March 11, The Hot Springs and the Altiplano de Atacama.

This turned out to be a very long day.

After a short drive we stopped at the Hot Springs and enjoying very warm natural water, in the middle of nowhere.

Lunch was served with wine...imagine a little drop of alcohol at 11,000 feet. But it was very enjoyable and in some way it prepared us for what was to come.

Nothing to worry about...we are taking 90 degrees here...

What a sight at 11,000 feet

Steve is selling the merits of the TBM to Behn...Michel get ready to send a commission.

Enroute to the Altiplano we come accross the Guanacos...amazing animals, domesticated and brothers to the Lamas.

A very furry duck at 15,000 feet doing his business in the cold glacier water.

What a sight, bare and as Wikipedia says:

The Altiplano is an area of inland drainage (endorheism) lying in the central Andes, occupying parts of Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru and Ecuador. Its height averages about 3,300 meters (11,000 feet), somewhat less than that of Tibet. Unlike the Tibetan Plateau, however, the Altiplano is dominated by massive active volcanoes of the Central Volcanic Zone to the west. The Atacama Desert, the driest area on the whole planet, lies to the southwest of the Altiplano.



What a beautiful area, bare, quiet, tranquil etc...

We did run into some wild and furry donkeys...
After a walk suppose to be 1h30 minutes at 16,000 feet , we ended up after 3 hours at the border crossing to Bolivia.


On the way back to San Pedro, we did run into a amazing sight, a baby lama at 14,000 feet, whitel over green herbs....a striking difference.

Mom was not far away!!!!