Northern Chile is a land of extreme contrast, where
two uniquely Andean environments, the Altiplano and the
Atacama Desert, combine with unpredictable and overwhelmingly
beautiful results.
The vast and colorful Atacama Desert is said to be the
driest desert in the world. In some parts of this desert,
no precipitation has ever been recorded. Why here?
The Altiplano, on the other hand, receives tropical rains
in January and February. Altitude, rather than aridity,
is the limiting factor governing life on this airy plateau:
only the hardiest and most highly specialized flora and
fauna can survive the vagaries of life above 12,000 ft.
Speckled with lakes, marshes, salt flats, and geysers,
crowned by 20,000-foot volcanoes, the Altiplano is Chile's
link with the great civilizations of the Central Andes.
Today, a traditional society of Aymara Indians wanders
the Altiplano with their domesticated llamas and alpacas,
congregating periodically for festivals in eerily whitewashed
'ceremonial villages'. A system of spectacular national
parks -- including Lauca National Park, a UNESCO World
Biosphere Reserve -- protects vast expanses of this singular
landscape.
Some of the rain that falls in the Altiplano drains west,
into the Atacama Desert. Where it emerges, this water
transforms the landscape, creating a trail of vegetation
and cultivation, human habitation and wildlife habitat,
salt flats and eventually, salt mountains.
These trails of water and life have been recognized and
utilized by humans for aeons. San Pedro de Atacama and
numerous oases along the río Loa and río
Salado served as way stations on pre-Inca trade routes
linking the Amazon, the Altiplano and the coast. These
caravans followed desert trails now marked only by giant
geoglyphs; the most dramatic of the archaeological remains
found in northern Chile.
From north to south, the principal destination cities
in northern Chile are Arica, Iquique, Calama, San Pedro
de Atacama, and Antofagasta. Of these, all but Calama
and San Pedro are coastal cities, with fine beaches where
clouds - let alone rain - are never an issue. Accommodations,
transportation, and other tourist services are on a par
with the capital, and each city provides access to a
distinct portion of the desert, sierra foothills, or
Altiplano. Trekking, Ethinc and overland tours, mountaineering
and archaeological tours are among the most popular activities
in Northern Chile.
Near the southernmost limit of the region, the towns
of Copiapó and La Serena provide access to narrow
east-west agricultural valleys best known as producers
of Chile's beloved pisco (grape brandy) and site of the
southern hemisphere's clearest skies, which attract professional
and amateur astronomers from across the globe.
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