Vicuna, hiking the hills

hills near my hostel.  Put on some comfortable shoes and walk with me a bit.

First a preview

Several photos taken from near my hostel

Here you begin to see the incredible network of trails that are available

The hill on the right is the Hill of the Virgin

There is indeed a statue of her there, surrounded by high-tech towers

Once you crest the ridge, look West and see the trails...

...look East at the trails...

...look back down toward Vicuña...

Trails everywhere

Across the ridge from Vicuña, another valley

The town of Vicuña, which is in the Elqui River Valley

And across the valley, the Andes cordillera

Another view of the Elqui Valley

A panorama of the valley, with Vicuña

A panorama of the valley on the other side of the ridge

A panorama of the Elqui Valley to the West of Vicuña

One day as I was hiking I saw a lovely sight

Manuel was approaching with his herd of goats

They crested the ridge where I was standing...

...then descended the other side, heading home

They're almost there

Their home is at the base of the hill, just up from Vicuña  

And this is Manuel

Weathered face, tranquil demeanor

Back up in the hills, here's the route that Manuel brought his sheep before I met him

This was my favorite hike

A side trip to see more of this trail

Here's a sampling of the vegetation 

But cactus, that's another matter.

Here's a shot of the Gilchrist National Forest

(Although as of this writing, the Chilean parliament has taken no action to make it official)

A side trip to see more of the flora

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