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Exploring Uruguay – A Surprising Country in South America

November 18, 2024 / / 23 Comments

Warning: This is a long post, heavy on photographs.

Mark, Maya, and I entered Uruguay from Argentina without expectations. We knew the coast drew lots of people, Montevideo was the capital, and Colonia del Sacramento was a highlight and UNESCO World Heritage Site. And that the country was super expensive, aptly called the Switzerland of South America.

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Uruguay in South America
The country of Uruguay and our sights
Uruguayan flag
Uruguayan license plate

Dealing with the border formalities was a bit confusing (everyone from either side wanted to inspect our camper) but didn’t take too long. We were a tad nervous regarding the “prohibited items” we brought to sustain ourselves and our dog (check the blue sign and guess what we carried), but Maya’s paperwork was in order, which proved important – and distracting – enough.

Walking to the border offices to deal with all the paperwork
Ready for a new country in Thirsty Bella
How many of these items did we have in our camper?

Salto Grande Dam

Right across the border, on the outskirts of Salto, we stopped by the Salto Grande dam, operated by both countries. There, Mark and I partook in a free tour, conducted in Spanish.

The massive turbines
Viewpoint over the dam
Salto Grande Dam, seen from Argentina
One of the massive doors that regulate the water flow
Driving back from Argentina to Uruguay on the tour bus – we did this two hours earlier in our camper; the dam is the border crossing in Salto.

Afterwards, mid-afternoon, we decided to put some miles behind our wheels, since we hoped to cross the entire country and reach the coast within a few days. In Uruguay, we planned our route and stops more carefully, due to the costs. When gasoline has a price tag of $7 a gallon (about $2 per liter), you think twice about detours and their “worth.”

Our first camping spot for the night was a bit overgrown, but hidden from the road!
Our second night was spent in a free campground that was flooded.
Our third free camping spot necessitated driving under this low bridge; we just fit!
The end of this turnaround point was the only spot with open sky and sunshine, needed for Starlink, solar power, and an anxious dog.

We stopped at a small clearing in the bushes, out of view, for that first night. The next three days, we leisurely traversed the hinterland of Uruguay, gazing at the well-kept homes and fields and feeling happy for the livestock – mostly horses, cows, and sheep – with all that juicy, bright-green grass everywhere!

Happy cows in Uruguay
Lush and pretty fields

We also came across a dinosaur display, with preserved footprints and information signs.

Signs with info in Spanish
Dinosaur track on display
Old footprints!

The people we met along the way were friendly, we enjoyed this peek into lesser-known territory, and we happily noticed the lack of garbage everywhere, but we were surprised at the state of the throughways.

Filled potholes; one can wonder if it’s better or worse to hit these piles of fresh asphalt.
One of the gravel roads
Maya doesn’t like dirt roads and holds on for dear life.
Broken road surfaces
We would not fit on this bridge with our camper.
Old car from a local driver

Thinking that Uruguay was a relatively developed nation with a relatively western mentality, we had counted on beautifully paved main roads everywhere. Not in the back country. For at least 100 of the 400 miles across, we dealt with broken pavement, potholes, road work, or dirt tracks going east-west. The north-south equivalents seemed in better shape.

La Coronilla

The Atlantic coast brought pleasant surprises. First, we arrived at La Coronilla at the exact same time a familiar-looking kombi VW bus did. Mark recognized them as the Kombi Chronicles, a British couple with two cats, who had been exploring Latin America overland for a few years. We knew Willow and Lee through Facebook, WhatsApp groups, and mutual friends. It was great to finally meet! (They have a popular YouTube channel and Facebook page as well.)

Meeting Willow and Lee of the Kombi Chronicles for the first time
The VW bus of our Kombi Chronicles friends, parked on the bluff
Sunday afternoon with our new friends

After an introductory chat, they decided to stay another day, a Sunday, on which we hung out all afternoon and evening, chatting, exchanging stories, and sharing popcorn and wine. It’s always nice to meet like-minded folks and we hope to run into them again soon, on the way to – or in – Patagonia.

Our camping spot in La Coronilla; away from the parking area
Maya is much happier on the bed than in the car, these days.

Our boondocking spot offered an “exotic” setting under palm trees, long walks on the beach, a decent view, and the sound of waves when falling asleep. It was quiet at night, so all three of us could rest up.

