Atacama Desert Part 2

Thursday 17 Nov

On Wednesday morning we went to the Puritama Hot Springs. All around the country is rocky and barren, although the local cacti grows in cracks in the rocks, but at the bottom of a steep gorge there are 8 natural pools with water at about 33 degrees C and surrounded by pampas grass and quite a lot of birdlife.

Tussocky grass growing around Puritama Hot Springs.

Chilean lizard.

Black headed Sierra Finch - one of many bird species who live around the hot springs.

Wildflowers growing in stony ground near the Hot Springs.

We were really settling into the routine of a morning excursion, followed  by lunch and a siesta and then another excursion. So this afternoon we explored the petroglyphs which date back several thousand years and were important stops along ancient trade routes although now they are in the middle of nowhere. Llamas figure prominently and also pumas.  The Incas themselves (although these petraglyphs predate them) also thought very highly of cats (a point of difference between me and the Incas!)

Pamela explains the Petroglyphs. You can see some in the bottom right hand corner.

Petroglyph of llamas.

Dramatic rock formations of the Rainbow Valley.

Another beautiful sunset

From there we travelled through an oasis (llamas grazing on green feed and the odd poplar tree).  The road was very rough, but we came finally to the so called Rainbow Valley which features rather extraordinary rock formations.

Thursday morning we left San Pedro de Atacama at 5.15 a.m. and drove to the El Tatio Geysers. Our driver Leo did not like eating someone else's dust and so we often left the road and made our own track!. The Geysers are at a height of 4,300 m (14,190 ft) and in the cold early morning (-7 deg C) there are huge columns of steam.

El Tatio Geysers in the early morning

More geysers, this one home to thermophylic algae. An English University is hoping that the algae may provide a treatment for pancreatic cancer.

As we returned down the mountain we saw plenty of vicuna (look like small llamas) and also a variety of waterbirds on a permanant lake.

 Vicuna grazing near the El Tatio geyser field

Mama llama and young.

 

Llamas peeping over a stone wall. The ribbons in their ears are not to provide identification, but are to do with an Indian legend and respecting Mother Earth.