Tatio Geyser + Alto Loa Tour

Tour Start : Depending on the time of year, it varies between 5 and 6 hours.

This long excursion, which begins with the "El Tatio" geothermal field, makes the same stops as the Tatio excursion, with the difference that afterwards, at approximately 12 hours, it crosses from the mountainous area of the Tatio and Tocorpuri hills, towards the area located 70 km east of the city of Calama, called "Alto del Loa", because it is the area through which the Loa River passes, the longest river in Chile that originates 130 km north of that area in the Miño volcano near the border with Bolivia, the same river that crosses Calama and feeds the Calama oasis and flows into the Pacific Ocean.

The "exorheic basin of the Loa River" (Calama and Alto Loa) together with the "endorheic basin of Atacama", are the two main areas where the Atacama or Lickanantai culture developed some 12,000 years ago or more, which despite the passage of time, is still alive in some towns and villages, still preserving its ancient agro-pastoral lifestyle associated with "Mother Nature" or "Patta Hoiri" in Kunza, the mountains and the water.

Stops

Alto Loa/Lasana/Chiu-chiu : It is an area of great beauty very similar to the San Pedro de Atacama area but different at the same time, where you can see " cardon cactus forests" , suris, guanacos, llamas, "pukaras of Lasana and Turi" (archaeological fortresses), rock art and even part of the "Inca Trail" . All this and more you can discover on a tour that begins in the hills of El Tatio, crosses through the Chita ravine to the west to "Alto Loa," and after an hour and wonderful panoramic views from 4000 meters, we will explore the Inca Trail, some villages (your choice), the Turi wetlands area, a place with wetlands and biodiversity, the "Paniri Volcano" area with its sacred mountain, Mallku Paniri, then continuing west we will see the Pukara de Lasana, the "Inca Coya Lagoon," an eye of the desert, with its magical legend of when the Inca Tupac Yupanqui arrived in these lands to conquer, to end in the "village of Chiu Chiu," a pre-Hispanic village of great importance to the pre-Hispanic Atacameño people and where the Spanish built one of the first and oldest churches in Chile.

After this last stop we will head to the city of Calama, and to the airport if you coordinated your flight to coincide with the end of this excursion; otherwise, we will continue towards San Pedro de Atacama and your place of accommodation.

Recommendations:

Bring SPF 50 sunscreen, sunglasses, a hat and/or cap, hiking boots, very warm clothing (several layers), and gloves. Get plenty of rest the day before, eat light meals, avoid alcohol the night before, and get a good night's sleep.

Updated Information