Chile - Across the Altiplanicos and into Bolivia

The main part of my adventures in the north were covered by a four day trip across the altiplanico national parks and the salt flats in Bolivia, driving across gravel tracks in rickety 4x4s. We climed higher and higher into the thin, cold mountain air, passing colourful lagoons full of bright pink flamingos, bare mountain vistas, and vast swathes of redish sand. The air smelled dusty and salty, mixed with the bitter, nauseating tang of sulfur whenever we passed a hot spring or some geysers.  During the day, the sun burned down blindigly bright, while the cold willed chilled us to the bones. At night, temperautes dropped well below freezing, rewarding us with clear, star-studded skies and a gentle pink sunrise.