After crossing into Bolivia, I headed to a very bright spot on this Earth: Salar de Uyuni. Salar de Uyuni is the largest salt flat in the world, 10,582 sq km (4,000 sq mi). What makes it so otherworldly is the brilliant white, incredibly flat surface. Every year during the rainy season from December to March, it becomes a large lake only inches deep, which looks like the world's largest mirror. During the dry season it forms into beautiful hexagonal designs. The salt is between 2 and 10 meters deep. It contains about 20% of the world's lithium reserves, which promises to be an economic boom for Bolivia.
I first headed into the town of Uyuni, where I got some lunch and groceries. There was some sort of festivities going on in town and I watched some of the parade. I would have liked to stay longer, but I wanted to head out to spend the night on the salt flat under the stars. I waited in line for about an hour to fill up on gas, then treated Hank to an oil treatment on his undercarriage to protect against the salt.
I drove to some salt sculptures, then to the Plaza de las Banderas. Then at sunset I drove out into the middle of the salt flat and spent the night. What a beautiful sunset and night sky full of stars!
The next morning I headed to a small cactus-covered island called Isla Incahuasi. Salar de Uyuni is dotted with a few islands sticking out of the salt flat, remnants of ancient volcanoes. The views across the salt flat and the large cacti were spectacular.
Leaving Salar de Uyuni, I headed towards my next destination, Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve in the very south of Bolivia. I stopped to spend the night at Valle de las Rocas, a spot full of beatiful rock formations. Another cold, starry night in the Bolivian altoplano.
¡impresionante!