After our rest days in Calama, Gabriel and I cycled on to 'San Pedro de Atacama', a lovely little tourist village (an oasis in the middle of the desert) where be stayed for 2 days. We wanted to visit the nearby 'Valle de la Luna (moon valley).
right: The oasis of 'San Pedro de Atacama' in the Atacama desert, in the background, 'Volcan Licancabur' (5916m)
20.06.'06: Gabriel riding out to 'Valle de la Luna'.
right: 'Valle de la Luna' with the Andes in the background. The 'moon valley' really looks like a 'moon landscape' with all the salt structures!
Myself looking over 'Valle de la Luna'
On the way back from the valley, Gabriel and I decided to explore a nearby 'salt cave' system! Picture: Gabriel takes his bear amulet with him to all kinds of places! Here crawling through the cave!
21.06.'06: We cycled on and passed our last 2 villages for the next 220km. 'Toconao' has a lovely 'cactus wooden' door as an entrance to the church tower!
Now, which way is it to Paso Sico?
Ok, straight ahead was right! Picture: Gabriel having a rest below another Chilean volcano on the way to the border.
22.06.'06: Again we reached the 'altiplano' at 3900m. A barren and cold place but wild and the typical place which both Gabriel and I love.
23.06.'06: Camping below the volcano 'Miniques' (5910m) on the altiplano. Picture: Gabriel with the frozen water container.
The landscape close to the Argentinian border is really spectacular. Beautiful salt lakes and 'lagunas' with flamingoes eating away the plankton in the salty water. Very few people come to this region and you can count the cars pass by. Usually about 3 or 4 cars a day!
23.06.'06: We reached a mining camp 'El Laco' (at 4400m.a.s.l) shortly before it got dark. The temperature dropped to minus 5 degrees and we were very welcome to stay in a room with bunk beds (for the summer workers). The 2 guards gave us hot water, tea and coffee and the dog 'Laco' followed us all the way to the Chilean border post 7km away the next morning.
On the 24.06.'06 it was time to say goodbye to Chile and enter Argentina. The border is in the middle of nowhere, 200km from the closest town on the Chilean side and nearly as far on the Argentinian side. What would Argentina be like? See: Northern Argentina, stage 30
After our rest days in Calama, Gabriel and I cycled on to 'San Pedro de Atacama', a lovely little tourist village (an oasis in the middle of the desert) where be stayed for 2 days. We wanted to visit the nearby 'Valle de la Luna (moon valley).
right: The oasis of 'San Pedro de Atacama' in the Atacama desert, in the background, 'Volcan Licancabur' (5916m)
20.06.'06: Gabriel riding out to 'Valle de la Luna'.
right: 'Valle de la Luna' with the Andes in the background. The 'moon valley' really looks like a 'moon landscape' with all the salt structures!
Myself looking over 'Valle de la Luna'
On the way back from the valley, Gabriel and I decided to explore a nearby 'salt cave' system! Picture: Gabriel takes his bear amulet with him to all kinds of places! Here crawling through the cave!
21.06.'06: We cycled on and passed our last 2 villages for the next 220km. 'Toconao' has a lovely 'cactus wooden' door as an entrance to the church tower!
Now, which way is it to Paso Sico?
Ok, straight ahead was right! Picture: Gabriel having a rest below another Chilean volcano on the way to the border.
22.06.'06: Again we reached the 'altiplano' at 3900m. A barren and cold place but wild and the typical place which both Gabriel and I love. 
23.06.'06: Camping below the volcano 'Miniques' (5910m) on the altiplano. Picture: Gabriel with the frozen water container.
The landscape close to the Argentinian border is really spectacular. Beautiful salt lakes and 'lagunas' with flamingoes eating away the plankton in the salty water. Very few people come to this region and you can count the cars pass by. Usually about 3 or 4 cars a day!
23.06.'06: We reached a mining camp 'El Laco' (at 4400m.a.s.l) shortly before it got dark. The temperature dropped to minus 5 degrees and we were very welcome to stay in a room with bunk beds (for the summer workers). The 2 guards gave us hot water, tea and coffee and the dog 'Laco' followed us all the way to the Chilean border post 7km away the next morning. 
On the 24.06.'06 it was time to say goodbye to Chile and enter Argentina. The border is in the middle of nowhere, 200km from the closest town on the Chilean side and nearly as far on the Argentinian side. What would Argentina be like? See: