North of San Pedro de Atacama, the San Pedro river has cut a narrow valley through the red and ochre hills of the Cordillera de la Sal, and along its edge runs a section of the Qhapaq Ñan, the great road network of the Inca Empire. Catarpe was a tambo, a waystation where travellers, officials and llama caravans rested, and this northern segment of the road is part of the World Heritage site that covers sections of the Inca roads from Colombia to Argentina and Chile.
Riding here means desert riding at altitude. San Pedro sits at around 2,400 metres, and the air is thin, dry and bright. The tracks into the Catarpe valley are dirt and gravel, sometimes sandy, sometimes rocky, with river crossings that can be tricky after rare summer rains. The views are extraordinary: eroded cliffs, salt-crusted ridges and the snow-capped cone of Licancabur volcano on the horizon. Afternoon winds can be strong, and the temperature swings from hot days to freezing nights. Carry plenty of water and protect yourself from the intense sun.
The Atacama has been inhabited for thousands of years, and the Atacameño people, or Lickanantay, built fortified villages, irrigated fields and traded across the Andes long before the Inca arrived. The Pukará de Quitor, a stone fortress near San Pedro, was the scene of a fierce battle with Spanish conquistadors in 1540. The Inca road connected this oasis to the wider empire, and remnants of walls, paths and structures can still be seen along the valley.
The landscape is stark but beautiful. The river supports a thin green ribbon of vegetation, including chañar and algarrobo trees, and you might see vicuñas, foxes or flamingos in the wider area. At sunset, the hills glow red and purple, and the night sky is among the clearest in the world, which is why major observatories are located nearby.
San Pedro de Atacama, about nine kilometres away, has fuel, food and accommodation, though supplies can be expensive and the fuel station sometimes has queues. Calama, about a hundred kilometres away, is the nearest large town. Plan your fuel carefully, as distances between stations in the Atacama are long, and respect local rules about access to archaeological and indigenous sites.