Walking on the Moon

Saturday morning in Calama was quiet so it made it easier to get out of town. After a bit of mucking about with tyre pressures (too little, then too much & then too little again) I took the road to San Pedro. I still had "you are riding too fast on these tyres ringing in my ears" so, as it is only 100kms, I took it very steadily. I passed 3 or 4 cyclists pounding away at their pedals across the desert - they are far better men (& women) than me. The scenery was similar to previous days - miles of desert and the snow capped Andean Volcanoes in the distance.

I gave the lens a clean with my handkerchief but it looks like a boggie got stuck on there.

The scenery is the same that is until you start to drop down in to a valley. Here you see a grey valley floor with "marbled" rocks of red, pink, grey and white.

The line disappearing in to the distance is the road to San Pedro.

This is not just any Valley this is the Valle de la Luna, although I didn't know that until I got to the sign post!

. And from the other side (just a gratuitous picture of the bike really)

Once you have climbed a small rise in the valley you see what the references to the lunar landscape are all about. This is just what you see from the road side but there are gravel roads in to the middle of all this which I will try to explore over the next day or so.

Once again the pictures are not giving a true impression of just how special the sight is.

As you enter San Pedro De Atacama the sign says Population 1,880 (2002). They are in the process of updating the census in Chile and you see people in blue jackets knocking on doors in every town. They will have an interesting job in San P. There may be only 1800 residents but there are loads of Hippies.

If Pichelemu is the "Surfer Dude" centre of Chile then this is the White Rasta, Guitar playing, Eco Warrior Capital of Chile. The streets are full of "students" a bit like Falmouth but without the fishermans smocks.

It is a very small town of mostly dirt roads, some of which are pedestrian only apparently. I soon got the message as I thundered between the little adobe buildings, scattering Hippies as I went, some of them nearly dropped their cocoa leaves!

Every house front is either trying to sell you a meal, local crafts, rent you a push bike or a Tour of the Vallee de la Luna. None of it is overbearing, I think they have a captive audience so they don't need to try to hard. Either that or they know students don't have any money so don't bother. You can even go Sand-boarding down the dunes. No I won't be trying that! Tom & Millie could have a go.

I am not sure how I managed it but there are no people in these pictures - perhaps they cleared the roads after some Nutter on a motorbike came haring through here earlier.

It is a very "chilled" atmosphere, so much so that as I wandered in and out of a few shops, I noticed they all sold little packets of green leaves & it isn't tea. I bought a bag for £2 (but with a Croydon Street value of £2,500)  and got the lady to show me how to eat the stuff. You bite it in to little pieces being careful to throw away the stalk, then slowly add more leaves and chew them in to a pulp, holding it in your cheek.

I can tell you it tastes horrible and after a few leaves it had no discernable affect on me. Apart from being found naked in the towncenter singing "On days like these.............." 

I made the last bit up but people do take cocoa leaves or cocoa tea to help with altitude sickness. I don't think anyone has told the Hippies you don't need it at 2,500 meters and you would have to feel pretty awful to put up with the taste.