Sunday, January 6, 2019 – the Northern Altiplano
I woke up around 5:00 and stayed awake for a while, but then fell asleep until nearly 8. Chris wanted to get going earlier, but she was patient and waited for me to wake up. We made it to breakfast a little after 8:00, but finished with plenty of time to meet Sebastian for our tour at 9:00. It's really a pleasure to be able to make your own schedule!
We started out driving northward, where we passed by the turnoff to our sunset vista from last night, and then we kept going. The view of Licancabur was, of course, always close by.
At the first major intersection, we skipped the “new” road in favor of the “old” road, which was amazing.
We climbed steadily now on the dirt road, but took our time and stopped here and there for the views. Here we are at 13500 feet above sea level, looking back all the way to San Pedro and the Salt Plains behind it.
The vegetation changed as we rose, so we stopped to get a closer look at some of the plants as well. Above 14000 feet, the yellow festuca grass dominated the dry landscape. The mountains were getting closer! Cerro Colorado is on the left, where the road is pointing. Will we get there?
The Andean volcanoes, some active, some snow-capped, gradually got closer as we peaked at over 15000 feet of elevation.
But there were other sights along the way - including this cute pair of Southern Viscacha. They looked like rabbits, but had long tails.
Cerro Colorado dominated the view along this part of the road. At one point we were less than 2 miles from the border of Bolivia. That's the second time we've been so close! But we still haven't been there for real.
The occasional vicuna put in an appearance.
This is the crater of Volcan Putana. The "clouds" that you see are actually steam pouring from the vent. We got a more direct view later.
Nothing but sky and mountains. The road, considering that it was a secondary dirt road, wasn't in too bad shape. It was a nice ride and we barely saw another vehicle the whole way. It was quiet and peaceful up here. That, or the altitude was getting to us...
At the point where the old road rejoined the new road, we came upon a wetland. Here the Rio Putana spread out and flooded a small plain. Lots of grass and water, perfect for grazing.
A vicuna in front of the Andes. A classic view!
Our first real stop was the Tatiu geyser basin, high on the Altiplano at about 14500 feet.
There were great views of volcanoes in every direction.
A nice backdrop for the bubbling pools of boiling water.
The geysers weren’t as impressive as Yellowstone, as most of them bubble continuously and don't really erupt forcefully. But the view made it a very pleasant stop.
El Tatiu means "Old Man Crying," according to Sebastian. If you look at one of the mountains, it resembles a face in profile. The hollows of the eyes and brow fill with snow, and when it melts, the old man is crying. Or so they say.
Just a few more beautiful scenes from the basin.
Spectacular, but the altitude must be making me hungry! I hope somebody brought lunch.
Next we headed down to the origin of the Vilama River, which is actually a hot spring at this point due to it collecting all of the runoff from the geyser field.
Chris and I hiked upriver a bit to soak our feet in the hot river water while Sebastian prepared our lunch.
He set up a table with a view of the river and another geyser, where we feasted on soup, salad, lentils, and salmon. It was accompanied by some Carmenère that he had brought.
Cookies for dessert, then we started home.
Why do I think this looks like a certain medication commercial?
Looking upriver from our lunch spot.
We started back slowly, with some stops along the way to explore the surroundings. The air is clear, the scenery magnificent.
Back at the floodplain of Rio Putana. Just a little water and the altiplano comes to life.
Volcan Putana. It looks dramatic in this light, with yellow sulfurous fumes drifting from the crater. Not one I'd like to climb.
We got to a fork in the road and saw this sign. Funny enough, the warning is about the old road, which we had taken here! It really wasn't in such a bad condition, I didn't think.
We took the newer road back but made a few stops along the way.
Sheep and donkeys graze along the road.
And the occasional curious alpaca.
We were both pretty tired and dozed here and there, but we did see a number of flat boggy riverbeds and the occasional lake with lots of bird life – flamingos, geese, ducks, Andean coots.
