Dec. 2/12 – What I saw was by far the most beautiful natural scenery my eyes have ever seen up to this day of my life. The sea of bright white salt flats was absolutely stunning! Instead of swimming on water, it was like driving on an infinity pool of bright white salt, so big that we couldn’t see its end. I couldn’t believe I was on earth!
That was day time. Then by 7pm, when I was out waiting for the sunset, I was held speechless by the time I saw the bright RED sunset for the first time!
I fell asleep for about an hour after we got picked up from the Uyuni airport (40 min flight or 11 hour bus from La Paz) by our local driver in his 4 X 4. Then, when I opened my eyes and looked outside the window, the view was just incredible. The scene before me was astonishingly beautiful, like a clichéd glimpse of heaven, and all I saw was the shimmering sunny blue sky and white salt everywhere. Wow!! To step out of the car onto the flats and wander off was an incredibly uplifting experience.
Oh and we had so much fun taking all the funny perspective photos. I thought I was dreaming. I was just in Awe…. 🙂
Salar de Uyuni is the world’s largest salt flat, comprising 10 billion tons of salt, with a cracked surface forming natural geometrical figures. The amazing salt flats are where the sky and ground merge into one to create a dreamy landscape, a breath taking horizon.
According to our driver, the total size of the salt flat is 18,500 square kilometers in total and vertically, it is 155 km. It is located in Potosí in southwest Bolivia at an elevation of 3700 meters (12,139 feet) above sea level. The salt is over 10 meters thick in the center. During the dry season, the salt planes are a complete flat expanse of dry salt, but in the rainy season, it is covered with 30 to 60 centimeters of water which makes it not passable. We were so lucky to be here just before the rainy season begins in a week. However, I was told that Japanese tourists purposely come here during the rainy season to take photos because the rain turns this salt flat into the world’s largest mirror reflecting the clouds, sky and the moon.
We had to forgo going to Ecuador in order to fit Bolivia into our agenda. The reason of doing this change was because of the photos I saw of the Salt Flat and the Death Road from other backpackers while I was in Mendoza. I am so glad we did this change because I enjoyed both of these sites tremendously but in different ways. Being in Salt Flat has become one of my most breathtaking and unforgettable experiences while going through Death Road was my most thrilling one.
Originally posted on Amy’s travel blog: TravelwithAmy.ca
I need to to thank you for this good read!! I definitely loved every bit of it.
Hi Julie,
Glad that you find it worth your time.
Regards,
Dear Amy, I like your Uyuni pictures. The Voronoi- tesselations of the salt lake makes me think of a bizarre chessboard. Hans Meijer, Cochabamba, Bolivia
Thank you for appreciating them, Hans. Let’s see if the future brings me back to your country.