Solar de Uyuni, Bolivia - Day 1

So today was the start of one of the best tours that I took in South America. A 3 day tour of Bolivia’s salt flats and beautiful lagoons in a 4x4 truck, with food and lodging was only $100 dollars. Granted the accommodations were a bit rough, with no heat and the first place did not have shower facilities, but we had people on the tour ranging in age from 25 to late 60s and everybody survived and enjoyed themselves.

On the tour that day, we visited the desert that inspired Vincent Van Gogh’s art work, volcanic geysers overflowing with mud and steam, and saw a tornado approaching us through the desert. We also explored a couple lagoons which were so vividly brilliant that they appeared to be painted vibrant hues of blue, green, white, and red. Complimenting the beautiful water colors were towering mountain scenes and masses of magnificent flamingoes. I’ve never seen so many animals of one species in one place at one time. Couple that with the amazing scenery and you are driven into visual sensory overload. Of course a picture can only get a fraction of what the eye can see so while the pictures that I have on this tour are stunning, the in person experience was exponentially better.

Trying to move around for your first couple days at high altitudes, 3000 meters is where you first start of feel some of the altitude symptoms, is like trying to run a marathon while carrying a horse who is kicking you in the head. You take five steps and have to stop, completely winded, hunched over trying to catch your breath, while a headache constantly pounds your skull. Sleeping at that altitude is a totally different matter. We had to sleep at 4200 meters on the first day and with no previous altitude exposure it was really difficult. The best way that I can describe it is to use a simile - sleeping at 4200 meters is like trying to breathe through a straw while a baby elephant performs back flips on your chest.

Solar de Uyuni, Bolivia - Day 1