Hot Water and More Rocks

Uyuni to La Paz, Bolivia

Today, the third day of our tour, started before sunrise at 4:45. Breakfast was basic: some room temperature pancakes in a basket, some hot water for tea and instant coffee, and a basket of puffed rice -- no plates, no bowls. Lights in the rooms were restricted to a couple hours at night so we packed up with help of our headlamps. Fortunately, Dex noticed not having his Swiss cycling baseball cap right as we jumped into the car, and I was able to run back in and shake it out of his blankets before leaving. Whew!

One plus side of the high elevation and being up so early was the remarkable view of the Milky Way. The Altacama desert, just across the Chilean and Peruvian borders is apparently renowned for its bright night skies. Our first stop, just before sunrise, was at a handful of steam vents at 16,000 ft. We stayed long enough to run through the steam, take some pictures, and smell the sulfur. The next stop at a thermal hot pool for an early morning soak with another dozen backpackers. Though it was nippy getting in, we were all much warmer and more awake afterwards.

Early morning soak in a hot pool

Farther along the dirt road, Bemar pointed out more dormant volcanoes, almost 6000m high and on the border with Argentina and Chile. Apparently, the land disputes continue here with Bolivia vying for land that it had once owned but which Chile had invaded at some point in the past. From what Bemar said, political tensions have increased recently with Bolivia getting backing from Russia and China against its larger neighbor.

Since Adam’s trip was arranged to continue into Chile, we made the short trip to the simple border post where we dropped him off and wished him well. The dirt road abruptly became paved at the border attesting to Chile’s considerable wealth relative to Bolivia.

Switch from Bolivian dirt to Chilean pavement at the border

Border check post

Our expectations for the rest of the day were low since we were now a long way from our starting point of Uyuni and most of the day would be spent getting back. Nevertheless, we loved the last two excursions. The first was a set of huge rock blocks some 40 ft high with amazing holes, undercuts and sharp-edged pockets. They looked like they'd be awesome for climbing, though I wasn't sure how much we could trust the strength of the rock.

Lunch stop

The next spot was even more fun and much easier to climb.  We drove along a narrow, windy dirt road emerging suddenly into a huge green meadow, complete with tiny stream winding through and walls of reddish rock on both sides.  We could have spent hours here, climbing on the rocks and exploring the partial caves and rock ledges. Best of all, were the dozens of furry residents, a cross between a marmot, rabbit and squirrel, jumping around and hiding in the rocks. They are apparently vizcachas. What fun.

The rest of the two hour drive to Uyuni, we spent reading a new family book. Esperanza Rising is the story of a young girl from Mexico whose life is radically changed when her father is killed and her house and vineyard burned. She suddenly goes from being the daughter of a wealthy land owning family to the daughter of a windowed and poor mother who migrates to California to work in the fields. I couldn't help but realize once again how privileged we are. We have often “roughed” it on this trip, but as a matter of choice. When or if things go wrong, we almost always have the luxury of being able to pay for food, a place to stay, or transportation to get us where we want to go. We are fortunate, indeed.

Dex, Bemar, and Kylie