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Where to go? Bifurcations aren't indicated on the maps Back from the Salar de Uyuni, I meet a German couple travelling by tandem. Sebastian plans to cycle from La Paz to Ushuaia while looking for new cycling partners alongside the route. His girlfriend has been his first partner but she has to go back to Germany by now. Spontaneously, Sebastian and I decide to join up for the next part of the journey to Chile. But Sebastian needs still a partner for his tandem. Kyle, a slightly crazy American, agrees to come with us. He's probably the only one who hasn't really thought about the journey to come... We leave Uyuni for the wilderness in a very excited state.
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Lonely biker in the endless Altiplano
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Ascent on Cerro Caquella (5880m) It's such a magnificent mountain, the Cerro Caquella, towering up at the roadside. Kyle and I can't resist to attempt a climb. The mountain isn't really indicated on our maps, but this doesn't hinder us to go for it. At 4560m we put up our improvised base camp. Sebastian will wait for us while we will be making the ascent. The night prior to the start, I hardly get any sleep. Too many things go through my head because this will be my first mountain climb of that kind. The total isolation of this region adds to my anxiousness, as there won't any possibility of an external rescue. During the climb, the mountain proves to be a huge pile of volcanic rock. But the ascent is going well. Just at some moments, large stones start sliding too much to feel comfortable. Other places need some firm grip and you have to keep a clear mind to not make the wrong step at the wrong place. Generally, you just need to observe yourself a lot, in order to prevent any signs of high altitude as this could compromise your ability to climb safely. We have started at 4.00h and arrived at the summit at 11.00h at an altitude of 5880m. Altitude record set for me! Kyle was already some hundred meters higher up. The altitude doesn't seem to affect me much and I feel still good. The visibility from the summit is amazing. You see mountain ranges at a distance of 250-300 km very sharply. I have never seen something like that before! The descent poses two, three tricky moments but we advance rather rapidly. What a feeling to get back to the tents at the end.
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Sunset over Laguna Hedionda (4400m)
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Sandy track at Laguna Honda
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Pushing a 75-kg bicycle at 4700m, the tandem weighs even more The road conditions in the Lipez Sud require some time to get used to... They range from good (possible to cycle) to very bad (you need to push) for some stretches. Pushing the bicycle proves to be very tough, as the bicycles dig themselves in the deep sand. Due to long distances between Campamentos (roadstops providing water and food), I had at one time 24 liters of water and 5 kg of food packed on my bicycle. Nevertheless, the landscape is a dream. The cold and dry air makes everything appear closer. Hillsides and lagunas are all vividly coloured. This must be one of the most beautiful spots on Earth! I pity the tourists travelling behind jeep windows and in a heated cabin. The experience isn't the same.
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Laguna Colorada (4150m)
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Ascent to Sol de Manana
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Camp spot in a rock desert, 4800m Short story about this camp spot: Exactly at this location my sleeping flies away with the strong wind. In fact, we just have laid out the sleeping bags to let them dry in the early morning. But all of a sudden the wind got much stronger and my sleeping gets carried away. It takes me a 3h search with with field glasses (to find the sleeping bag) and GPS (to find back to the tent) to get it. I'm lucky to find it, otherwise the nights at -20° C wouldn't be bearable.
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Memorial to an unfortunate climber (5700m) "In the mountains, there you feel free" My second climbing tour goes up the Licancabur (5935m) at the border to Chile. But the day of my climb, there's a snow storm. All other days would have been perfect. Bad luck! Nevertheless, I get to the top quite quickly, overtaking a group of Chilean mountaineering guides (only 2 out of 20 will make it to the summit). At this point I realise how good the aclimatisation through my bicycle tour over the Altiplano has been in the last weeks. Down at the base camp, the guides and I share some hot chocolate and they tell me a lot of interesting things about Chile, my next destination. They invite me also on another mountain climb near Santiago, but I won't have the time in the end, unfortunately.
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Summit of Licancabur (5935m)
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Laguna Verde (4400m)
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Observing a rare species, Laguna Verde
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Arrival in Chile, end of 1000 km of dirt and sand tracks After a long stretch in the Altiplano, the frontier with Chile marks the end of the first part of my journey. There's now a long downhill to the Atacama Desert. It gets suddenly warm, a great luxury after weeks in the icy Altiplano. In San Pedro de Atacama civilisation greets us. We eat loads of vegetables, fruits and of course chocolate and the like. In San Pedro de Atacama we learn also what happened 10 days ago: it has been Sept. 11th 2001. We are shocked and try to find out what has been going on exactly. In an internet cafe we can finally read through online newspapers. Strange feeling: there could have been a war and we wouldn't have noticed it for a long time in the Altiplano.
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Licancabur
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Copyright © 2001 by Daniel Croll. All rights reserved