with the Bolivian army in San Vicente in 1908, close to Tupiza, while planning to rob the payroll for a rich mine in the area.

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Sucre

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October 12, 2018 – October 18, 2018

In order to enter Chile with a dog you need to have a recent vet certificate stating that the dog is healthy and all of its shots are up to date, then you need a form issued by the government of the country you are entering Chile from, stating that you are allowed to “export” the dog. A lot of annoying paperwork, and the first country to really care whether Piper was along or not. We could drive to Potosi in Bolivia for the paperwork, but decided that we would sooner spend the time required for all the appointments in Sucre.

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Salar de Uyuni

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October 9, 2018 – October 12, 2018

One of Bolivia’s most famous attractions is the expansive salt flats outside of Uyuni.   The Salar de Uyuni is the world’s largest salt flat, at 10,582 square kilometres (4,086 square miles), and is at an elevation of 3,656 metres (11,995 feet).  It formed when a prehistoric lake went dry, leaving behind a few metres of hard packed, glaring white salt, and a few remnant islands.

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Carrots make me think of my Dad….

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I know, sounds strange.   Let me explain…

When I was in grade school, every year our school participated in a fall fair in a nearby village.  There were three legged races and other games.  You could enter art work or hand writing samples to be judged.  Or, you could enter garden produce.  Each spring, the school would provide us with our choice of a package of flower seeds and a package of vegetable seeds.  Over the summer we would plant and then care for these seeds, and then enter the results in the fall fair.  I always chose bachelor buttons for the flowers and carrots for the vegetables.

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Parque Nacional Sajama

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October 6, 2018 – October 8, 2018

Parque Nacional Sajama is a small park on the western border of Bolivia.  Volcan Sajama, at 6,542 metres (21, 463 feet) is the highest mountain in Bolivia, and is the centre piece of the park.  The small town of Sajama within the park has a few small hostels, but you are allowed to wild camp almost anywhere in the area….we loved it!

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La Paz, Bolivia

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September 25, 2018 – October 6, 2018

We decided that we would camp at the secure parking area at the La Paz International Airport, which is technically in the city of El Alto, adjacent to, but high above La Paz.  It was not a beautiful spot to camp, there was nowhere really to sit outside, but we had 24 hour security, 24 hour toilet access, and it was nice to be able to sit in the terminal with wifi access and drink a $5 coffee while listening to America’s greatest hits of the eighties….felt like a little piece of home.

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