Chile – Road Trip through the Atacama Desert


Person in roter Jacke bei mehreren Lamas, schneebedeckter Vulkan dahinter

On our last full day in San Pedro we drove through the Atacama Desert towards the highlands and into the border area with Bolivia. Everywhere along the way there were llamas, which put a big smile on Luisa’s face every time.

Snow and mud in the highlands

At higher altitudes there was snow, and the roads became a challenge. Afterwards our little white Polo wore a mud-red “protective coating” – luckily washing is included in the rental price. The Atacama stretches for around 1,600 kilometres through northern Chile and is considered the driest non-polar desert in the world: the Andes and the coastal range keep moisture out from both sides, and on average only about 15 millimetres of rain fall a year.

The stars will follow soon

A trip to the Atacama isn’t complete without star photos. They will follow in the next post.

Straight road from the air, a pale, cracked expanse beside it, Atacama
A straight road through pale, cracked desert – the last road trip from San Pedro.
Winding road from the air through a grey, torn-up plain
The road winds through the grey, torn-up plain.
Three aerial views of colourful slopes, snowy peaks on the horizon, Atacama
Colourful slopes, the snowy peaks of the Andes on the horizon.
Large tree, small stone building with a conical roof and an open shelter
A large tree, a stone hut with a conical roof and an open shelter.
Left an adobe ruin by the track, right an old car in front of a red fence
An adobe ruin by the track and an old car in front of a red fence.
Junction with signs for Calama and Socaire, a Pare stop sign, snowy volcano
A junction towards Calama and Socaire, a snowy volcano behind.
Three donkeys by the road, one dark and two pale, wide plain
Three donkeys by the roadside on the wide plain.
Stone bell tower next to a long building with a thatched roof, high plateau
A stone bell tower beside the long building with its thatched roof.
Person in a red jacket with several llamas, snow-covered volcano behind
Llamas everywhere – and a big smile every time.
A llama in yellow grass in front of a snow-covered twin peak
A llama in the yellow grass in front of a snow-capped double peak.
Track through snowfields towards the mountains, from the air, Atacama
A track through the snowfields, heading straight for the mountains.
Left snow, a channel of water and mountains, right brown hills in the snow, from the air
Snow, a channel of water and brown hills – in the highlands the road becomes a challenge.
Snow-covered volcanic cone above a white plain under a blue sky
A snow-covered volcanic cone above the white plain.
Wide pale expanse and hazy ridges under a high, pale sky
A wide pale expanse and hazy ridges under a pale sky.
Left a person in a red jacket on the road, right the track to the mountains
The road to the mountains, once with a red jacket, once without.
Woman sitting on the yellow centre line, snowy mountains at the end of the road
Sitting right on the yellow centre line, the snowy mountains at the end of the road.
Distant snowy peak above a brown plain under a deep blue sky
A distant snowy peak above the brown plain.
Jagged, partly snow-covered peak above dry grass
A rugged, partly snow-covered peak above dry grass.
Low sun with lens flares above the road to the mountains
The sun hangs low above the road to the mountains.
Sun just behind a hill, the sky above golden yellow
The sun just behind a hill, the sky golden yellow.
Road at dusk, the last light on the snowy peaks on the horizon
Dusk on the road, the last light on the snowy peaks.
Orange evening sky above layered ridges, a dark hill on the right
An orange evening sky above layered ridges.
Two hill silhouettes in the evening light, the sky from orange to blue
Two hills in silhouette, the sky shading from orange to blue – the stars come next.

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