We were picked up by our Landcruisers around 10am and headed to Uyuni's only real attraction, a train cemetery about 3km out of town. Countless steam locomotives, goods carraiges and other railway paraphernalia lie rusting where they were left. Many are sinking into the sand. It's a curious site. After the obligatory photos we start making tracks to our real destination, Salar de Uyuni, otherwise known as the Bolivian salt flats. 12,000 square kilometers of nothing but salt. Flat as the proverbial pancake. It's a strange sensation, there is really nothing there, but at the same time it is mesmerising. We stop at Playa Blanca for lunch. This former hotel is made of salt. No longer serving as a hotel due to environmental reasons it now serves as a toilet and lunch stop for visitors to the salt flats. But it is BYO everything. All they provide is the tables and chairs. In recent years the Dakar rally has come through here and there is a giant salt monument to commemorate the event. There are literally hundreds of Landcruisers ferrying visitors across the salt flats. But due to the expanse it doesn't feel crowded. We find our own little space and set about doing what all visitors do - taking some creative photographs. Using the flatness and blinding whiteness of the surroundings the perspective between 2 objects can be distorted in amusing ways. Next stop is Isla Incahuasi, a cactus covered island surrounded by salt. From the top of the island you get a 360 degree view and the expanse of salt is driven home. The surprising thng is that the salt is not soft. It is rock hard with a "bumpy" sort of texture. A fall could cause some serious injuries. And the entire expanse has a hexagonal pattern on it. This is caused by the evaporation of moisture from underneath. At its deepest point the salt is 300 metres thick. Incredibly this area, at approximately 3500 metres elevation, was once covered by ocean. By now it is late afternoon so we head towards our accomodation at Colcha K. It is a family run hostel. Quite comfortable except that it has no heating and the night is bitterly cold. But a hearty meal of soup and pasta, which we have brought with us warms the insides, whilst 4 thick blankets on the bed, keep us toasty warm during the night.
The following day we have an early start. It is literally freezing outside and the wind chill factor is undoubtedly in negative numbers. A huge icicle on a water tanker which extends from the tank to the ground confirms what we already know. We are now off the salt flats and in extremely barren country. There are no roads as such just random tracks through the sand and rocks. Very slow going at times. Our drivers simply pick what looks like the best way through and off we go. Through this area there are a series of lagoons, some of them being home to large flocks of flamingos. Most of them are also partly frozen over. We are fortunate to come across a large group of flamingos on Lagoon Hedionda. At each stop we brace ourselves for the biting cold we are going to step out into. Even with thermals and a windproof jacket the cold cuts straight through. And the strength of the wind is incredible. At times it is difficult to stand still the wind is so strong. Our leader tels us it is not usually like this, we have just arrived on an unseasonal day. Our final stop for the day is Lagoon Colorada at 4250 metres before we head to our overnight stop at Hostel Huayllajora. If we thought last night was cold we were in for a rude shock tonight. Dormitory style accommodation, no hot water and no heating. Another hearty dinner and a Bolivian red wine helped warm the inside, but thermals, T shirts, woollen socks and extremely thick bed coverings struggled to keep the cold at bay.
Our 5.30am departure the next morning was done in the dark and needless to say, freezing conditions. For the first time I saw ice form on the INSIDE of the Landcruiser windows. Real ice that had to be scraped off if you wanted to look outside. So it was quite ironical that our first stop was at Sol de Manana, where 100 degree steam spews from vents in the earth. So as we stood there shivering and shaking in the cold, not more than a metre from us was steam that would cause serious burns if we touched it. All this was taking place at 4920 metres. And the irony continued. Next stop was some hot thermal springs, said to rejuvenate the body. Some of our brave colleagues took to the water, but the majority of us stood and watched. Our final sight in Bolivia was Laguna Verde, the Green Lagoon. The colour is caused by minerals and plankton in the water and with the Licancabur volcano as a backdrop it was a stunning sight.
From here it was on to the Bolivia/Chile border. It took us about an hour to be processed by the Chilean immigration staff but we were finally through and on our way to San Pedro de Atacama. During the 42 km drive we dropped 2000 metres in altitude. San Pedro is basically a tourist town. Every second shop is a tour operator and the remainder are mostly restaurants. It's basically a stop over for us enroute to Argentina.
Bolivia has been an amazing country to visit. Some spectacular country side, a strong and proud indigenous culture which is celebrated, stunning architecture, great food and very welcoming people. To be here during their Independence Day celebrations was an unexpected, but most enjoyable, bonus. It certainly deserves further exploration. Looks like I may be forced to break my golden rule again, and come back for a return visit. Perhaps I need to rethink that rule!