5. Lagoons I Didn’t See
Day 140
Today's program is another reconnaissance ride. I'm taking a different road this time. It is road #23 heading south east from San Pedro.
I am in no rush, so I have a leisurely breakfast and then I had out of the town. I stopped for gas at the edge of town and when I'm done, there is another rider on a bike stopping right behind me. He definitely looks like he's been around the world couple of times with all his bags hanging from his bike. I parked my bike by the convenience store and head back to introduce myself. His name is Carlos and he is from Buenos Aires. He's been riding around the whole South America and now he is on his way home. He is a lawyer, 70 years young and he took a few months off just to ride around. He bought me a coffee and we hung around for a bit, swapping our stories. The beauty of meeting every rider so far riding bike like this far away from our homes is that we have an instant connection. You don't need to look for icebreakers to start a conversation, there's always many things that we have in common and this was no exception. We were talking like we've known each other for years and that's the coolest thing about riding bikes in places like this. We got each other contacts and I promise I will stop by when I will be in Buenos Aires. He continued on his way home and I was on my way to explore the neighbourhood.
Road # 23 is nice but not as nice as number 27. There is no through traffic as there is only one border crossing which is not open to foreigners. There is virtually no traffic on this road. The road takes you along the foothills, if you can call it when you are at 3000 m altitude. You have foothills and mountains on one side and big dry salt lake bed on the other side. And you are in a complete desert with no vegetation at all. There's only one small village along the way with only maybe couple hundred people a few houses that's all, but on the way there I pass the road which leads to ALMA observatory. ALMA stands for Atacama Large Millimeter Array. It is a mouthful, I know. It is one of many observatories around here. You used to be able to take a trip to the Observatory before the pandemic. But ever since the pandemic it is closed to public and there are no tours for visitors. Unlike in the North America, the countries around here they are still under Covid protocols. You can still see many peoples wearing masks and many previously open places are still closed now. Not taking any chances. I went to the guard post at the gate and asked if the facilities is still closed for visitors. The answer, unfortunately, yes it is still closed. Bummer, but there is nothing I can do about it. I continue further down the road. And few kilometres down the road there's a sign saying that you are passing the Tropic of Capricorn. I'm getting closer to the South Pole every day. The destination today, kind of, are beautiful lagoons high up in the mountains.
I arrive at the turn which takes me off the highway to the Lagoon. It is about 10 km on a dirt road. I get on the road and OMG, it is bad. The road is one of the worst washboard I've ever been on. And it is full of deep sand and gravel. My favourite. I take my time and go at a snail pace, climbing up the hill. You cannot see lagoons from this side. They are on the other side of the range. After what feels like an eternity, I reached the top. There is a gate and a small stone guard house. There is a parking lot from where I can see a little bit of one of the lagoons. This is the place which should be ideal for my next picture project with the stars and the Milky Way. I stop at the gate and lady comes up asking me for my entrance ticket. Well, I don't have one. I ask if I can buy it here and she said no. I have to buy it online. Well, I can login on my iPhone and buy it right there and then. There's a slight little problem. There is no cell phone coverage at this place. And unfortunately, I couldn't charm my way to the lagoons. I rode 120 km here and 120 km back and didn't see the lagoons. What can you do, you win some you lose some. I will come here next time with my ticket. I've been also told that the next lagoon which is just down the road, you will need tickets as well. And those can be bought only online as well. Also my idea to stay overnight by the lagoons and wait for the Milky Way to show up got a problem as well. It turns out that you cannot stay overnight by the lagoons. The gate closes at 6 o'clock in the evening and everybody has to be out at that time. Good to know. I have to find another place for my project. I ride down the same horrible washboard road I came up here. I managed to get to the pavement without any incident. Then it is 110 km back to the town. By this time. It is middle of the afternoon and it is hot. But 100 km/h makes it a little bit more bearable. OK, I didn't see the lagoons but got some valuable information and we'll incorporated those for my next ride. I get home and start getting ready for tomorrow. It looks like it will be long day and hard core riding.