Further down there was a small village of Machuco, and more stops to look at different plants.
A few houses and a church.
We made one more stop at Guatin Canyon to walk along Rio Puritana for a few minutes. It looks hot and desolate.
It was really hot and a tough hike so we were glad we hadn’t opted for a half-day hike here. Plus we were getting a little worn out from the altitude.
Interesting cacti here which have strong woody stems. In fact they are used as support beams in the roof of the chapel here in San Pedro.
They are called "Old Man of the Andes" and preferentially grow on Andean lava flows (Andealite) rather than the volcanic ash.
So we drove back to the hotel and finished our tour at 4:30. Time for a refreshing outdoor shower, and then a Pisco sour out in our bar area while recharging.
Then we sampled some Sauvignon Blanc for good measure. A really relaxing atmosphere here at the hotel.
We went to dinner right on time at 7:30, and Felipe greeted us with a welcome drink. Tonight he was serving a “Chile Sour,” which was a Pisco sour but with added tangerine flavor, and some chili pepper to give it a kick.
Dinner was great as usual. We started with a duck salad (Chris) and Humita for me – cooked corn puree reminiscent of tamales.
Mains were Short ribs (Chris) and Pil-Pil shrimp (me). I had a red blend with my shrimp instead of white wine, at Felipe’s recommendation, and it was quite nice.
The preparation was different from the usual tapas bar style, not what I expected, but tasty all the same.
Desserts were odd combinations of flavors! But they were tasty – Orange and Carrot, and Cucumber and Yogurt. We had a late harvest wine with our plates.
Since we were going to visit a few Chilean wineries next week, we asked Felipe what he thought about our upcoming choices. He was happy to talk about them and he had lots to say – he took notes and promised more information in the morning.
Back to our room for some more packing, then in bed by 10. We were pretty worn out from today, and it's already time to leave San Pedro tomorrow! It's been a blur, but we've barely started.
I woke up around 5:00 and stayed awake for a while, but then fell asleep until nearly 8. Chris wanted to get going earlier, but she was patient and waited for me to wake up. We made it to breakfast a little after 8:00, but finished with plenty of time to meet Sebastian for our tour at 9:00. It's really a pleasure to be able to make your own schedule!
We started out driving northward, where we passed by the turnoff to our sunset vista from last night, and then we kept going. The view of Licancabur was, of course, always close by.At the first major intersection, we skipped the “new” road in favor of the “old” road, which was amazing.
We climbed steadily now on the dirt road, but took our time and stopped here and there for the views. Here we are at 13500 feet above sea level, looking back all the way to San Pedro and the Salt Plains behind it.
The vegetation changed as we rose, so we stopped to get a closer look at some of the plants as well. Above 14000 feet, the yellow festuca grass dominated the dry landscape. The mountains were getting closer! Cerro Colorado is on the left, where the road is pointing. Will we get there?The Andean volcanoes, some active, some snow-capped, gradually got closer as we peaked at over 15000 feet of elevation.
But there were other sights along the way - including this cute pair of Southern Viscacha. They looked like rabbits, but had long tails.
Cerro Colorado dominated the view along this part of the road. At one point we were less than 2 miles from the border of Bolivia. That's the second time we've been so close! But we still haven't been there for real.
The occasional vicuna put in an appearance.
This is the crater of Volcan Putana. The "clouds" that you see are actually steam pouring from the vent. We got a more direct view later.
Nothing but sky and mountains. The road, considering that it was a secondary dirt road, wasn't in too bad shape. It was a nice ride and we barely saw another vehicle the whole way. It was quiet and peaceful up here. That, or the altitude was getting to us...
At the point where the old road rejoined the new road, we came upon a wetland. Here the Rio Putana spread out and flooded a small plain. Lots of grass and water, perfect for grazing.
A vicuna in front of the Andes. A classic view!
