Tag Archives: stars

Atacama Desert, La Serena and the Elqui Valley

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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Salar de Uyuni

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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El Canon del Pato

August 17, 2018 – August 19, 2018

Canon del Pato (Duck Canyon) lies between the Cordillera Blanca and the Cordillera Negra (White Mountain Range and Black Mountain Range), and it is a spectacular drive. The canyon is at times as narrow as 15 metres and the gorge can be as deep at 1,000 metres. Top that off with about 35 single lane tunnels carved out of the rock, and you get a beautiful, exciting drive.

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The Back Road to Ibague and the Tatacoa Desert.

June 29, 2018 – July 2,2018

We got on the road about 8 or 9 am for the long slow drive along the back country roads from Salento to Ibague.  We knew what the first 20 kilometres of so were going to be like, as we had ridden down it on a bike the day before with Doug and Lindsey, but we were excited to see what else the day would bring.

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