First beach walk with Maya in a long time!
One of many dead penguins along the Atlantic beaches
Atlantic beach scene
Would you dare cross this narrow footbridge?
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A Week of Vacation in the Black Forest of Germany

October 11, 2024 / / 27 Comments

Followers of this blog might have come across the names Griet and Wim in the past. My cousin and her husband are more than just family; they are friends and fellow travelers who have visited us on many occasions. Every year or two, they joined us on our sailing catamaran Irie in the tropics (once with their then teenage children), they stayed at a house sit in California, and, last fall, they traveled with us in Peru for three weeks. Whenever we are in Belgium, we spend a lot of time with them (two weekends this summer, involving beer brewing) and – when time permits – we go on trips together.

Since Mark, Maya, and I dedicated two full months in Belgium, we decided on a ten-day vacation in Germany and Liechtenstein with them. If you know us, traveling the world is our lifestyle; we combine chores, work, driving, visiting, and leisure. Vacation time – strangely enough – is rare. To be honest, this trip with Griet and Wim was my first real holiday in 21 years and Mark’s first week off, since he started his current job two years ago. So, it was a special occasion!

Hexenlochmühle in the Black Forest

Being from Belgium, it is hard to believe that I’d never set foot in the Black Forest! And, even my cousin and her husband had never vacationed in Germany before. Mainly because none of us speaks the language, although we did just fine and knew enough German to get by. Other than Mark. 😊

We broke up the 7-hour drive to the Black Forest with a walk and sandwich lunch stop at the popular and crowded Geierlay suspension bridge. It is the second-longest one in Germany.

(As always hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

The Geierlay Suspension Bridge
Mark walks Maya across the gorge on this narrow bridge.
Gorge that holds the suspension bridge
Wim and Griet on the suspension bridge

Our group spent four nights in the northern part of the region, in an apartment in Enzklösterle, which was surrounded by woods. Ideal for walks with Maya.

Morning walk with Mark and Maya in the forest
Soaking up the early sunrays
Forest walk near our first Airbnb

The Airbnb was well equipped and we especially liked the outdoor space. The weather was good enough to have happy hours on the balcony. We cooked some meals at home, often packed sandwich lunches. and ate out every other day or so. This routine kept the trip affordable.

View from our balcony in Enzklosterle
Relaxing on our porch in Enzklosterle (Photo courtesy of Griet Collaert)
Mark cooks dinner in our first Airbnb
One of our dinners at home in Enzklosterle
On chilly nights, we ate dinner inside

From Enzklösterle, we made daytrips to the surrounding villages and natural sites. Our rough schedule during those ten days was to leave around 9:30am and return by 5pm; quite busy for Mark and me.

Day one:

  • A viewpoint over the region

First view over the Black Forest

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Mendoza Province, Argentina, Part Two – Atuel Canyon & San Rafael

June 14, 2024 / / 27 Comments

Mark, Maya, and I would meet our Vermonster friends Heather and Jon in Tupungato, where we’d spent a few chilly nights previously, and travel together through Atuel Canyon and San Rafael for a week or two. If I complained about the cold in a previous blog post, well, winter seemed to have arrived early. That’s when living in a poorly insulated, solar-powered camper becomes less enjoyable.

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Winter arrived in Central Argentina
Snow!
It is freezing outside

Tupungato

After hugging our friends from Meat Around The World goodbye in Mendoza, our trio drove back south to Tupungato. We would have loved to meet Heather and Jon at Bodega Giaquinta to buy more wine, but the new, restricted opening times didn’t fit our schedule, so we returned to the municipal campground. Our friends would buy extra wine and meet us there.

It might be cold, but it is pretty!
Fall walk in the campground with Heather and Jon
Maya making a new friend
This cute girl loved Maya!

We parked in the same spot, were accompanied by the same, wagging dogs, and enjoyed more walks among the fall colors. But, by now, it was way too cold and cloudy to sit outside or walk to the shower block. We used our own amenities, filled up with drinking water afterwards, and managed to plug into the electric system of our friends. This allowed our Lithium battery to finally charge to 100% – a huge help – which hadn’t happened in six months or so!

And, another campground dog enjoying Maya’s company
Our battery is 100% full; an anomaly in our camper this season!

It was wonderful to see our friends again and spend more time together. On this first evening, Mark made ossobuco and squash risotto for the group. Delicious!

