Bolivia - Audley Travel

Green Lagoon, southwest BoliviaThe Southern AltiplanoFar off the beaten track, this stark and surreallandscape makes for a bumpy, windy yetcompletely captivating few days. The adventurebegins on the track to the sequestered town ofUyuni with its outlying ‘train cemetery’, where theskeletons of steam locomotives rust in the sun.A blinding sheet of salt awaits you at the Salar deUyuni, the world’s largest salt lake, where you arein a simple world of blue and white, or evenmore bizarrely where seasonal waters can reflectthe sky and dissolve the horizon. Sip coca teasitting on an island in the sea of salt that iscovered in giant cacti, take a dip in a naturalthermal pool overlooked by volcanoes, enjoy athree course meal on a picnic table watched byllamas and alpacas. Continuing south, strange rockformations rise up from the desert, mud geysersbubble and wisps of smoke curl out of sleepingvolcanoes. Flamingos strut around lakes of unusualbut beautiful hues of red, blue, green and white.Salar de Uyuni30Church, ConcepciónSanta Cruz and theJesuit MissionsFar from the Andean peaks lies the busy andhumid city of Santa Cruz, where you can seesloths hanging in the palm-filled main plaza andcrowds worshipping in a huge church made ofbamboo. Heading northeast by road, flatfarmlands merge into rolling hills and ranches asyou reach the colonnaded streets of the sleepyJesuit towns, such as Concepción. The finereligious craftsmanship of the beautiful churcheshere is a key part of Bolivia’s heritage. If you havea keen interest in wildlife, your road journey inthese lowlands of Bolivia could also take you toAmboró National Park for a couple of days.Thanks to its three distinct eco-systems thatencompass the Amazon River basin, the Andeanfoothills and the Chaco plain, this is an area ofgreat bio-diversity and is thought to be home tomore species of life per hectare than anywhereelse on earth.Ecological AreasBolivia has many other virtually undiscoveredareas for the visitor interested in the naturalworld. Visits to these places are not simple orcheap, but the wealth of bio-diversity makes foran astounding experience.The town of Rurrenabaque, in the northwestof Bolivia, is the starting point for trips into theAmazonian area of Pilón Lajas EcologicalReserve or the vast Madidi National Park thatencompasses cloud and rainforest. Both haveexcellent lodges (Mapajo in Pilón Lajas andChalalán Ecolodge in Madidi) with indigenousguides to explore and search for some of thelocal animal populations including monkeys,caiman, turtles and macaws. The dry season ofJune to October is the best time to go.Noel Kempff Mercado National Park, in the fareast of Bolivia, is another unique habitat thatencompasses rainforest and savannah and over620 bird species have been recorded hereincluding 20 species of parrot. Its remotenessmeans it receives few visitors and, as with any ofthe places mentioned in this section, the trip isan exercise in dedication – but it is worth it forthe sights that await.