Momma saw a Llama

Hello from Chile! As Jake mentioned, I've been doing field work in Chile for the past two weeks. We have been driving from Antofagasta to Iquique, from Iquique to Calama, Calama to San Pedro de Atacama, and finally a return to Antofagasta. We have been driving around 400 km a day through the desert. It has been an amazing experience. We have been observing the formation of current fans in the desert and examining the deposits of old fans. I've been on top of the altiplano and along the pacific in the southern hemisphere. The landscape is striking. In places there is absolutely no vegetation...no a scrub brush all the way to the sea. It is truly a land of desert with a few oasis. While the geology is amazing, it is a little exhausting to be so far away from vegetation.

One of the highlights of the trip was that on Sunday we 'took the day off' and drove the 'old road' from Calama to San Pedro de Atacama. It was an amazing traverse up to the altiplano where we saw the volcanoes draped over the altiplano in Bolivia. As we drove higher we found the ruins of an Aztex fortified village and drove through herds of llamas, mules, and alpacas.

I'll close with some thank yous - this trip would not have been possible without the encouragement of Jake, the patience of Elena, the support of Dinny, and my parents who taught me to drive a stick shift and Grammy who taught me to pee in the woods (although there are only rocks to pee behind here!) - and finally a few pictures.