By bike from Atacama to Moon Valley

As you ascend from the Valle de Muerto, you will have a wide view of the inhospitable plain. In front of you is one of the most tiring parts of this day trip. About six kilometers of piste driving with lots of gravel and sand. In front of you rises the long ridge Cordon Barros Arana with a height of about 3,500 m above sea level (through which the main road Calama-San Pedro de Atacama leads). The dominant hill Cerro Quimal (4,275 m above sea level) is alone on the horizon

Looking back, it's nice to see the „gorge“ you left the Valle de Muerto. The panorama is completed by the peaks of volcanoes, which peek at you on this trip throughout the day.

Thanks to the bad road, you will drive those 6 km for more than half an hour before you come across a nice asphalt road – the main road connecting Calama with San Pedro de Atacama. You can hardly believe that anyone could break down on this plain and lay down their lives here.

You will drive less than a kilometer on a nice asphalt road before the signs lead you to a dusty road leading straight to the horizon. However, driving on it is far better than on the desert, without debate. Signs threatening to skid in the rain may make you laugh as you wake up destroyed by desert heat and dry air after pedaling all day.

After three and a half kilometers of driving practically in a straight line, you will reach a crossroads from where the final exit to the Moon Valley awaits you. There is also a sign at the crossroads warning of mines around the road, so it is quite sensible to stay on the road in this passage and not explore the surrounding wasteland. There are already hills on the horizon where the local curiosity is located.

From the Atacam Plain, you can climb a rather steep hill. The valley is hidden behind a small rock ridge, on which there is a large sand dune as a bonus.

Finally, you reach the „gateway“ to this interesting area full of white rocks and sand dunes.

Behind the „gate“ is a sharp turn from which the road continues to rise along a colored ridge towards a huge sand dune. This is the beginning of the Moon Valley – but this is a different story.