They push harder when you put them in a well

Q: What do you get when you put a New Zealander, an Irishman and an Australian/Canadian in a 4WD for three days?
A: Jokes about sheep (and llamas).

The trip from San Pedro de Atacama, Chile, to Uyuni across the Bolivian altiplano and the Salaar de Uyuni has undoubtedly been the highlight of my trip so far (despite being stuck inside a 4WD with 6 other people for three days).The operators that run this infamous trip have a very poor reputation, so even making a booking was problematic. The guidebook was full of warnings about the shysters who run these trips: over-sold tours, terrible food, dodgy vehicles and drunk drivers falling asleep at the wheel. The complaints book at the Tourist Office in San Pedro confirmed all of the above.

This was complicated by the fact that only one operator was actually running a tour across the Salaar (salt plain), the obvious highlight of the tour. All the others claimed there was too much water on the salaar. Anyways, I made my booking with Expediciones Estrella del Sur (US$80, initially it was going to $90) and was off. (Anyone reading this who is planning to do this trip, I unreservedly recommend this company. They were fantastic.)

As you'd expect we set off later than planned - usual practice round here, and the tour was oversold (by one, which made no difference in the end). After a typically forensic inspection of our passports at the Chilean border we drove 45 minutes, climbing 800m to the Bolivian boarder, which is in the middle of nowhere at an altitude of 4,400m.

Looking through my photos of the first day I am still astounded by the landscape - the barren emptiness and the colours of the desert, mountains and lakes we saw. The lakes are vivid - Laguna verde a luminescent green, Laguna Colorado a rich, oxide brown. While the desert and mountain landscapes were out of this world - high on the altiplano I felt like we had left the earth behind and traveled to another planet. Despite the beauty, this is one of the harshest, most unforgiving places on earth. No one lives there, or could live there.

By mid-arvo on the first day we were chewing coca leaves like crazy, our cheeks bulging Bolivian style, as we approached 5000m. The highest I have ever been (I think?). I always thought I'd be standing on a mountain the first time I reached 5000m, not sitting in a vehicle!

By the time we arrived at the refugio where we spent the first night, the searing heat of the day had been replaced by rain and a cold wind. Later at Laguna Colorado a violent lightening storm forced us all to run for the 4WD. Even the flamingoes standing on the lake huddled in close to each other as the lightening hit the lake, turning blue and lighting up the whole valley.

Day 2, like day 1, began with a steep ascent and our guide/driver Simon stuffing handfuls of coca leaves into his mouth. In contrast with day one we were driving through a snow storm within minutes of setting off. By now the routine had become familiar, nothing was more than 30 minutes away: amazing desert, lakes with mountains in the background... 30 minute units became a convenient way to break up the journey.

Just before lunch we had our first flat tire. After lunch we had another three. We drove for more than 12 hours on the second day, an heroic effort by Simon who had to navigate some of most demanding terrain (there are no roads) and repair four flat tires bicycle-style, taking the tire of the room and actually repairing the tube. In the middle of the desert this is not as easy as it sounds.

The second night we stayed at the salt hotel, an amazing building where everything (beds, chairs, tables etc etc) is made of salt. Having seen my first ever llama during the day you can guess what we had for dinner that night. It tasted a bit like pork.

After a heavy night on the turps a 5am start to see the sunrise on the salaar was hard going. We were on the salaar by 5.30am as the sky changed from purple, through various shades of red and orange to blue as the sun began to rise. This is what we had all been waiting for. It's extremely difficult to convey just how gob-smackingly amazing a sight it was. The salaar is a vast (12,000 sq km) salt plain and is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Standing outside the vehicle the silence, beauty and sheer size of this stark, inhospitable environment was almost suffocating. Everything then turned a ghostly blue as we drove on.

It was a complete surprise to come to the Isla de la Pescadores a few hours later, following yet another flat tire. Here was an island in the middle of the salaar covered in cactuses, some over 1,000 years old.

From here it was another couple of hours across the salaar, past the salt mines, to Uyuni, which marked the end of an incredibly memorable trip.

(Unfortunately I haven't been able to include any pics with this post, due to some unexplained technical hitch.The links go to pic's I have posted on flickr.)