Day 31 – Thursday, February 26, 2026

My plan was to leave at 6 am, but it wasn't till eight that I started riding. The not‑every‑day‑war‑zone Alto Hospicio was at around 500 m of elevation; there were another 700 m waiting for me, but spread over 40 km. I had gotten used to climbing — as someone I used to know would say: it was “nothing special”.

Not much vegetation

At around 11 am, I reached Humberstone, which is now a ghost town, originally a nitrate‑mining settlement. It has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage site, and it really feels like stepping back in time. All the old buildings and machinery are still there, giving you this eerie, nostalgic vibe — it felt like being on a movie set. They had a school, theater, church, petrol station — and a pretty large liquor store.

The main avenue

The theater...

...a classroom...

...a museum...

I spent roughly an hour there, then I was yet again back on PanAmerican Highway 5. Here traffic was light; it was just a two‑lane highway. As I told a buddy of mine, the desert always shows a different face — interesting here were the green oases. One such oasis was a military base. In no other country would I dare to ask for water; here an officer ordered a soldier to fill up my liquid supplies.

Attention! Tanks crossing!

I thanked these tank people for giving me water

I was a bit wary of seeing all sorts of whirlwinds around me, but did not think too much about it.

Smaller tornadoes

So I reached a small settlement called Huara. Here they had a store (which, BTW, was called “Israel” — I asked why, did not understand the response though). Looking at my map — no such place would be coming up for the foreseeable future. I filled my bags with food and drinks and also took a rest. As I was sitting in front of the store, an older man on a bike told me to go with him. He led me to his home a few streets away and suddenly, a huge serving of white bean soup was in front of me. While I was munching away on this truly tasty dish, Ricardo showed me his collection of minerals and small statues from Bolivia and Peru.

My host, Ricardo

Soup served by my host

Artefacts that Ricardo showed me

I thanked Ricardo for his kindness and it was time to leave. I ran across a city official who told me there would be no store for the next 100 km or so and no place to stay till Arica, some 240 km away.

OK, let's see what's going to happen. Now I was in the real desert wilderness. The first thing I noticed was that the whirlwinds I had seen earlier got a lot, lot stronger. There was a wind coming from the west, i.e. sideways, which was extremely strong. Riding on the correct side of the road — the right side — was really dangerous; I was yet again like a leaf in the wind when a lorry passed. I found a temporary solution — which was riding on the left side of the road. That meant not being subject to all these whirlwinds — or at least not to the airflow caused by the lorries. Still, this was not the Chile I had fallen in love with.

Now this was quite strong, whatever we call it

I judged my chances of being picked up by a car as not very high — so I kept riding, then trying to hitchhike, then again riding. Finally, and not much later, a lorry stopped. We loaded my bike on the top of the cargo and we were off.

Try to spot my bike (hint: at the back, on top of the cargo)

As my journey was completely unplanned, I had no idea whether this was a good or a bad decision. It was definitely a good one, as the winds were really strong, but there were also some spectacular and interesting things.

Interesting to see was that there were actually restaurants & kiosks — so I probably would have made it, even without a lot of supplies.

Spectacular was the Lluta Canyon, a dramatic, sweeping landscape that really breaks up the desert terrain. It was formed by the Lluta River carving its way through the landscape. Fascinating was to see all the green along the river in this otherwise barren landscape.

Lluta Canyon...

See the green next to the river

Yeah, here I was kicking myself for not riding, but then... the wind, the wind, the wind — that was the archenemy. Also, there was a downhill section which was followed by a 21‑km uphill incline, after which the road descended yet again, then ascended (repeat so three times) before finally dropping to Arica at the seaside.

My truck driver dropped me off at the edge of town; I still had a couple of kilometers to the hotel I had booked close to the beach.

Thanks for the ride, Mr. Truck Driver!

It turned out to be a nice and comfy accommodation. I was now practically at the border to Peru. Despite hitchhiking, I still rode some 85 kilometers till my savior, the truck driver, picked me up — which was followed by a 4‑hour drive, during which I dozed off a few times. I “cheated” and dozed off some 220 km, but now, looking back, I believe I would have been able to do it. It would have taken some three to four days and I would have suffered due to the wind... But I am not crying, no milk is spilt.