Today (New Year’s Day) is an all-day hike from Machuca to Rio Grande, starting at about 3400m, and descending on foot to about 2700m near to the village of Rio Grande. This is a gorgeous hike, quite easy, and passes through some stunning scenery and groups of abandoned stone houses. Pierre insists he is not hung over after New Year’s Eve, but he is moving much more slowly today and I can keep up with him most of the time :-). The abandoned settlement of Penaliri is the venue for a short picnic lunch, before walking down further to meet the 4WD waiting at the improvised bridge over the Rio Grande.
It is really easy to go to San Pedro de Atacama in Chile and think it is all about geysers, lagunas and salt flats. Without hiking in the more remote areas (we didn’t see anyone other than the local shepherds all day), you miss out on scenery like this…
