Taltal is a small port of about ten thousand people on the coast of the Atacama Desert, and it feels like a town that has quietly outlived its first reason for existing. It boomed in the late nineteenth century as a shipping point for nitrate, with a railway running inland to the oficinas, the nitrate works, and a harbour full of ships carrying saltpetre to Europe. The boom ended with the arrival of synthetic fertiliser, but the town stayed, thanks to fishing, small-scale mining and, in recent times, the proximity of the great astronomical observatories in the desert to the north.
The coast road is the attraction. South of Antofagasta, the road runs along a wild, empty shore, with cliffs, rocky coves and strips of pale sand under a vast sky. The asphalt is generally good, there is little traffic, and the long bends between headlands give a real sense of freedom. Morning fog can reduce visibility, but by midday the sun is high and the colours sharpen: pale tan hills, deep blue sea and bright green patches where cactuses cling to the slopes. Wind is common in the afternoons, particularly in summer, so be ready for sudden gusts on exposed sections.
Fuel, food and a bed are all available in Taltal, which makes it an important stop on a long road with few services. The seafront has a handful of simple restaurants serving fresh fish, shellfish and empanadas, and the fishermen's port is lively in the morning when the boats come in. Fill the tank here, because the next reliable pump may be a long way off in either direction, and carry water, since there is no shade along the way.
The desert around Taltal has a quiet beauty that grows on you. Cacti, small birds and, in a good year, carpets of wildflowers brighten the hills, and sea lions and pelicans can be seen on the rocks. The coast to the south leads toward Pan de Azúcar National Park, a stretch of beaches and islands where penguins nest. Walk to the end of the pier at sunset, when the fishermen are mending nets and the light turns the water pink, and you will understand why people stay.