Visiting Parque Nacional Lauca (Chile) and Parque Nacional Sajama (Bolivia)

Visiting Parque Nacional Lauca (Chile) and Parque Nacional Sajama (Bolivia)

To my faithful blog readers – this will be a departure from my usual blogging theme and style and is intended to be a guide to visiting Lauca and Sajama National Parks (it’s frustrating to find good information on these places!). So, unless you are expressly interested in those places, stop reading. Your time could be better spent clipping your toenails or watching House Hunters International. For curious, potential visitors, I hope this information is helpful.

This information is based solely on my short visit to Lauca (on the Chilean side) in August of 2013 (winter) and to Sajama (the Bolivian side) in February 2014 (summer). Disclaimer: I am not a mountain climber and know nothing about climbing either Volcan Sajama or Volcan Parinacota.

Lauca or Sajama – Which should I visit?

As the national parks both lie on the major highway running from La Paz, Bolivia to Arica, Chile, visitors can easily access either park on their trip – so here are the differences.

The cheaper park: Sajama. (Bolivia is a lot cheaper than Chile)

Easier to access: Sajama, slightly. The town of Sajama lies 12km off the highway but there is regular transport to the town every afternoon (more on that later). Once in town you can access all of the town’s facilities and most of the park on foot so you don’t need to worry about transport within the park. The town of Parinacota (the major town of Lauca) lies about 8km off the highway but as far as I know there is no regular transport there, you have to hitch or walk. The town has facilities but not great hiking. Conversely, Lago Chungara and the refugio where you can stay at the lake lie 16km further down the highway but it’s the prettiest place in the park and has good hiking. Since there’s no inner-park transport between the two locations, you will definitely have to hitch a ride.

Better facilities: Lauca, slightly. Both Sajama and Parinacota have hospedajes, restaurants, shops that sell mostly non-perishable food, and stalls or shops with artesenal goods. Lauca wins, however, because it’s geared to day-trippers from Arica and, therefore, the shops and restaurants are open during the day. In Sajama, where tourists come to stay for a few days, everything closes up in the middle of the day during siesta hours and you need to give a few hours notice to your hospedaje or a restaurant if you want to eat there later.    

Prettier: Lauca. With Lago Chungara, a series of smaller lakes that extend almost to Parinacota, and more sparkling, green bofedal, Lauca is the more noteworthy of the two parks. Sajama is beautiful as well but, as it’s situated in a huge valley, it’s sort of a “what you see is what you get” thing, meaning the view doesn’t change much even after hours of walking. 

Better Hiking: Lauca, but don’t have high expectations for either. Both parks essentially offer nice walks in beautiful locations but the hiking itself is not intrinsically interesting or challenging. In Lauca, at least, you can hike up on the hills behind the refugio on the lake. Higher up there are some rocky fields and a windy ridge line to navigate. Besides the hills you’ll spend most of your time walking around the lake on the bofedal or traipsing along the very short walking loops outside of Parinacota. The park guardian at the lake told me I was free to walk and explore any part of the park, even if there was no trail, as long as I was careful.  In Sajama, on the other hand, the park guardian made clear that visitors are to stay on the hiking trails and not go off exploring the hills or valleys on their own. Sajama has one short trail up the side of a cerro (hill) that offers great views of Volcan Sajama. Besides this one slightly-challenging and rocky ascent, the other trails are all mostly flat, wide, and sandy and crisscross the base of the valley.

More off the beaten path: Sajama. With fewer visitors, no day-trippers coming from Arica in tourist vans or private cars, and 12km of distance to the highway (with its constant stream of 18 wheelers), Sajama feels more peaceful. The beauty of Lago Chungara is dampened slightly by its location on a major highway and the quaintness of Parinacota is marred a bit at lunchtime when busloads of tourists roll in to take pictures and eat lunch.

The Verdict

Visit either park if…

You want to see some stunning locations and snow-capped volcanoes

You need a few days in nature to recharge before continuing on your travels

Visit Lauca if…

You have an extra day in Arica and can take a day trip to the park

You’re in northern Chile and have your own car

 You want to take gorgeous photos (especially at dawn or dusk)

Hiking on barren, sandy, windswept hills is your idea of a good time

Visit Sajama if…

You don’t care so much for tough hikes and nice walks are just fine with you

You want some serious peace and quiet

You really want to visit the geyser field or the hot springs

Don’t visit either park if…

            You are looking for extensive and awesome hiking

You can’t handle the cold, the wind, or high altitude

Visiting Lauca

Getting There: Take a bus from Arica towards La Paz (6,000 Chilean Pesos) and tell the driver you want to get off at “Cruce Parinacota” or at “El refugio de Chungara” depending on whether you want to go to the town or the lake first. It’s about 4 hours from Arica. If you are coming from Bolivia, after you cross the border into Chile (the border crossing is called Chungara) get back onto the bus and ride to the refugio (another 6km from the border crossing) or the “Cruce Parinacota.”

Accommodation: I didn’t stay in Parinacota and have no idea how expensive the hostels are. Staying in the refugio on the lake was 4,500 Pesos a night (though I hear that price goes up in the summer to 5,000 or 5,500). There are camp grounds at the refugio and near the park headquarters in Parinacota. I believe it’s 5,000 Pesos for a campsite.

Hot water: I don’t know about the hostels in Parinacota but there is scalding hot water at the refugio!

Eating: Parinacota has restaurants that serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner and a small number of stores that sell mostly non-perishable goods. I didn’t see any fresh produce, however. The refugio has a small kitchen (sink and gas stove) available to guests but you have to bring all your own food either from Arica or Parinacota (Note: you can’t cross into Chile with produce or animal products, so bringing fruits or vegetables from Bolivia is usually a no-no… though sometimes you can declare the items and be OK.)

Hiking:

-          A sunrise walk on the bofedal surrounding the lake is a must.

-          I spent hours walking around the lake shore of Chungara. Past Chungara there’s a number of smaller lakes that you can also walk around.

-          The walk on the highway from Parinacota to Chungara is not advisable as it’s a major highway for giant trucks. That said, it’s incredibly beautiful and the scenery changes with each turn in the road, so exercise caution if you choose to walk here.

-          The road leading from the highway down to Parinacota makes for a nice hour and half walk (mostly downhill) into the pretty valley.

-          There are a few short walking loops near Parinacota. Ask the park guardians for more information.

-          Hiking the hills behind the refugio makes for a great challenge. Ask the guardian at the lake to point out some of the small peaks you can climb to.

-          Obviously, hiking or climbing Volcan Parinacota is a huge draw in the park that you can try to get more information on, if interested.

Getting Away: Buses from La Paz towards Arica pass on the highway between about 9 AM and 11 AM and then again in the afternoon between about 3 PM and 5 PM. Buses from Arica towards La Paz tend to pass more frequently and regularly throughout the day. Simply flag one down. Another good option (especially if you’re in the town of Parinacota and don’t want to walk or hitch to the highway) is to take the “local” or “rural” bus that passes through some small towns in the valley and eventually arrives at Parinacota (ask the hostel owners where the bus will pull up) around noon. From there it’s about 5 hours in a dusty, crowded bus to Arica (4,500 Pesos). This bus does not go to the main terminal in Arica as it is a “local” bus, so ask the bus driver to let you know when you are somewhat near the terminal and get off the bus then (from here, ask a friendly Chilean to point you in the right direction towards the terminal).

Visiting Sajama

Getting There: Take a bus from Arica towards La Paz (6,000 Chilean Pesos) and tell the driver you want to get off at “Cruce Sajama” and walk the 12km to town. It’s about a 5 hour drive from Arica, though crossing the border could take up to an hour. Take a bus from La Paz towards Arica (150 Bolivianos) and, again, get off at “Cruce Sajama” and walk to town. Also, you can get off any bus going north/south in Bolivia at the town of Patacamaya and wait there for the daily, 1 PM micro (25 Bs.) to the town of Sajama (it saves you from walking 12km to town).

I came from Sucre in the south on an overnight bus to La Paz and asked the driver if I could get off in Patacamaya. I would suggest setting at alarm for the morning so you can go downstairs and wait at the door. Due to construction, we didn’t arrive in Patacamaya until 8 AM. Once in Patacamaya, ask around for the location of the micro to Sajama – the other bus drivers will have no problem pointing it out to you. The micro shows up around 10 or 10:30 and people will start claiming seats and loading piles of goods into the van, though the van didn’t leave until 1 PM on the dot (I was warned it might leave when full). Still, it’s a good idea to claim a seat early.

Entrance Fee: Upon arriving, go to the registration office (directly on the main road as you head into town, the micro driver might even let you off there) where you’ll show a passport and pay 40 Bs. for entrance to the park.

Accommodation: The guardian in the office will ask if you want a room with a shared bathroom (35 Bs.) or a private bathroom (50 Bs.). The town has its own system of rotating who houses visitors, so after telling the guardian what type of room you want, he or she will lead you to your house. Once there, you’ll pay the family directly. They will probably ask you if you want to eat any meals, which you’ll have to sort out separately.  

Hot water: I was told that all the hostels in town have hot water. My hostel had slightly warm water (I wasn’t going to get pneumonia from it) but terrible water pressure. So don’t get your hopes up (though, you can always go to the hot springs!).

Eating: Sajama has restaurants that serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner and a small number of stores that sell mostly non-perishable goods. I also saw a few stores with eggs, cheese, bread, and bananas. Around noon on Saturday (and possibly other days too, I don’t know), there is a woman selling some produce in the main square. It’s pretty limited and more expensive, so bring produce with you from Patacamaya. Let your hostel owner know if you want to eat in their restaurant or ask if they can take you to another restaurant in town. You should give them a few hours notice. I didn’t eat in town, but I heard it’s about 17 Bs. for a hearty lunch or dinner.

Hiking:

-          To get to the Geysers (about 7km one-way): Take the trail from behind the church that goes over the bridge. At the first fork (where a sign says “geysers” but has no arrow) go to the RIGHT. A little while later, there’s another fork (this time a farmhouse sits between the two roads); again, go to the RIGHT. Eventually you’ll be in a small valley and in a few more kilometers you’ll come to the geysers.

o   For a longer hike (if you’re looking to meander through the big valley more), take a LEFT at the first fork in the path. In 45 minutes you’ll be at a small cluster of houses and the path (follow the tire tracks) will swing to the right of the right-most house and go under a barbed-wire fence that runs behind all the houses. Continue on this path for another 45 minutes and you’ll eventually loop around the valley and wind up on the LEFT at the second fork in the main path. From here, turn to the left (the RIGHT hand path, leading away from town) to get to the geysers.

o   Once at the geysers, you can continue taking the same path you walked in on for another 45 minutes or so. As you move deeper into the small valley, the small ridges lining the valley get closer and you can appreciate the beautiful rock formations high up on the hills. The path eventually dead-ends in a dry river bed where you can turn around and double back to the geysers.

o   At the geysers, there is a very short (200m or so) path that leads up the hill to a few benches and shelters. Directly past the shelters is a path made of very-pronounced tire tracks that leads off into the hills a bit. This path is about 20 minutes long and dead-ends in a dry river bed that you can walk in for another 10 minutes or so. From here I turned around and doubled back to the geysers.

-          To get to the Hot Springs (about 5km one-way): Take the main road out of town (past the school and the abandoned yellow building) for about an hour. You’ll eventually see a sign and arrow pointing to the left that says “termales.” Take this trail for another half hour or so. It dips down across the valley floor, crosses the river, and comes up on the other side to the yellow house where the hot springs are.

o   Note: There is a hospedaje at the hot springs where you can stay. I don’t know how much it costs but it looks pretty basic. There is also a small store that sells soda, water, cookies, and crackers.

o   About a half hour outside of town on the main road, there is a sign that reads “Campo Base Sajama” (or something like that, I don’t remember exactly) with an arrow to the right. I wasn’t able to find a trail to any base camp, but directly beyond the sign there is a dry river bed that you can hike up for 30 minutes. It’s a nice break from the monotony of walking on the dirt roads, is slightly challenging to scramble over rocks and trees, and offers some pretty good views from the top.

o   There are many small trails that converge at the hot springs. I’d guess that most of them lead to homes and pastures of the locals, but you might be able to hike on these trails.

