Puquio, Peru

We finally were able to say goodbye to the sand today, and climbed up off the coast into the mountains. We literally gained altitude all day long. By mid-day we were on a high plateau and passed through Reserva Nacional Pampa Galeras. As soon as we entered, we started seeing the herds of the Vicuñas, an odd looking animal with a body like an alpaca, but with a really long skinny neck and wide set eyes. When they look at you, their head almost looks like the alien head that you see with images related to Area-51.

As the day started winding down, we started getting into an area that was dotted with lakes, and enormous mountains could be seen in the distance. After about the third lake, we started noticing pink birds surrounding the shoreline. Flamingos! It was cold and windy and the ground was covered with hail from the storm that had just passed. Not quite the type of environment you think of when you picture Flamingos. We eventually found a place to pull off the road and got tucked in out of sight, and were treated to an incredible sunset.