MOON VALLEY - ATACAMA DESERT - CHILE

Atacama Desert….Majestic, impressive, desolated, Martian… many words have been used to describe Moon Valley, in the Atacama Desert of Chile. And in hindsight, even now, I still struggle to find better words. It is impossible, because Moon Valley is beyond words. remember anxiously waiting for my plane to travel from from Santiago de Chile to Calama and felt like a hungry diner, sitting at a feast table. I just could not wait to head north and start my adventure .I had promised myself to visit this place when I was still a happy, worry free teenage It was honest to say this place had been calling me for almost 20 years! Moon Valley Valle de La Luna Chile
Moon Valley (Valle de la Luna) and Death Valley (Valle de la Muerte) are the very core of the Atacama Desert, the driest desert in the world!  This place is world famous for its moon surface appearance, reddish, rocky mountains, amazing formations, giant dunes, crystalized salt and sand… infinite, endless, lifeless sand.

I made my journey in February, which was summer time in the Southern Hemisphere.If you don’t feel like walking around in 40ºC, maybe it would be advisable to make it in June or July… anyway… one thing is for sure… you won’t get any rain! Moon Valley Valle de la Luna Chile
After a couple of hours my plane landed in Calama, a city stranded in the middle of nowhere. From there, it was just a 40 minutes ride to San Pedro de Atacama, an enchanting, picturesque, desert village, absolutely mimicked against the aridness of the area with its one-story, mostly brown, clay buildings. I felt myself in the filming studio of an old desert movie… just without the camels. In San Pedro de Atacama, a few old and tall Bell Pepper trees can save the traveler from the merciless heat in the hottest hours of the day. Moon Valley Valle de la Luna Chile

Yet, the narrow, dusty streets (more alleys than streets, really) are full of cheerful and relaxed tourists in shorts and sandals, wandering about the wide variety of restaurants and travel agencies, flicking through leaflets and booking the most famous and other not so famous tour destinations. The possibilities seem endless here… biking, horseback ridding, sandboarding, star watching or the more traditional tours which will pick you up at your hotel and take you to one or another breathtaking spot. If you are one of those people who like to go on your own, well…. you are in the middle of the driest desert in the world… keep that in mind! Atacama Desert. Atacama desert

You can try your chances with the altitude at Tatio Geysers , an impressive geo-thermal area comprised of geysers, hot springs, boiling muds pools and fumaroles, at 4,320 meters.. Or you can go up to the pristine turquoise Andean Lagoons praying for flamingos to pose for your lens. Others will offer to take you to the most ancient human settlement ruins, salt flats, hot springs, highland villages… you name it! Atacama desert

Anyway… My first and sacred mission was: Moon Valley so, all the rest had to wait! Simply walking to book my tour, a sudden dizziness reminded me that I was almost at 2500 meters. and maybe I should restrain my impatience and slow down! On the next day we would leave at 03.00 pm… What??! At 03.00 pm!! With the highest temperature?? Okay… I was there for my desert adventure and what is desert if not a synonym for extremes!

Arriving, I felt as if I had literally dropped off on planet Mars, when they told us to get off the bus at Death Valley. The guide explained to us that we had to walk for 45 minutes … he assured us we couldn’t get lost, if we just followed the path and they would be waiting for us at the other end. I, innocently, listened to his instructions and, being the good girl I am, I never left the road!

Step after step I was overwhelmed for this harsh but beautiful thirsty place… the dunes, the rocks, the different shades of colors… from brown to orange, from purple to yellow, I was taking photos like a possessed, trying to take in the wonder before my eyes, trying to capture every detail to share with my friends back home… and maybe, like a desert version of Little Red Ridding Hood, I got distracted and lost track of time! Did I have to be on the other end in 45 minutes? Where were the others? Oh no! Atacama desert

I had to put my camera aside and start walking fast… hurrying in the hottest hour, in the driest desert in the world, in a place called Death Valley… might not be the best idea… After 30 minutes I already felt like a bug about to be crashed by the Sun God’s burning foot! Moon valley Moon valley

Only 500 cc of water proved not to be enough (absolutely not enough!) and I finally, I made it!  Wasn’t that the best way to get a real feel of why it’s called “Death” Valley?! Moon Valley Atacama Chile

From there we headed to a different part of the valley, were the main attractions are stunning rock formations patiently sculpted by erosion through thousands of years. After we took our photographic chances we got on the bus again and finally we were off to the Moon Valley! My heart was pounding so fast! I was there! Yeeeeyyyyyy! Moon Valley Atacama Chile

All of a sudden we entered the valley and the bus seemed to shrink to ant size! We were surrounded by the majestic Amphitheater, a colossal orange mountain-like formation with a 40 meter tall vertical wall, part of the so called “Salt Mountain range” (Cordillera de la Sal) This time we all slowly climbed up to the top of a hill, right in front of the highest sand dune (Duna Mayor) and waited there for the sunset.  Atacama desert Moon Valley Chile

There were many tour groups meeting there all together so hundreds of eyes from different countries glanced in rapture at the Domeyko mountain range and its volcanoes, go from yellow to deep purple and get lost in the darkness of the night. Valle de la Luna Moon Valley Atacama

Needless to say, this is the cleanest sky on Earth so I really felt like digging a little hole in the sand, like a beetle, and remain there in ecstasy, leaving just my eyes outside to keep staring at the sky! Moon Valley Atacama Chile

 Visiting Moon Valley in the Atacama Desert was not just a dream come true… it was also getting to know a dream, face to face so as to be able to share it with others and encourage everyone to go there and live this unforgettable desert adventure! Moon valley Moon valley Moon Valley

Welcome to Moon Valley - Atacama Desert - Chile!