Tupiza Passage

We heard him whinnying out there, just sending up a disgruntled mess of snorting and whinnying. We decided that he needed to understand that we were staying put; we decided to scare him off. So we got on our shoes and emerged from the tents with headlamps blazing, running toward the noise in the darkness. We could just make him out in the distance, standing and watching us. We hurled obscenities and a few other items. He trotted off and didn't come back.

Last night was the coldest night yet. I slept with two of my water bottles next to me to prevent them from freezing. I had a hat on my head and pulled the mummy portion of the bag over my head. As the night got colder, I drew the sleeping bag's drawstring tight to create just a small hole through which to breathe, then no hole at all. I closed all of the tent's ventilation openings. We are sleeping above 14,200 feet.

The sun warms things up quickly. Once we've breakfasted on a few meagre provisions, we saddle up and continue west by southwest. We want to reach Quetena Chico today. It should be of a similar size to San Antonio de Lipez. It will be a very welcome oasis.

The 4x4s come over us as we are pulling our gear together. They are in a rush today, presumably trying to reach Laguna Verde having left San Antonio at 3 or 4 in the morning. None stop to chat.

By about noon we are traversing a plain that leads down from some gigantic peaks to our left. There are a few crossroads here. We stop to take measure of our location, and to contemplate the large peaks. Wait a minute. Those are the two cones of Uturuncu. They correspond exactly to the maps. We had been expecting to approach them from Quetena Chico, and we are today expecting to reach Quetena Chico.

Uturuncu

Those two peaks, and more importantly the saddle between them, where the sulphur mine sits at the top of a purported road – the world's highest, are pretty unappealing now. After the incredibly difficult journey from Tupiza thus far, additional efforts are hard to contemplate. We decide to leave it to Quetena Chico and reassess then.

By 12:45 we hit a work camp which has the makings of a park entrance of some kind. We are probably on the edge of some nature reserve.

Shortly after passing this area we come into view of a group of people doubled-over in the road. What on earth are they doing? As we reach them we see that they are grading the road, using hand tools. Incredible.

Road grading

Here the road ascends a steep mountainside to a pass. More first-gear stuff. We have to peel down for these climbs. At the top, you dress up again and prepare for a frostier downhill section.

We are expecting to see the settlement anywhere here but there is no sign of it. And no sign for it, as usual. By mid-afternoon the road is following a creek bed, which makes a sudden turn left, and the traveller has to cross the stream. We look across the stream and can make out some buildings in the distance: Quetena Chico.

It's a 2:30 arrival so we have some time to shoot some photos and find a restaurant without worrying much about accommodations. We don't want another San Antonio experience.

We ask someone in the street about a restaurant. He says there aren't any, but he knows of a woman who will cook en-spec. He takes us to her.

We knock at her door and find a very sweet-natured woman, slightly tentative, but entrepreneurial enough to plough through the cultural and linguistic barriers. We agree a time for lunch, and another for dinner, and another for breakfast. She says she is happy to go through with it so long as we understand that this isn't 'comida turista' – she will be making fried llama, rice and chips; not chicken or beef. Fine by us – we want to try llama anyway.

Bifstek de llama

We enjoy the generous quantities of food and heaps of tea and coffee on top.

We have no trouble finding a room in one of the hospedajes catering to the tour groups.

Landmark	time*	temp (°C)	odometer (kms)	altitude (m)**
Camp -- Salt Flat	10:00 am	?	0	4316
Park Entrance	12:44 pm	37	11	3982
Cuesta	1:14 pm	34	14	4152
Quetana Chico	2:30 pm	18	25	3987

Read the day's journal entry.