Ossobuco dinner in Bella with friends
Mark cooked ossobuco with a tomato-parsley sauce and squash risotto

Manzano Historico

It was grey and it was cold, so we weren’t in a rush to explore the canyon yet. On the drive to Manzano Historico, we made a brief stop at Bodega Azul. We managed a little wine tasting and bought a couple of bottles of wine (Mark and I really like their Chardonnay), but the place was expensive and fully booked for lunch, so the atmosphere wasn’t ideal. We moved on early afternoon.

Brief wine tasting session at acclaimed Bodega La Azul
Wine selection at La Azul

Little did we realize our next destination was even higher up… That dawned on us when I saw all the roofs in town were white and wondered why. Snow! To our horror, the picnic tables were covered with the white stuff when we pulled into the municipal campground. We needed the heater here during the day as well.

The roofs have snow on them
Driving through the vineyards of Central Argentina – The background shows snowy Andes mountains on a clear day
Camped in Manzano Historico and plugged into our friends electricity set-up
Heather and Liesbet dressed up for winter!
It has been ages since I made a snowman!
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Mendoza Province, Argentina, Part One – Mendoza City & Surroundings

May 28, 2024 / / 39 Comments

After spending two weeks in Santiago, the capital of Chile, Mark, Maya, and I headed towards Argentina again.

Mendoza Province in Argentina
Visited places in the north of Mendoza Province

Since we wanted an early start for the border procedure, we slept our last night at an extremely loud and busy fuel station, still in Chile, forgetting that we could have returned to a better spot in Argentina, before crossing the actual border.

Parked by a loud fuel station

You see, official formalities take place in one building for each country and these buildings are 16 miles (25 km) apart! When you leave Chile, you don’t have to stop at the Chilean border facilities and vice versa. So, you can drive into Argentina and camp, before checking into the country. As a matter of fact, the actual border is located in the Christ The Redeemer Tunnel, which cuts through the Andes.

The actual border between Chile and Argentina is in this tunnel

And, a provincial park that contains the tallest mountain in the Western and Southern Hemisphere, Aconcagua, is also located in Argentina before crossing the border. Confusing?

Aconcagua Provincial Park

Our “early start” actually didn’t help, because we still needed to drive an hour to the border, navigating the tight and plentiful switchbacks called Los Caracoles to reach the Los Libertadores pass.

(As always, click on or hover over photos in galleries to read their captions.)

The switchbacks of Los Caracoles
Ready to climb Los Caracoles
Following truck uphill on a nice day

This area, including the border, frequently closes in the winter months due to heavy snowfall and rock slides. As the busiest and most popular commercial border crossing between Chile and Argentina, you can imagine the delays this might cause. Luckily, all was fine when we passed through in late April, but a week later, the pass closed for the first time this winter season.

Looking down over the switchbacks, where road construction often causes big delays
Leaving Chile

On our drive, we also realized Aconcagua had to be seen and stopped at before the border formalities. I had hoped to do a hike here, but dogs weren’t allowed, you had to book ahead of time, it was freezing and super windy outside, and we had no idea how long the crossing would take. So, we briefly stopped for a free viewpoint and overlook of this majestic mountain.

The scenery in this part of Argentina is stunning!
Sign for the tallest mountain in the Western and Southern Hemisphere
A glimpse of Aconcagua

Los Libertadores crossing into Argentina

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Monthly Expenses of a Nomad in South America – April 2024 (Argentina & Chile)

May 7, 2024 / / 17 Comments

Expenses - image

Every month, I post a report of our expenses to show that it is possible to live a comfortable, exciting, and adventurous life without breaking the bank. The less money you spend, the less you need to make. 🙂

This report includes ALL of our expenses, in US$, for two adults and one 60-pound dog (we adopted Maya on June 4th, 2019). Under groceries we incorporate food, produce, and non-alcoholic drinks predominantly bought in supermarkets. Toiletries belong in that category as well. Dining out means eating at a restaurant/event or purchasing take-out food. The health category covers non-prescription medicines and vitamins/supplements; medical contains prescription drugs and doctor’s visits. Because of our income level, Mark and I are eligible for free health care within the state of Massachusetts. For check-ups and extensive care, we return to the US East Coast. Other health issues are resolved locally  and out of pocket where needed and possible.

