October 19, 2018 – October 23, 2018

We were pleased to be on our way to a reserve that we had been dreaming about since we first started planning this trip.  We had seen many images of Reserva Nacional de Fauna Andina Eduardo Avaroa (I know, quite the mouthful) and were excited at the prospects of being at this really remote, high altitude area in southern Bolivia.

We had spoken with a couple in La Paz who had already visited the park.  They were living on the road, full time, having moved out of their home for 7 years.  They had a very well equipped late model Toyota Land Cruiser and had spent a lot of time driving around in Africa before shipping their truck to South America.  They told us that the roads in Eduardo Avaroa were among the worse they had ever seen….yikes!  We discussed maybe not driving in, taking a tour instead, to save some major wear and tear on the truck, but in the end, we wanted the freedom that comes with having our own vehicle.  We decided to drive in and if things got too hairy that we would turn around and head south by a different route.

The first hundred or so kilometres after the town of Uyuni went quickly, the gravel road being in excellent shape.  We then veered off the main road to head south and immediately things changed;  bone jarring washboard, making it necessary to slow to a crawl, was interspersed by deep sandy gravel, which required perfectly timed acceleration in order to keep from getting stuck.  It became apparent that we were not going to make it to where we had hoped to camp that night, but we soon came up with a great alternative, an off road spot in the Valle de la Rocas.

We had read that there was a route further along this “side road” where we could drive a loop through even more of these rock structures, but that it wouldn’t be possible with a big rig.  We have seen people driving huge, expedition Man trucks (google them if you do not know them, you will be amazed), so we figured that was what was meant by a “big rig”.  We set off the next morning to drive the loop.

The solid, double track crossed the desert and then entered a huge field of large andesite rock remnants.  The space between the rocks got smaller and smaller.  We turned a really tight corner and Derek immediately stopped the truck.  We looked at each other and simultaneously shook our heads.  “Nah-uh!”  We definitely would have been scraping the sides of the camper if we continued.  I jumped out and did what I could to help Derek back out along the track until we could turn around.

We got back on the bad main road, which was in much worse shape than the detour into the Valle de la Rocas.  There were still many kilometres to go to get to the actual park entrance.  On the way we passed a beautiful lake full of flamingos.

We visited some formations that we had thought we may camp at, then decided that we needed to keep driving.  The conditions were causing us to drive slowly, much slower than we had anticipated, and we had a tight window through which we would be allowed to enter Chile given the dates on the dog’s health certificates.

We drove a short distance to the park entrance the next morning.  We opened our doors to get out of the truck, and I heard an unfamiliar noise.  “What’s that?”  I said to Derek, and I saw a deflated look (ha, ha, we can laugh now) pass over his face as I realized that the noise I heard was air gushing from the rear, passenger side tire.

Derek put 2 double plugs into the tire, we re-inflated and tested the tire, and it seemed to hold air.  We decided we should continue because the dog crossing certificates were for a specific crossing.   We hadn’t even entered the park yet, but what’s an adventure without some risks…..  And then things started to go our way again!  The route that we had chosen into the park (there are several) had recently been graded!  This could cause more sharp stones but at least the bane of driving, washboard, was gone for now. We drove along, reaching speeds of 50, 60, 70 kilometres per hour.  It was heavenly.

We arrived that afternoon at one of the highlights of the park, Laguna Colorada.  We drove from the highlands east of the lake down towards it, getting a bird’s eye view of this spectacular lake. The other-worldly red colour of the lake, which changes intensity throughout the day depending on wind and sky conditions, is due to an algae that lives in the shallow waters.  It was quite windy when we arrived, and the water was choppy and murky.

We decided to drive around the lake to some rock formations north of the lake and just outside of another entrance to the reserve.  We wanted to see if we could find a camp for the night that was sheltered from the wind.  The roads leading out of the park on this side of the lake were horrible.

We were surprised by the number of tour vehicles we saw within the park.  Before we got to where we were going to camp we drove by a famous formation in the park that looks like a tree, and there were 8 or 10 vehicles parked nearby.  We decided we didn’t need a picture of the Arbol de Piedra (stone tree), and continued on.  I saw one young tourist jealously checking out our rig.  A tour is great, lets someone else deal with the driving and all the wear and tear on the vehicle, but to be able to decide when to stop and when to keep going and to be able to tuck in somewhere to camp for the night really is such a treat.  We were both happy that we had decided to take Seymour into the park.

The next morning, we returned to Laguna Colorada to visit a couple of other viewing points.  This time we saw it with no wind.

I really missed having my digital SLR camera with the zoom lens.  Again, there were literally thousands (maybe ten thousand?) flamingos on the lake.

It was so beautiful, and so very, very peaceful.

We continued on, stopping in one of the tiny village’s within the park for some supplies (okay, it was for beer).

There are some geothermal sites within the park; a geyser field and some developed hot springs. We had read about a place to camp near some hot springs that had started to be developed, but then were never finished.  We decided to check it out.

We camped next to the hot pool for the evening, but decided the water was not hot enough to justify a late day dip;  it was windy and cold and the idea of running from there to the truck afterwards was completely unappealing.

But, in the morning, the wind, as usual in this part of Bolivia, was very calm, and so we soaked in our private little hot pool for a while before breakfast, as we watched the thin layer of ice on the lake melt.  It was heavenly.  Later, a few kilometres down the road we drove past the official hot pools that the tours all stop at, and were pleased that we had had such a unique, private, free experience.

We visited a few more lakes, but again, the winds became INTENSE.  We were having trouble finding a decent location to camp, and we were close to the border, so we decided to head into Chile.

 

Here a little video from Laguna Verde…MAKE SURE TO TURN YOUR VOLUME DOWN, THE WIND NOISE IS HARSH!

The Reserva Nacional de Fauna Andina Eduardo Avaroa was one of our favourite experiences on this trip.  The crazy driving, the high altitude plains, the rock formations, the volcanos, isolation and, especially, Laguna Colorada…..almost every corner of this reserve is unique and special.  I wish our pictures did it the justice it deserves, but it is so much more special than we were able to capture.

However, the rough roads, the intense winds and the cold nights had taken their toll on us, and we were excited to head to lower elevations, and maybe find a camping place with a hot shower and a restaurant nearby!