Our first real stop was the Tatiu geyser basin, high on the Altiplano at about 14500 feet.
There were great views of volcanoes in every direction.
A nice backdrop for the bubbling pools of boiling water.
The geysers weren’t as impressive as Yellowstone, as most of them bubble continuously and don't really erupt forcefully. But the view made it a very pleasant stop.
El Tatiu means "Old Man Crying," according to Sebastian. If you look at one of the mountains, it resembles a face in profile. The hollows of the eyes and brow fill with snow, and when it melts, the old man is crying. Or so they say.
Just a few more beautiful scenes from the basin.
Spectacular, but the altitude must be making me hungry! I hope somebody brought lunch.
Next we headed down to the origin of the Vilama River, which is actually a hot spring at this point due to it collecting all of the runoff from the geyser field.
Chris and I hiked upriver a bit to soak our feet in the hot river water while Sebastian prepared our lunch.
He set up a table with a view of the river and another geyser, where we feasted on soup, salad, lentils, and salmon. It was accompanied by some Carmenère that he had brought.
Cookies for dessert, then we started home.
Why do I think this looks like a certain medication commercial?
Looking upriver from our lunch spot.
We started back slowly, with some stops along the way to explore the surroundings. The air is clear, the scenery magnificent.
Back at the floodplain of Rio Putana. Just a little water and the altiplano comes to life.
Volcan Putana. It looks dramatic in this light, with yellow sulfurous fumes drifting from the crater. Not one I'd like to climb.
We got to a fork in the road and saw this sign. Funny enough, the warning is about the old road, which we had taken here! It really wasn't in such a bad condition, I didn't think.
We took the newer road back but made a few stops along the way.
Sheep and donkeys graze along the road.
And the occasional curious alpaca.
We were both pretty tired and dozed here and there, but we did see a number of flat boggy riverbeds and the occasional lake with lots of bird life – flamingos, geese, ducks, Andean coots.
Further down there was a small village of Machuco, and more stops to look at different plants.
A few houses and a church.
We made one more stop at Guatin Canyon to walk along Rio Puritana for a few minutes. It looks hot and desolate.
It was really hot and a tough hike so we were glad we hadn’t opted for a half-day hike here. Plus we were getting a little worn out from the altitude.
Interesting cacti here which have strong woody stems. In fact they are used as support beams in the roof of the chapel here in San Pedro.
They are called "Old Man of the Andes" and preferentially grow on Andean lava flows (Andealite) rather than the volcanic ash.
So we drove back to the hotel and finished our tour at 4:30. Time for a refreshing outdoor shower, and then a Pisco sour out in our bar area while recharging.
Then we sampled some Sauvignon Blanc for good measure. A really relaxing atmosphere here at the hotel.
We went to dinner right on time at 7:30, and Felipe greeted us with a welcome drink. Tonight he was serving a “Chile Sour,” which was a Pisco sour but with added tangerine flavor, and some chili pepper to give it a kick.
 |
| Humita, Awasi Atacama |
Dinner was great as usual. We started with a duck salad (Chris) and Humita for me – cooked corn puree reminiscent of tamales.
 |
| Pil-Pil Shrimp, Awasi Atacama |
Mains were Short ribs (Chris) and Pil-Pil shrimp (me). I had a red blend with my shrimp instead of white wine, at Felipe’s recommendation, and it was quite nice.
The preparation was different from the usual tapas bar style, not what I expected, but tasty all the same.
Desserts were odd combinations of flavors! But they were tasty – Orange and Carrot, and Cucumber and Yogurt. We had a late harvest wine with our plates.
Since we were going to visit a few Chilean wineries next week, we asked Felipe what he thought about our upcoming choices. He was happy to talk about them and he had lots to say – he took notes and promised more information in the morning.
Back to our room for some more packing, then in bed by 10. We were pretty worn out from today, and it's already time to leave San Pedro tomorrow! It's been a blur, but we've barely started.
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