A long drive over the Andes

Breakfast was at 8 this morning for us to be on the road by 9.  It was sunny and hot first thing, but we were returning to altitude so we fully expected it to turn colder.  We had packed a bag for two (or possibly three!) nights bush camping accordingly!

On the road, we were going in the opposite direction to the massive queue of trucks still trying to get into Nazca, so we hoped to have a clear run through.  We did have a short delay but managed to get out of town by 10.

We were soon gaining attitude as we ascended a dramatic road full of hairpin bends.  We reached 4200 metres above sea level.  The scenery was stark and rocky, with very little growing apart from a few cactus.  As we climbed higher, the sun disappeared, black clouds rolled in, and we had some rain.

There was very little traffic coming towards us, but some trucks that did had been sprayed with graffiti expressing support for the striking miners.  This suggested that they had come through some roadblocks.  We were anticipating the worst.Read more