Only 40 minutes south of the hectic La Paz, a bizarre landscape of eroded rock and clay takes shape. Known as Valle de la Luna (Moon Valley), the jagged hills look like they belong in a space movie.
Eroded by centuries of wind and weather, the Valle de la Luna has transformed from a mountain into a breathtaking valley with sharp, odd formations piled high on top of one another. Many claim to see the shapes of animals and humans carved into the rocks of this lunar landscape. That wasn’t the case for me, though.
It took us about 1 hour to walk around the place and take tons of silly pictures. All in all, visiting Valle de la Luna was a unique escape from the hustle and bustle of La Paz, and both Pernille and I loved exploring this crater-like landscape.
Cactus Land
The area has 32 species of cactus, including the hallucinogenic San Pedro cactus that has been used in traditional medicine, healing and religious divination for over 3,000 years. You see it on the picture below to the right.
How to Get There
We'd read on Lonely Planet that there had been reported muggings, so we opted for a private tour. Seen in retrospect, I would have taken the bus as it seemed safe and the tour was overprized.
Valle de la Luna is easily accessible from La Paz, and it makes an easy day trip which doesn’t require much time or effort. Just hop on any bus headed toward Mallasa, and ask the driver to let you out at the right spot.
Copyright © 2014 by Adventurous Miriam. This article was written by Miriam Risager and originally published at adventurousmiriam.com.
