Getting the bike out of the bedroom and on to the pavement created a bit of a stir amongst the locals so i had an audience (I am sure they were hoping I would drop it). Even the village idiot turned up (the hotel owner made the international sign for "nutter" by twirling his finger next to his temple).
I got away with it and headed back down the valley. i had no clear plan of how far I wanted to get today but I had been given good reports of several towns a few hours north.
The road out of La Serena is not very nice and apart for a stop for fuel was glad to me moving on. The great thing about their fuel stations is that you get helpful notices like "next fuel 212 kms". After the first few miles you go up in to the mountains with the Pacific ocean to your left. The tarmac road rises and falls with some lovely fast bends. The road is full of slow moving lorries but the bike made light work of passing them and the queues of cars (pick-ups actually) line astern. It was great fun, a little naughty at times and with wonderful views too.
It wasn't long before I was out of the mountains and riding on a plain with the hills all around but somewhat distant. The scrub gradually thinned out and the sand became more widespread. Then you pass a sign saying Welcome to Atacama (I have translated that for you lot).
It may sound stupid but it sort of caught me on the hop. I was expecting the Atacama to be further north! Shows just how much time i spend reading my maps! Luckily I had filled up with fuel!
This is undoubtedly Mining country. The lorries are numerous and carrying all the needs of the mines. you see little other evidence of them apart from the signposts and the red sand roads heading east and west from the highway..
It has a similar feel to Patagonia but the quantity of traffic never gives you such a sense of isolation. Indeed there are lots of little roadside cafes to keep you alive (as long as you have fuel to get to them). The roads are impeccable and are clearly funded by the wealth of the mining companies. Thank you chaps! However they still like to grab some tolls off you along the way (why do you put a toll booth in the middle of the desert?).
I did make a mistake at Vallenar - I assumed the fuel station would be on the highway. It wasn't so I had to turn back after some miles and go in to town to find fuel. Without that I would have be stranded!
Various towns came and went & with the miles running up quite nicely I decided to head for a coastal town that had been recommended by the Chilean guys - Bahia Inglesa. As you get closer to the town you suddenly come in to a green valley.
In England we are so used to everything being green it is quite a shock to see what difference a river makes.
It is a fishing cum tourist beach town but as it is autumn I think I am the only tourist here!
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