I got to San Salvador de Jujuy, Argentina.
One week ago, on Sunday, I set off from Calma. I wasn`t very sure whether to cycle this part to San Pedro de Atacama or try to get o ride with a pickup, because I knew what was waiting for me - 100 km of nothing, just Stefan, rocks, air and sun. For 40 km I was faceing it, fighting the heat and front wind. But being able to see the next 35 km of highway, I decided it was enough - so I got on a pickup all the way to San Pedro de Atacama. The Desert of Atacama is known all around the world as being the driest place on the globe (the lowest levels of rainfall are measured here). But the village is an oasis for travellers, a tourist hole with a specific hippie atmosphere. I got a room for 3000 pesos (4,5 USD) and took a walk. On Monday, at 4 o`clock in the morning I went on a daily tour with a minibus to El Titio Geysers, similar to those in Sol de Mañana from Bolivia - a field of geysers and thermal basins surrounded by smoke spewing volcanoes. It was very interesting, especially because we got there at sunrise and it was a breath-takeing show when the geysers spewd out water vapour in the deep shining sun. After haveing breakfast with the others from the group, I went to a pool, where I took a bath. It was a very interesting experience at over 4600 m height to enter this sulfury thermal water... Getting back to San Pedro at noon, I took the bike and followed the way to the nearby Valle de la Luna, without luggage excepting some water and little food. The wind was blowing again very strong. But the landscape is really moon-like - a fossil, extremly eroded valley with interesting formations making it a bizarre landscape with sand dunes and extreme ravines. I did the whole circuit, about 42 km. And despite the fact I wasn't carrying any luggage, the wind proved again to be extremely difficult to face.
Tuesday, after having my bike cleaned, I headed towards Argentina to Paso Jama. I had to climb 35 km, up to the base of the Licancabur volcano, which I had seen 2 weeks ago from the Bolivian side. The road climbs from 2460 m (San Pedro) to 4500m. For 10 km, I got pulled by a truck until I realized that the hand I was using to hold the truck was getting longer and longer. It was also the fact that I had climbed to 4000 m suddenly. I had to eat something first and than I took a sleep on the road for about one hour. The next kilometers were very slowly, I was tired and was pushing a lot. I had this stupid situations again: 5-6 pedalings, stoping then for some breaths, pushing again for 100 m, stoping, drinking water etc…. Finally, when I finished the first climb, I road 20 more km with strong backwind to a place where I pitched my tent. The landscape is amazing. I had forgotten the tiredness and was very proud of myself for being again at this high altitude riding the bike. The snow-capped peaks of the volcanoes, the different colors of the rocks and the wind blowing from behind, all these raised my moral.
The place where I pitched the tent was hidden from wind, but there was a lot of sand. Although I had a calm night, from time to time my nose got frozen, so I had to cower it again to fall back to sleep. I packed the water in my clothes so it wouldn 't freeze. In the morning, I woke up with a clear sky and continued for Paso Jama, the border crossing with Argentina. The road passes by some salt lakes where I could see flamingos. An easy climb for 8 km comes next to the Parque Nacional Los Flamencos, the point with the highest altitude reached so far (4722 m) and then the road descends for 50-60 km, down to Paso Jama. On the first part of the downhill I reached a new speed record: 93,7 km/h...
100 km far from the place I had slept, I got to the borderpoint Paso Jama. I even slept there, aside with the Argentinean custom officers, who fed me and also gave me a mattress to sleep on. I got my passport stamped only after a confirmation from Buenos Aires, as they have hardly seen anybody with a consular visa in the passport. On Wednesday, I only made 32 km. My back carrier got broken. It's not that I couldn't have followed my way, but here the road wasn't paved and had been recently mended with a machine, so I had deep sand again - a hard job riding this. I was mostly going beside the road. You should know that between San Pedro de Atacama and Susques, the only place to water supply is the border point, as the whole area is not populated.
A van gave me a ride to the closest village, where I found a welder who fixed the carrier. Now it is more stabile and I have more place at my heels for pedaling.
Yesterday, from Susques, after a 5 km climb the road easily descends for the next 32 km, through a valley full of cactuses, than pampa and the Salinas Grandes salar. I slept on the climb to Cuesta Lipan, in the yard of the only house in that area. Today I had a 4 km climb, what was missing for the Cuesta Lipan pass and some 30 km of sinuous descending from 4100 m to Purmamarca. Here, I ate a real argentinian barbeque and then set off to Jujuy. After 10 km, I was bored of cycling and wanted no more - this WIIIIIIIND was killing my nervs. Within 20 km the vegetation completely changes, from an andine one (with tiny herbs and bushes) it changes to a subtropical forest. And it`s hot here with a very humid air.
I`m staying at a hotel, paying less then 3 USD (10 pesos). Argentina has become a very cheap country for travellers after the economic crash in 2001, when the government had to give up the currency board with the US dollar.
The facts so far: 2065 km riding the bike, about 450 truck-tourism. From this place, I`m leaving to Salta, Tucuman and Mendoza. I'm not going to travel only by bike because a lot of uninteresting pampa is to be crossed. My goal is now to get as soon as I can to the southern part of the continent, which is greener and where I can find FORESTS.
