Off the (beaten) Track - Bolivia

Uyuni Train Cemetary

I crossed into Bolivia from Chile at the southern most border post of Hito Cajones and entered one of the most stunning landscapes I have ever seen. I can only describe it as lunar but with towering snow capped volcanoes standing guard over a high altitude desert of immense proportion

Frontera at Hito Cajones

The road was anything from hard-packed washboard to thick sand but standing up and putting the power down made this one heck of a ride. The only tough part was trying to pass the numerous Land Cruisers that put up a huge plume of dust as they weaved along the tracks

400 km of dirt riding heaven

Confusing tracks

This is know as the Lagunas Route and the lakes were incredible with flamingoes casting refections in the water under impossibly blue skies

Laguna Colorada

These llamas watched me with distain as I crossing over this stream near the little settlement of Villa Mar

If you litter in this village you could get swift justice so make sure you are on your best behavior

Villa Mar for a lunch stop

I ate lunch in the village and had a soup that was flavored with local herbs which was absolutely delicious. I just wish I knew what the suspicious pieces of meat were that lurked at the bottom of the bowl

The town of Uyuni is a dusty, not very spectacular town on the edge of the famous Salar de Uyuni. These large salt flats stretch on seemingly for ever. However with  the recent heavy rains they were transformed into a shallow lake. Four wheel drive tours still drove out onto the flats but the salt laden waters are extremely corrosive and play havoc with vehicle electronics so I decided to stay safely on the edge.

Salar de Uyuni

Uyuni

At an altitude of 3669 metres ( over 11,000 ft ) I found it difficult to sleep the first night in this town and awoke with a headache which I believe was from the altitude rather than the Bolivian cerveza I had to test just to make sure it was up to my very exacting standards

Llama - It's what's for dinner