The first of the three days was spent driving over an evaporated
salt water lake where a meter of salt remained on the bed. Workers piled waste high mounds of salt in order to let the water run out of them, making transport to the refinery esier. The glare was blinding. Little atmosphere was available to filter the untra voilet light. The snow white salt reflected the light right back. Not even clouds could form over this bright mirror. They were burned away in an instant. This scene was more remenecent of an arctic landscape than anything.
After two hours of driving of so an island appeared on the horizion. Only this island was not surrounded by water. Just a vast sea of salt. In the distance volcanic mountains glued the sky to the salt flat. Nearing the island high cactus´ came into view as they were the only vegetation which adapted to survive here. A sign at the base of the oldest cactus informed visitors that it was over 1200 years old and over ten meters high.
That night was spent in a remote village where it seemed llammas outnumbered people tenfold. It is probably true. A 500 meter walk from the hotel brought you to a ancient Andean bureal sight. The Necropolis contained over one hundred tombs. Composed of Soft Volcanic rock the circular tombs were about six feet high with a six foot diameter. Openenings in the walls revelaed skulls and other bones along with pottery and tools.
The following morning was spent driving past multicolored mountains. They were said to contain seven different tones. The landscape looked like it came out of a mario brothers video game with fluffy clouds frozenin the blue air above the peaks. Soon a rock formation that resembled a jaguar siloette was discovered and we all took pictures getting eaten by it.
Moving on to the salty lagoons that dotted the land. Here hundreds of flamingoes feed in the shallow waters. An abundance of minerals gave each lagoon a slightly different green-blue tinge.
For the night we settled next to the largest of the lagoons. The only reason a hotel existed there was for tourists. There was not even a town. Just a few hotels. The darkness of the night revealed millions of stars. It seemed as thought there was no room for the
black night sky under the abundance of stars. Not an artificail light was to be seen at midnight.
The following morning we arrived at a man made gyser which shot steam up thirsty feet in the air. Soon after we were at a mud bath where boiling hot mud bubbled up in the foggy morning. The third day of the trip basically consisted of driving back to where we started. At lunch the town had a old crashed plane perched up on the rocks. Some girls I spoke to said they went to it and there was skeletons inside. Back at the base town we visited a train graveyard. Two massive old faishoned trains lay dead on sunken tracks. It is now up to the elements to rust the massive iron skeletons away to nothingness.
How cool is the salt field!! Creepy skulls and bones, too. Bear would probably gnaw on those bones. Yew!!
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love the pic of the salt lakes. great detail when you click on and it enlarges.
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