The night seemed endless as we headed north. Dawn broke about 100 km south of Antofagasta in the starkest landscape I've ever seen. We were definitely in the Atacama desert , the driest place on earth. As we headed north, we slammed into a low-lying fog bank hovering just above the desert floor. We stayed in or below the cloud as we turned off the highway and headed west down to Antofagasta and the Pacific coast. We couldn't find any place for breakfast along the coast--no one really wanted to go to McDonalds, except Barbie and Napoleon. Failing there, we tried the city center and found a good restaurant and meal. After that, we went back to the rocky shoreline so that those who had never seen the Pacific could touch it. A few got soaked by the big waves.

We discovered we had a flat tire so we had it repaired at a gomería on the highway. They expressed some concern about the sidewall. They also covered the hole left by the missing window by taping a large piece of cardboard across it. It was after 2:00 by the time we got underway.

The Atacama Desert is completely devoid of vegetation. Its stark beauty is totally exhibited in shades of tan and brown. It has only rained in Calama once since the conquistadores first established the town. As we neared Calama, The sidewall of the tire blew out. We found another gomería and bought a used tire, putting the new spare on to replace the destroyed tire. It was frustrating to be so close to Chuquicamata and not see the mine but as the sun set that was the case.

We drove into Calama for dinner on the way to the restaurant we stopped to watch a festival that was replete with native costumes and dances. Jayne had fun dancing with the beat.

After a great dinner in a nearby restaurant we drove the last 100 km to San Pedro Atacama. I slept for a lot of it. The trip went slowly because Angel was teaching San Martin how to drive the truck in hilly terrain. We arrived a little after 1:00 at the Casa de Don Tomas, an excellent hotel. Carmen was there waiting for us having arrived around 8:00. I think the first thing everyone did was to take a shower. I fell asleep as soon as I got in bed.