-          To climb the cerro (about 1.5km one-way): The only challenging hike in the park leads straight up the cerro to the right of Volcan Sajama. First, find the access path that leads from the dirt soccer field in front on the volcano to the base of the hill. It’s about 25 minutes to the base of the hill and then 30 minutes up.

o   Try to time your hike so that you arrive at the top a little before sunset – the setting sun glowing off the snow-capped peak is incredible. If you’re hiking late, take a torch or a headlamp to get down safely!

o   There is a spot for camping on top of the hill, benches, and trashcans. It would be a great place for a picnic lunch.

-          If you’re looking for more places to walk…

o   There’s a road that leads across the valley from off the corner of the concrete soccer field to the left of the church. It’s not particularly exciting, but does follow the small river and bofedales for awhile.

o   There is a pretty laguna very far from Sajama. Follow the main road out of town (as if going to the hot springs) and keep walking. I didn’t visit here because I heard you have to leave at 5 AM or so to be able to make it out and back in one day. Definitely worth asking the park guardians about!

o   Though the park guardians told me there is no trail from the geysers to the hot springs, when you’re at the geysers you’ll see a large rock with yellow paint reading “Fuente Termales” and an arrow indicating a path starting from behind the rock. I took this path and it never reached the hot springs, but the walk was nice. The path leads out of the small valley with the geysers and across the big valley to the left. There’s a fork in the path and I went to the RIGHT. (Maybe the LEFT hand side leads to the hot springs, I don’t know) This path eventually runs into a few homes and llama corrals. The farmers there didn’t know how to get to the hot springs and suggested I go back to town and take the real path. To get back to town, walk about 300m straight down to the river and find the very narrow path to your right that goes along the upper bank of the river all the way back to the main bridge. It took about 2 hours from the geysers to the house and back to town.   

Getting Away: There is supposedly a micro that leaves town at 7 AM every morning and goes to Patacamaya – I saw the micro enter town at 6 AM but when I left around 8:30 (I walked), it still hadn’t left. You can take the micro to Patacamaya and get transport north to La Paz or south to Oruro, Uyuni, Potosi, or Sucre. Or you could get off the micro at Cruce Sajama and wait for a bus to Arica. Alternatively, you can walk the 12km to Cruce Sajama (about 2 hours 15 minutes) and wait for a bus to pass in either direction.

I would not recommend walking to the border, even if you want to go to from Sajama to Parque Lauca. I was misinformed about the distance and thought the border was more accessible than it is. From Cruce Sajama, the road to the border town of Tambo Quemado goes uphill for another 10 or 11km (about 3 hours). From the town, the border is another 7km uphill (about an hour and a half). There’s nothing at the border but a few signs (and a lot of chilly wind!). From the border it’s 7km slightly downhill to the Chungara border crossing where you’ll get your exit stamp from Bolivia and your entrance stamp into Chile. Note: the officials wouldn’t let me enter Bolivia “on foot”, I had to wait on the Bolivian side for a bus to come (around 3:30 PM) and be put on the bus’s passenger manifesto in order to enter Chile as a passenger of that bus. Since I wasn’t stopping in Lauca anyway and wanted to go to Arica it was no problem. I paid 100 Bs. for passage down to Arica from here.

A Final Note

            Both Lauca and Sajama are incredibly beautiful places but very different, so I’m glad I was able to experience both parks. While getting to and away from either one requires a little more planning on your part, their unique and breathtaking landscapes certainly warrant a visit. Please let me know if you have any questions, comments, or advice to add!