In April, Mark, Maya, and I divided our time between Argentina and Chile in our truck camper Thirsty Bella. We made some headway south, to Mendoza, and decided to hop over to Santiago de Chile for car maintenance. After two weeks in Chile, we slowly drove back to the Mendoza area in Argentina.

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Rock formation along the highway
Roads in the valley
Police checkpoint
Descending a crazy mountain when arriving in Chile
Approaching the Chilean border which is located past a tunnel and the actual border line
Driving back towards Argentina
And then, we had to drive back up the zigzag road towards Argentina
Following a semi truck up, up, up
The trees are changing color in Central Argentina!

Our car category was huge; over $1,100 in total! A lot of that went to fuel, as always, but the biggies last month were two new tires ($326) with a $26 installation and balancing fee, a new battery for the engine ($137), and an oil change at a garage, which we did ourselves ($92). We also bought seven quarts of oil extra for our next time ($80). Mark found a spot to store those in one of our utility boxes.

Oil change in Santiago
Installing our new car battery in Santiago
The balancing of our new tires in Santiago
Attaching Bella back onto Thirsty
One of the two brand-new “Chilean” tires
Thirsty’s engine takes around 7 quarts of oil & we bought an extra 7 for next time

We paid a total of $11 in tolls and spent some pesos on parking in Santiago when leaving the camper behind and for our rental car in Valparaiso.

Cost for a full tank of gas in Argentina: $105
Topping up with fuel in Argentina before crossing the border
Gasoline is still much more expensive in Chile than in Argentina, so we filled a 5-gallon jerrycan as well, before the border crossing.

Groceries were quite expensive in April as well. We joined a couple of potlucks, prepared a special dinner for seven, made daily walks to the fancy grocery store Jumbo in Santiago, and splurged on some goodies at the El Milagro vineyard early on.

Goodies bought at the shop of El Milagro
Buying groceries at Lider
Fantastic produce stand in Santiago
Potluck with a group of international friends (Photo courtesy of Richie Gubler)
Mark and Maya wait for me to get some shopping done in the mall
The massive Jumbo grocery store
Mark prepares a fabulous pasta dinner for our group in Santiago
The meal easily filled us all up and we had leftovers!

We bought wine in both countries, since, you know, we are in wine heaven here. The Santiago area is well-known for the red grape, Carmenere, and Central Argentina produces fabulous Torrontes (white) and Malbec (red or tinto in Spanish) wines. Mark and I enjoy them all. We used half of a $25 “drinking out” donation for three bottles of wine at the store.

Free wine tasting at El Milagro
Tasty wine from Bodega El Milagro
A great little stop along our drive south
Happy hour with new friends Kilian and Marcia
A great bottle of Carmemere for $3, recommended to us by Abigail
Happy hour with more friends

While in Chile, we decided to buy one more bag of dogfood for Maya, since that’s the place where we can find her Taste of the Wild – Pacific Stream for a “decent” price ($66 for 12kg/26lbs) and we were one bag down. Also, our remaining bags are bigger than the new one and we don’t want to leave open bags of food in the camper during our summer escapade to the US and Belgium. Maya’s new toy lasted all of ten minutes!

Waiting to order our preferred bag of dogfood online to obtain a discount
Maya’s dogfood
Mark and Maya play with her new toy
It didn’t take long before Maya destroyed the rope toy.

We didn’t go out for dinner much in April; twice, one of which was a take-out pizza in Santiago the day of our arrival ($13) and the other a lunch in Valparaiso ($12). Both times took place in Chile, which, believe it or not, is now cheaper than Argentina for most things. The devaluation of the Argentinian peso is still worsening, leading to continued price increases. We didn’t eat out here at all, last month, and cooked almost all our meals at home. The other $25 in the report was a delayed credit card charge for a dinner out in March.

Take-out pizza in Santiago ($13)
Gnocchi – pesto meal at home
Mark grilled a few meals in April
Many snacks and drinks were consumed at home in April.

Some of our followers have been generous with one $25 dining out donation (which we will use this month) and two “$25 for drinks” donations, most of which we will enjoy in May as well. For the first time ever, someone walked by our camper (in Santiago de Chile), noticed our Massachusetts license plates, checked out this blog, and treated us online to drinks, because he is also from our state! Thank you to all our supporters, followers, readers. and contributors!

