San Pedro; Enough dust to make your boogers black

---

San Pedro de Atacama

First day in San Pedro has been quite the adventure. I overslept a little and bumped into a British guy in my dorm when i got up who recommended a good place to rent bikes and do some exploring, so i set off and got myself a nice little blue number from a gentleman who also gave me a puncture repair kit, map, and a bunch of recommendations of places to go (none of which i really understood, but i smiled politely and said si alot).







I set off at about 10am, which was probably ill advised in retrospect given it would pretty much put me in the middle of the desert at around midday. Anyway, the task at hand was to locate a place called Valle del Diablo, about 10km north of San Pedro via dusty loose gravel road. The Swiss guy who i met in the hostel in Valparaiso had told me it was a must see, and it seemed like a good way to do something a bit more active than walking. A few wrong turns and one EPIC river crossing later (despite the ambient temperature being about a million degrees, the river was cold enough to make my legs ache and turn pink by the time i'd got across. Bizzarre.) i ended up at the mouth of the canyon. I didn't really know what to expect, but it turned out to be an amazing bike ride for about 3-4km through a really narrow valley that could scarcely fit the width of the handlebars in alot of places. Dead quiet and not a tourist to be seen for the entire time i was there (probably a factor of the time of day i opted to go...). The canyon eventually opened up and the biking became a bit beyond my limited mountainbiking experience when it basically just went up a cliff, where i attempted to head onward, but came unstuck quite spectacularly and mangled my toe and ripped a big hole in my pants. Decided it was time to head back, and then realised that the leisurely ride thus far had been mildly uphill, and so the ride back sent me whizzing at real pace back through the valley.






Next stop on the bike trip i kind of just chose arbitrarily by following signs, and ended up at the ruins of Quitor fortress. It's an Incan stronghold where they apparently beat the Spanish back for about four years. Didn't even know it existed, but it was pretty impressive. My first ruins of the trip. The entry was about 3US and the runs themselves involved scrambling quite precariously up a cliff face without railings or fences that basically dumps you in the middle of a mountaintop network of stone walls overlooking the desert. Really spectacular. I'll put some archaeology porn at the bottom of this blog for Mum and Belle. There were a bunch of other paths that you could follow on from the main fortress that looked fun, but the sun was starting to get to me, so i headed back for lunch.








I accidentally adopted a dog on the way home. He was sitting in the shade by my bike as i was leaving Quitor and i petted him for about five seconds and he decided i was his and he followed me for a good two or three kilometers in desert sun at about 1pm (which was no mean feat seeing as how i was on a bicycle and he was built like a basset hound) until i got worried he would collapse so i stopped and we sat in the shade and shared tall tales for awhile unitl he trotted back home. He got a free physical exam for his troubles.









Had planned to go to Valle de la Luna to see the sun set in the afternoon, but there was a huge windstorm and i didn't much fancy going outside, so i'll probably go tomorrow or the next day. Just booked a trip to visit El Tatio Geysers leaving tomorrow morning (apparently all the tours leave at 4am because 'it' only happens at sunrise? Still don't really know what actually happens due to my rubbish spanish, but i think swimming is involved), and so there should be some good photos coming. Maybe sandboarding in the afternoon? or horseriding? There are lots of tours to do here. Basically the four different types of building in town are tour operators, eateries, hostels, and souvenier stores. Eventually i'll be heading across the salt flats to Bolivia.

---

Photos

The Canyon
Incidentally, i didn't encounter a single diablo. Must've been asleep.

Comments

[Alison]

Hi
Hi David, Enjoying your blog heaps and laughed out loud at the latest adopted dog story and Archaeology Porn! Your dad is fretting slightly at your 'individual’ itinerary especially the falling off bike bits. Funny how people see different things to emphasis when they read a travel journal? Make his day an emphasis the people encounters and 'tours'. Stay safe Love Alison

[Saunders]

He´ll be pleased to know i went on the tamest tour ever this morning. We got off the bus, took photos, back on the bus, repeat. Maybe sandboarding this afternoon....