Into Chile – San Pedro De Atacama

We chose to cross the border from Argentina into Chile by bus so we could see both the Argentinian and Chilean sides of the Andes. We had managed to get seats on the top deck, right at the front and despite reading many bad reviews of the two bus companies that made the trip regularly, we were content with our choice. It wasn’t the most salubrious of buses (definitely not 5 star, as it purported on it’s side) but it was relatively comfortable, with very few passengers, and we settled down for a 10 hour journey. Generally, although stopping to pick up and drop off occasionally, these buses don’t stop for breaks anywhere (there is a loo onboard for the desperate and brave). Must be a bear if you’re a smoker!

We were not disappointed by the journey, the scenery was absolutely epic. Long, slow, torturously twisty climbs up, up, up out of Argentina and long, very straight and very flat roads across the platuea and salt flats, crossing the Salinas Grande again – a vast plain – to yet another range of stunning mountains. More long, slow climbs and yet more stunning scenery, dotted with llama, donkeys and guanaco which survive on the stunted patches of desert grass, eventually brought us to the border and our first experience of Chilean bureaucracy. There is a strict policy of not bringing any fruits, seeds, cheese, meat etc into the country, and before boarding the bus we’d made an electronic affidavid that we we were carrying none of the above, and had binned any “travelling supplies” that might cause an issue. After much waiting in queues we were finally through passport control and customer, and on reboarding the bus realised that whilst we had, as Brits, very much adhered to the restriction policy, others seemed to pretty much ignore it and brought in their Coca leaves, sandwiches, snacks, fruit etc, presumably only for the rest of the journey. A lesson learned.

More climbing, reaching closer to 5000 metres and finding snow on the roadsides, and fabulous mountainscapes made us feel very small and reminded us once again that the area had once been covered with sea before tectonic movements had shifted the earth upwards. Sand dunes and snow was a bizarre concept, but was evident just though the window.

Eventually, we arrived in San Pedro de Atacama, a small northern Chilean town, known for being a base for tourists wanting to explore the Atacama desert. Our hostel was easily located as the town is very small and we dropped our packs and headed out for a leg stretch and some food, having eaten little on the journey.

The plan for the Atacama Desert was to hire a car for a few days so we could stop as and when we wanted, however, best laid plans ……… So we reverted to being tourists for a few days and booked some tours.

The plan for the Atacama was to hire a car so we could independently visit places, however, our ethos of total flexibility so not booking anything until we actually needed it didn’t work for us this time, as it seems hiring a car in San Pedro is not only expensive, but, we were told, best done about three months in advance. So, back to being a tourist and using arranged tours for a few days, but that does come with advantages…