Our propane tank is a tight fit in the cubby hole
Walking to the store in San Juan to get our propane tank filled
The friendly family that helped us out with propane gas

As usual, $35 went to our Starlink subscription, while the other half is paid by our business. And, we topped up the propane tank for $10 in San Juan, Argentina. That usually lasts three months. We managed to fill our water tank multiple times for free in April as well.

Our water thief didn’t work so well here, as I got soaking wet from the back push and spray
Adding more water into our tank in Santiago
Free water fill along the road

Transportation costs consisted of splitting a rental car for the day with our friends from Meat Around The World, to explore Valparaiso (see next blog post) and the expensive fuel to get there – they paid for the tolls and we covered parking – and a useless taxi drive in Santiago. We were dropped off in the wrong place and had to walk back!

Mark ordered household items and camper parts on Amazon in the US, to fix a few things upon our return next September and we bought a new frying pan and spray bottles in Chile. Did I mention yet that anything imported on this continent is cheaper there than in Argentina?

The mall near us in Santiago, that contains every shop we could have wanted
New non-stick frying pan for the galley

We also paid $12 for two baskets of dirty laundry in Uspallata, Argentina, after waiting through the weekend because the laundromat wasn’t open and hearing from our friends that this cost $2 six months ago! Not willing to spend even more, Mark and I washed a basket-size worth of linen and clothes by hand in river water.

A massive bag of dirty laundry!
This is where we dropped off our dirty laundry in Uspallata
Hanging our hand laundry to dry in the strong sun and dry air of Uspallata

The other categories were low. Entertainment ($7) was had on two different transportation methods in Chile, namely a cable car in Santiago and two old-style elevators (ascensores) in Valparaiso. Mark ordered an app for his tablet and I needed throat medicines after being sick for over a week. A bad bug/cough had me in its grip for two weeks. Once, we had to leave our quiet camping spot in nature to find a pharmacy in town.

A cable car ride to the top of the hill
Mark, Maya, and I shared a car along this line
Our friends traveled in the cable car behind us.
One of the old elevators we took in Valparaiso
The two elevators work in unison – one comes down, while the other one goes up along a steel cable
View from our elevator going up

The only money Mark and I spent on drinking out was $3 at a pricey café in Valparaiso, where we split a juice. We also gave a small donation to the firemen (bomberos) and had our car sprayed for $1 at an agriculture spot.

Sticker from the firemen in return for our donation
Fumigation station in Argentina
We paid $1 to get the underside of our car fumigated

We boondocked the entire month and therefore camping was free for us in April.

Our attractive camping spot in El Mollar over Easter
One-night stop at the park of Catamarca
Overnight spot on our drive south in Argentina
Free night at El Milagro winery
Free parking and camping in San Martin Park in Mendoza
Camped in front of colorful mountains before crossing into Central Chile
Parked among a row of other campers for two weeks in Santiago
Last (free) night in Chile, at a super busy and loud fuel station
Quiet, but chilly spot along a river, back in Argentina
A nice, grassy camping spot in Uspallata, Argentina
Our last night of April was spent along a river towards Mendoza

Our total was high again, but most of the $1,844 went to car maintenance and fuel, which were needed and made us feel productive. Without that vehicle attention, we’d have been back at our monthly average. After reaching the high numbers in that category, we really refrained from splurges and eating out. We will see what May brings!

Our group on the last night together in Santiago: Mark, Liesbet, Richie, Abigail, Zoe, Heather, Jon, and Maya

April 2024 Overview:

Car (maint.: $655; fuel: $432; tolls: $11; parking: $8):

Groceries:

Alcohol:

Dog (food: $66; toy: $4):

Dining out:

Utilities (Starlink internet: $35; propane: $10):

Transportation (rental car: $29; taxi: $4):

Camper (tape, drain USA):

Household (blade, pan, spray bottles):

Laundry:

Entertainment (elevator, cable car):

Computer (tablet app M):

Medical (meds L):

Drinking out:

Miscellaneous:

Camping:

 

TOTAL:

 

$1,106

$384

$74

$70

$50

$45

$33

$27

$24

$12

$7

$4

$3

$3

$2

$0

———

$ 1,844

(It might be easier to read the table when turning your device in the horizontal position.)

Find all our expense reports here. To learn what other full-time nomads spend each month, check out the blogs of our vanlife friends Duwan and Greg at Make Like An Ape Man.

Next up: A colorful day trip from Santiago to Valparaiso, Chile.

