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El Tatio Geysers - Highest in the World
21 Day Chile Tour — TOUR CODE: CL1 21 Day Chile Tour
TOUR CODE: CL1

In his latest blog post, Dale Dunlop, The Maritime Explorer, takes in some outer-worldly sites here on Earth while visiting El Tatio Geysers - Highest in the World. If you are interested in what Adventures Abroad has to offer, please check out our Small Group Tours to Chile.


In the last post from this epic trip to Chile with Adventures Abroad, we ventured into the driest place on Earth outside of Antarctica, the Atacama desert and found a landscape that was almost surreal in its transcendent beauty. Day two in Atacama will feature a visit to the El Tatio geyser field which is the highest in the world and the largest in the Southern Hemisphere. Later in the day, we will listen to the rocks whisper in the Valley of the Moon. It promises to be another astounding day in Chile, but there's a catch – we need to get up really, really early to see the geysers because they only do their thing at daybreak. So let's get moving.

El Tatio Geyser Field

There are only about a thousand geysers on this little planet and over eighty of them are found in one locale high up in the Atacama desert almost on the border with Bolivia. Collectively these make up the El Tatio geyser field which scientists believe may replicate conditions on Mars millions of years ago that might have once resulted in primitive life on that planet. So it's not an exaggeration to say that visiting El Tatio is literally, out of this world.

Yesterday we broiled in the unforgiving sun as we trekked up the trail to Pucará de Quitor. This morning we need to be prepared for below-freezing conditions as we make the ascent to 4,320 metres (14,170 feet) in time to arrive by 6:30 AM to watch the sunrise over the Andes and see the geysers come to life. It's well over an hour's drive from San Pedro to El Tatio and we are just one of a number of groups making our way there. From our previous visits to altitudes this high, I know that Alison gets quite affected by them, but this morning she is fine as is everyone else in the group.

There is a large parking lot which is already about half full, but it's a very short walk to the geyser field from here and our local guide Valentin leads the way to a series of pathways that make their way between the geysers. There is literally no wind and you can hear the geysers bubbling and hissing.

Now is the time for a spoiler alert – this is not Yellowstone. There are no Old Faithfuls or other geysers that spout boiling water hundreds of feet into the air. The geysers here are tiny in comparison, seldom rising more than a few feet. What they lack in size they make up for in numbers. There is no single congregation of geysers in one place anywhere that is larger. Collectively they create a mystical landscape that is unlike anything I have ever walked through.

Geysers Everywhere
Geysers Everywhere

Despite their small size, there are quite a variety of geysers – some just puff out steam, that looks like smoke from a distance.

Smoking Geyser
Smoking Geyser

Others put out a constant stream of boiling water, which incidentally boils at only 88°C (190°F) at this altitude.

Non-Stop Geyser
Non-Stop Geyser

Some of the El Tatio geysers are quite colourful.

Colourful Geyser
Colourful Geyser

But what's really the most interesting is the interplay of the morning light with the geysers as the sun crests the Andes.

Sun Crests as Geyser Blows
Sun Crests as Geyser Blows

There are only a few minutes of what photographers somewhat paradoxically call 'The Magic Hour' and Chris and Valentin manage to line us all up for one of the most epic group shots I've ever been in on an AA tour.

Group Photo at El Tatio
Group Photo at El Tatio

Soon the geysers at El Tatio begin to lose their steam and we get back in the bus and drive to a spot high above them where we can get a better perspective of this phenomenon as well as get a photo in this wondrous landscape.

Above the Geysers
Above the Geysers

There are not only geysers to observe up here but a herd of vicunas as well. Once endangered by overhunting, vicunas now thrive in the higher elevations of the Andes, 3,200 metres (10,500 feet) to 4,800 metres (15,700 feet). Although they are not a domesticated species like the alpaca and llama, they are still shorn for their wool which is the most expensive in the world. The Incan rulers wore vicuna garments as a symbol of their power and prestige and any commoner caught with vicuna wool would soon be headed to the sacrifice altar.

Vicuna Herd
Vicuna Herd

While we are photographing the dying El Tatio geysers and vicunas, Valentin and his helpers are preparing for breakfast in the Atacama desert.

Setting up Breakfast
Setting up Breakfast


Breakfast in the Desert
Breakfast in the Desert

After loading up the breakfast gear we departed the El Tatio area and began our return to San Pedro de Atacama, but by a different route that provided us with another opportunity to see more flamingoes.

 

Flying Flamingo
Flying Flamingo

Now we have all seen flamingoes flying or more commonly dabbling with their upturned beaks, but I have never before seen them swimming. I always assumed that they stayed in very shallow water to feed, but not these Chilean flamingoes which are acting more like ducks than the Andean flamingoes we saw yesterday at Los Flamencos Nature Reserve. Another day, another new and amazing fact about birds I didn't know.

Swimming Flamingoes
Swimming Flamingoes

Around 10:00 we roll into the small hamlet of Machuco which reminds me of the Mexican villages often seen in spaghetti westerns. I can almost hear the music from 'The Good, the Bad and Ugly' playing as I walk down the almost deserted street.

Machuco
Machuco

There is the church where the villagers will hide out when the bandoleros come to town.

Machuco Church
Machuco Church

However, instead of seeing a bad guy wielding a pistol, I see this hombre brandishing a baby bottle for his little llama. I guess I can let down my guard.

Man Feeding his Baby llama
Man Feeding his Baby llama

Speaking of llamas, here's a guy preparing barbecued skewers of same which Chris assures me are very tasty.

Preparing Llama Skewers
Preparing Llama Skewers

Putting thoughts of the little llama down the street out of my head, I buy one and Chris is right, it's very tasty.

Llama Skewer
Llama Skewer

I notice that Chris didn't get one and soon see the reason why. I mentioned in an earlier post that Chris is addicted to empanadas and must have a fix of at least one a day or he'll go God knows what; I don't want to find out. Since empanadas were not on the breakfast menu, like a moth to a flame, he is drawn inside.

The Empanada Addict
The Empanada Addict

Not far from San Pedro de Atacama, we stop for a shot of the aptly named Vulture Rock. It's a forerunner of the geological wonders we will see later in the day when we visit the Valley of the Moon. For now, we say goodbye to the El Tatio area and head back to the hotel for a well-earned siesta.

Vulture Rock
Vulture Rock

 

The Valley of the Moon

Martian Like Landscape
Martian Like Landscape

The Valley of the Moon is our last stop in the Atacama desert and presents yet another side of this unique landscape, with the photo above so much resembling the surface of Mars that the Martian Rover was tried out here before going into space.

The combination of wind and water that no longer exists, has created some amazing-looking formations that include sandstone ridges.

Sandstone Ridge
Sandstone Ridge

Huge sand dunes that reminded me of the Namid desert in Namibia.

Valley of the Moon Sand Dune
Valley of the Moon Sand Dune

A number of rock formations have been given distinct names like The Three Marys seen here.

The Three Marys
The Three Marys

There are a number of places where salt has created very photogenic patterns.

Photogenic Salt
Photogenic Salt

As the sun begins to go down, Valentin asks us all to sit quietly and listen to the rock walls talk – seriously.

Listening to the Walls Talk
Listening to the Walls Talk

And they do. This is something I cannot describe, you'll just have to come here for yourself to experience it.

This wonderful day that started at El Tatio and ended at the Valley of the Moon is one that we will all long remember.

Chris & Valentin
Chris & Valentin

Tomorrow is another travel day as we head back to Santiago where we will overnight before departing the next day for the epic conclusion to our journey on Easter Island. Hope you'll join us.

Published on 27 September 2024

 


 

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