Days 32-33, 08.-09.11., San Pedro de Atacama (Atacama Desert) Day 1/Afternoon

For the afternoon, we had last-minute booked a tour to one of the salt lakes or springs nearby. The drive took about 45 minutes. At the destination, in the middle of a rocky desert “in the middle of nowhere,” there was indeed a ticket booth 😳😂. The entrance fee was, in our opinion, a bit high for what was to be seen afterwards. A salt lagoon with three larger and a few smaller salt springs, between which one was allowed to move on a wooden path. “Allowed,” because ‘please do not stop, going back is forbidden, only with a guide.’😅😖

We had already experienced this on the Galapagos Islands (Ecuador) and at Machu Picchu (Peru) - but here as well, in the middle of a rocky desert?!🥳🥳

Geologically, however, the salt lagoon is an interesting area: the salt is not on the surface, but comes from the depths, being dissolved by water and transported upwards. What water, if it never rains there?! Rain and meltwater from the eastern mountains (see photos) seep away and flow deep underground to the west.

There, in the west of this large basin, it meets a deeply seated barrier layer, cannot drain, backs up, finds its way up, and carries the dissolved salt with it. Once it reaches the top, it either evaporates immediately or forms smaller salt pools or larger salt lakes in certain places.

In one of these lakes, one could also bathe - precisely 10 minutes, then the next group was up.😂

Before heading back on the highway, we had some tasty snacks on-site.

After returning in the early evening, we treated ourselves to a delicious dinner with musical accompaniment at my friend's favorite restaurant. Tired from the numerous transfers and bus rides over the past two days, we actually wanted to go to bed early - it had definitely taken its toll!😂😴🥱😴🥱

“Unfortunately”🤣🤣 on the way back to the hostel, we “discovered” a cozy little bar with live music and decided to have a quick delicious “Pisco sour,” the Chilean national drink, here. We should have probably refrained from that: One Pisco became two, from two it became three, ….

… then much later in the evening than planned, the remaining 400m to the hostel felt like 3 km. 🤪🥳😂

Oh yes, with the same agency, I had planned a full-day tour deep into the Atacama to the lagoons with flamingos for the next day …