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A Month in Northern Argentina – Dusty Towns, Pretty Vineyards, Wonderful Wine & Scenic Drives

April 21, 2024 / / 45 Comments

“The scenery is amazing!” “The people are so friendly here!” “Everything just works!” “Argentina is dirt cheap!” – These were the sentiments shared by fellow overlanding friends when they arrived in Argentina, many months before we did. People loved the change of scenery, culture, attitude, and quality of life, once they crossed that “last” border.

View of a windy mountain road in Northern Argentina
A dusty neighborhood near our camping spot in Maimara
Many old cars litter Cafayate’s streets

Mark and I couldn’t wait to visit. But, sometimes, slow travel bites you in the butt. In March 2024, when the three of us finally arrived in Northern Argentina, prices for everything had doubled, if not tripled or quadrupled, and the excitement of other travelers was lost on us. Because we are on a tight budget? Because we travel with a dog? Because we came from “westernized” Chile with immaculate paved roads, leashed dogs, friendly drivers, clean cities, and modern feel?

Argentinian money comes in many colors and denominations – the biggest one being 2,000 pesos ($2) and the smallest one being 10 pesos (1 cent). The 1,000-peso bill is used the most. There are no coins!
The longest line at an ATM (cash machine) we have ever seen ocured in Tilcara
Line for an ATM in Cafayate

In a nutshell: We had expectations when we crossed the border (and that was our mistake, really; we know better than to have expectations). Yet, what we – initially – found were dusty towns, lots of trash, dangerously grooved roads, ear-piercingly loud motorcycles, the smell of burnt garbage, and loose dogs. There were also a lot of indigenous people, unlike in Chile. Northern Argentina felt like an extension of Peru and Bolivia, and it was NOT cheap.

Maya is sick of the barking, loose dogs and doesn’t want to budge anymore.
Loose dogs on every road in every town of Northern Argentina
Some loose dogs in the park next to our camper in Cafayate

Apart from those experiences as vehicle drivers, long-term travelers, and dog owners, of course there was beauty, joy, and excitement to be found as well. Why else would we still be on the road?

Our destinations in Northern Argentina

Susques

After a beautiful drive, a smooth and efficient border crossing in Pasa Jama, and a disappointing money exchange (our crisp U$100 bills weren’t as crisp as we thought, and the blue dollar “tourist” rate had dropped a lot), we spent our first night near the town of Susques, which has a cute adobe church.

Welcome to Argentina!
The one administrative building that houses all the stops and officials for a border crossing into Argentina
Ready with all the paperwork

Here, we had to choose between the famously pretty but bumpy Ruta 40 South or the paved comfort of Ruta 68. We picked the easy solution and are happy we did as it delivered beauty in the form of scenery and new friends.

Cute adobe church of Susques
The unique interior of the adobe church.
The famous Ruta 40 starts in Susques, next to the restaurant we spent our first night at.

Salinas Grandes

Before reaching our first real tourist town, we stopped at the salt flats of Salinas Grandes. We’d hoped to visit the Ojos, clear pools in the middle of the Salar, on a short van tour, but because of recent rains, this part was too wet to drive on. So, the three of us just walked around the salty terrain with its clear-blue canals – and Maya was a mess!

I believe these channels are formed from mining the salt.
One of the clear canals of the salt flats
Taking Maya for a salty walk on Salinas Grandes
One of the mountains is reflected on the wet salt flats

Purmamarca

In Purmamarca, we only anticipated a hike among the colored mountains. It was a hot afternoon, but the fee for the trail was low and the surroundings bright and attractive. When returning via the center of town, we liked it so much that we decided to spend the night on the sloped parking lot we had pulled into earlier. The pleasant atmosphere of downtown – and the prospect of dinner at a pizza restaurant that didn’t open until 8 pm – had us change plans.

Purmamarca is famous for its colored mountains
Colorful hills surround the trail in Purmamarca
Hiking under a hot sun in Purmamarca
Colorful and hot walk with Maya
Splurging on an excellent pizza and tasty bottle of wine at a local restaurant
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An Eventful Three Weeks in Northern Chile – As Overlanders

March 23, 2024 / / 38 Comments

When the three of us left Uyuni, there were two options to exit Bolivia. Initially, like all our overlanding friends, we planned to take the southern route to Argentina, a country everyone raves about. We realized, however, that this meant missing out on Valle de las Rocas and the northern part of Chile.

