CHILE TO ARGENTINA
Four thousand metres above sea level, the crews of the Chile-Argentina Road Classic enjoyed a driving experience like no other
A rally of highs and lows
FIFTEEN CREWS CAME to northern Chile from aross Europe and the USA. Besides ourselves from Belgium in a 1973 Mustang convertible, there were two other Mustangs, a pair of ‘Pagoda’ Mercedes, a 280SL, a 1937 Lagonda, 1957 Bentley S1, two Porsches, a brace of Peugeot 504 convertibles, a Big ’Healey and a Sunbeam Tiger – quite an eclectic mix. We had each travelled thousands of miles to reach the start-line of the 2017 Chile-Argentina Road Classic, and we would all need to travel another 2324 miles to reach the finish.
Our itinerary would take us from the coastal city of Antofagasta high into the mountains of Argentina and then back across Chile to the port of Valparaíso. The first driving day served as a wake-up call to anybody who had expected it to be easy: we headed past Chuquicamata, the biggest copper mine in the world, and on to San Pedro de Atacama, the door to the Atacama Desert – 2500m above sea level. We would go higher still, and every car was equipped with emergency oxygen… just in case.
Upon arrival at the Cumbres hotel, our halt for the night, the cars were refuelled at the only petrol station for miles around, queuing with all the village vehicles. Already the 1937 Lagonda was suffering in the thin air and had to be re-tuned by the mechanics who would accompany us for the next 15 days, all the way to Valparaíso.
We struck out again in the morning and soon crossed the Tropic of Capricorn, leaving behind the smooth asphalt of the main road, the cars hustling along dirt tracks and climbing to 4200m to be greeted with a stunning view of the lakes Miscanti and Miñiques, passing llama-like guanacos on the way. That evening we were treated to a visit to ALMA (or the Atacama Large Millimetre Array), the largest telescope in the world, which afforded everybody the opportunity to see the Moon in detail, as well as Mars, Saturn and the Milky Way.
Back on Earth, the next day was a tough one: starting at 5am we left San Pedro for El Tatio, a geyser field at 4500m reached by a dirt road with corrugated sections that were hard on the cars. Breakfast there was followed by a scenic drive back to to San Pedro, where some of us took a quick dip at Puritama Hot Springs to soak the bumpy journey out of our bones.
On day four we crossed into Argentina and passed the Salinas Grandes salt flat and the cactus canyons before heading down through hairpin bends to quaint Purmamarca and its beautiful colonial hotel. Day five was Clockwise from top left The authorities can have encountered few cars less likely to be carrying drugs than this 1937 Lagonda. Still, out came the sniffer dog; free to go and on the road under brilliant blue skies; Peugeot 504 crew checks out a possible source of spare parts; a flurry of chilly precipitation painted some of the cars white as they crossed from Argentina back into Chile.
‘On to San Pedro de Atacama, the door to the Atacama Desert – 2500m above sea level. We would go higher still, and every car was equipped with oxygen… just in case’