It was with great sadness that many of us woke up this morning realizing that this was our last day in the Atacama Desert. For others, it was no doubt greeted with relief, as they battled high altitude.
The day was cloudless and the air, beautiful, fresh, and clear. In the distance the volcanoes and mountains stood out in the morning clarity. After breakfast it was time to board the buses for the long journey to Antofagasta, over 260 miles away.
Our first stop along the way is to see the petroglyphs at Yerbas Buenas. The buildings at the location stand out in this desert and the lovely grass roofing material makes the setting more special. The path that leads us naturally past the many petroglyphs is flat and easy.
There are many comments as we try and discern the different subjects that are depicted on the red rocks. Some of us appreciate the art for itself, maybe reminding us of a famous artist, or maybe seeing similarities with the Altamira Cave paintings. But then one is amazed at how these artists were able to depict their subjects so accurately. They really understood the animals, their behavior and postures. This of course is so typical—they really knew these animals well. The location also was rich in plants, butterflies, and some birds.
After boarding the buses we head off again for the next stop, which is to be the ruins of Pukara Lasana. The ruins are amazing in their extent and one could quickly feel that this place must have been a hub of great activity and trade many hundreds of years ago. Even under the bright midday sun one can appreciate what incredible buildings these people were able to construct.
Too soon we are on our way again and in a short while we are in the middle of Calama city. We stop outside a shopping mall and head to Gatsby’s Restaurant. Of course it is like any other shopping mall in the world, however it was an ideal place for lunch, which was decent and above all else a quick affair and meant that we could quickly be on our way again.
Apart from a mid-afternoon stop, the rest of the journey was a quiet affair, many taking advantage to have a siesta.
During the mid-afternoon stop we were impressed with three huge mining lorries that had been repaired and were being transported back to one of the many mines in the area. The wheels dwarfing us and making the huge loads that these lorries carry even more graphic to us. We had passed a number of mines throughout the day. Some of them true giants as evidenced by the huge man made hills made by all the material extracted in the quest for copper or other minerals.
As we approached Antofagasta in the late afternoon we encountered clouds for the first time in almost three days. They were the coastal clouds so typical of these areas.
The ship was a welcome sight as were the familiar faces of the officers and crew out on the pier to welcome us home again and helped us along the gangway, which was moving considerably in a heavy swell.
After dinner all became quiet very early as most of us retired to bed to get a well-deserved night’s rest.