“At which border will you leave Bolivia?” the vet asked. He needed to know the answer for Maya’s health certificate details. “Ollagüe, Chile,” we said and our fate was sealed.

Ollagüe

The border crossing on February 12th was easy and straightforward. Mark and I had eaten most of our perishables, leaving us with an empty fridge and meager food pantry. We checked out of Bolivia after scanning a QR code, filling out forms, and receiving the exit stamp. There was some confusion, since we each had two entry stamps, due to our border run from Peru, a few months ago.

Leaving Bolivia
Walking to the Bolivian customs and immigration building to check out of the country.
Welcome to Chile!

We received new passport stamps for the new country, obtained a Chilean TIP (Temporary Import Permit) for the vehicle, and handed over Maya’s international health certificate. Another agriculture official entered the camper and – before he started opening cabinets – I asked him which items were prohibited: fresh meats, fish, eggs, honey, and produce. I gave him whatever we had left of one onion and a lime. Then, we chatted about his experiences as a border agent, Afghanistan veteran, and dog owner.

The roads in Chile are amazing!

From the moment we entered Chile, the bumpy, gravel road surface turned into beautiful, smooth asphalt. A joy! We stopped in the town of Ollagüe to find local money and vegetables. We failed on both accounts, but managed to fill our tanks with potable water.

Topping up with potable water in Ollagüe

The volcano route

Another reason we picked this border crossing was the appeal of a scenic drive in the high Andes, past lakes, altiplano (high plains), and volcanoes. Unfortunately, the weather was cloudy and rainy. The views could have been better (where were the anticipated snowy tops?), but we still enjoyed the ride and camping spots and ate whatever we could scamper from the cabinets. There were no stores, banks, or fuel stations along this multiple-day trip. At least we weren’t spending any money.

Flamingos in the salt pond
Cloud cover over the snowy volcanoes
Lots of vicunas at our first camp spot in the Chilean Andes
Meager ingredients for dinner – Mark picks out the carrots of a jalapeno can to eat more vegetables.

We could have sped up towards the city of Calama, really not that far away, but we wanted to cherish the surroundings and take our time. Mark, Maya, and I climbed one of the small volcanoes before breakfast one morning. I admit to seriously miscalculating this effort at over 13,000ft (4,000m). I had read this excursion would take 20 minutes up and 15 minutes down. Right. For fit millennials maybe…

Parked between two volcanoes

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Two Otherworldly Highlights in Bolivia – Salar de Uyuni & Valle de las Rocas

February 25, 2024 / / 27 Comments

Salar & Valle de las Rocas in Bolivia

Salar de Uyuni

Salar de Uyuni – or Salar de Tunupa (the local Quechua people prefer to call the area by its original name) – is located 20 minutes north of Uyuni and is the largest salt flat in the world. It measures 12,000 km2, which, to put it in perspective, is a bit over 1/3 the size of Belgium and four times the surface of Luxembourg. For Americans, Rhode Island fits three times into this Salar and Delaware twice – and New Jersey is twice as big.

(As always, click on or hover over photos in galleries to read their captions.)

Salt, salt, and salt
Mark and “our” Land Cruiser on the Salar
Cool textures
Salt, as far as you can see

Many overlanders prefer to drive and camp on this white, vast surface, usually stopping when they can’t see anything but salt around them. A trip on the salt flat with your own vehicle offers a lot of freedom, solitude, and fun, but it also requires protecting the undercarriage from all that destructive salt and giving it a detailed and thorough cleaning in the end. In the dry season. Once the wet season has started in Bolivia, taking your own home on wheels is a bad idea, because the (wet) salt will get anywhere and destroy everything it touches, over time. Plus, some parts of this area are closed when (too) wet.

Reflection pool on the salt flat

With that in mind, Mark, Maya, and I booked a tour for the day. Even better, we arranged a private excursion for our little family to give Maya (who was recovering from a nasty dog bite) enough comfort and space, and to allow us the privacy and freedom of a trip tailored to just the three of us. We could tell our guide wherever we wanted to go on the Salar, what to skip or limit, and whenever we wanted to move on. And, to be honest, at twice the price of a group tour ($120 for the three of us instead of $60), we believed it was worth the splurge. ????

