At breakfast, I joked with the owner that none of the students were in jail. He gave a grumpy smile. Angel had high hopes of making Copiapó, Chile but I told him that Fiambalá would be about our limit. We inquired to see if there was any chance that the relatively new La Rioja pass through Jague was open... it wasn't.

We headed east over the Cuesta de Miranda. Most of the students rode as techeros through the spectacular scenery but I decided to stay inside. We turned north through Chilecito and on to Pituil through the Cadena de Paiman, stopping for a box lunch on the east side. The Sierra de Velasco was on our right. Angel still had hopes of reaching Copiapó but it was 3:30 by the time we got to Ruta 60. We discussed the alternatives while gassing up in Tinogasta. Fiambalá, 53 km to the north, was really the only option. There road between Tinogasta and Fiambalá passes through an incredibly arid valley. I did one of my doctoral research sections on Neogene strata exposed in the Quebrada de la Troya on the west side of the valley.

I hadn't been to Fiambalá since 1986, when I last visited it with Noye Johnson. It had changed dramatically. There are now at least 3 hotels vs. none in 1986. We got rooms at the Hotel de la Municipalidad. The roads are paved; the San Francisco Pass is open; and some hot springs have been developed on the western flank of the Sierra de Fiambalá.

We drove out to visit the Termas de Fiambalá on a good paved road that crosses the valley and climbs through the fan-pediment complex to a fracture controlled stream in which numerous pools are constructed and the hot water cascades through. It is an impressive operation. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed our 2 hours there. It took the edge off of the traveling. On the way back to town we stopped in the middle of the valley for an introduction to the southern hemisphere stars. It was magnificently dark. The glow of the Milky Way was the brightest source of light.

Back at the hotel, we ordered dinner in the comedor. Service was very slow but the meal was very good. Around 12:30, I went to bed, sharing a room with Todd and Porter.