Eusevio eating coca leaves to stay alert
Prepping for lunch
Maya had a lot of space during the drives
Driving on the salt flat

Our tour started at 10:30am, would finish after sunset, around 8pm, and included lunch and drinks. We decided to skip stop one (the Train Cemetery where we had been living, exploring, and photographing for four days already) and made stop two (salt processing tour and artisanal markets) shorter, for an earlier start on the Salar. A massive rain storm was threatening, so I wanted to stay ahead of that!

Salt block from the Salar
Packaging the salt for consumers

Once on the salt flat, the fun could begin! We stopped by the Ojos de Agua, which our Spanish-speaking guide, Eusevio, called the “breath” of the Salar. Water bubbled up from below, as if something was breathing under the surface.

Bubbles in the Salar
Ojos de Agua

He encouraged us to employ a local guy to take “forced perspective” photos of us and Maya. Since that was affordable, we obliged.

Big Maya, tiny Mark
Posing on a bottle of rum
We love Flor de Cana rum
Monster Maya
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Biking down Death Road in Bolivia – The World’s Most Dangerous Road

February 10, 2024 / / 33 Comments

Mark, Maya, and I had just started our camp host duties at Las Lomas in La Paz, Bolivia, at the end of December 2023 and our Canadian friends Sheri and Jeff were with us in their truck camper. Jeff and I had done a couple of crazy things in South America so far, like jump off a bridge in Baños, Ecuador, and order patitas from a toothless street vendor in La Paz. If you follow our Roaming About page on Facebook, you might remember that shocking food discovery. If not, I suggest you Google what patitas are. 🙂

An “official” stand for patitas
Don’t these look yummy?

So, when Jeff was looking for an adventurous buddy to bike down the World’s Most Dangerous Road, which is located near La Paz, the only thing that kept me from joining was the tour price of around US$70. Then I remembered I still had gift money from my parents. The game was on!

Group shot above a valley

The two of us did a bit of research into tour companies (these daytrips range from $60-$120), picked a middle-of-the-road agency with good reviews (Vertigo), and booked our mountain bike tour for December 29th. There was one problem, however: the company needed at least three participants to set out on Death Road. Luckily, we had a full campground by then and I succeeded in arranging a group of seven people to participate: six bicyclists and one sightseer.

Our transportation to and support vehicle on Death Road
Time to test our gear and start the day!
Impressive mountain scenery

The official name of Death Road is North Yungas Road. Its other famous nickname of The World’s Most Dangerous Road was appointed in 1995 after 200 to 300 people died yearly in accidents, usually from vehicles falling off the steep cliffs. The road is gravel and narrow, single-lane in most places, with barely a guardrail or space to pull over.

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One Month in La Paz, Bolivia – As Campground Hosts

February 2, 2024 / / 29 Comments

The Opportunity

When we first arrived at Las Lomas Campground in La Paz, Bolivia, on Christmas Day, we couldn’t wait to leave. It had been a pain to get here, the nasty approach caused damage to the camper before we arrived, the place was busy and tight, and we had an engine problem.

Location of La Paz in Bolivia
Big and colorful La Paz sign

Soon, however, the cozy environment grew on us. When we learned the owner, Marcos, was leaving on vacation for one month the next day and could use an overlander couple to watch his property and manage the campground, we made a quick decision. We committed to the job. Free camping with amenities in exchange for running this small (and at that moment quiet) business seemed fair – and our trio was more than ready for a break from the road!

(As always, hover over or click on photos in galleries to read their captions.)

The patio and communal buildings
The communal living and dining room
The kitchen
One of the two bathrooms

The Campground Tasks

The first day we were “on duty,” only our Canadian friends Jeff and Sheri were here. We could get used to this! Being responsible for a small property and a couple of buildings we kept tidy, and sitting outside in the sun, chatting, lying low…

Full campground
Drone footage of Las Lomas Campground, early January 2024
Thomas and Sandra leave for their next adventure
Katherine is all geared up for her next trip
Watching our friends Katherine and Brandon leave for the umpteenth time. When will we see them again? Chile or Argentina?
Saying goodbye often is part of this lifestyle

Then, one after another camper showed up and soon, the place was filled to the brim with German and French visitors. Mark and I played Tetris to fit them all onto the property. Someone needed to spend their first night on the street, since there was no more room inside. And, when one vehicle wanted to leave, others had to move around and exit the gate to accommodate the departing campers. That was the scene for a good two weeks, over and after the holidays.

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