Valle de la Muerte and Sandboarding
Valle de la Muerte sits in the same salt range as Valle de la Luna, a few kilometres from town, and it has one long steep dune of sand fine enough to ride. Sandboarding down it is the only activity in this desert that exists purely to be enjoyed rather than looked at, and it happens to be the highest-rated thing the partner sells here.
The dune, and the walk back up
There is no lift of any kind. Every run ends with a climb back up through soft sand at around 2,500 m, and that climb is the entire physical demand of the afternoon. Three and a half hours is enough for most people because of it.
How hard is it
Easier than snowboarding. Sand is slower, the falls do not hurt, and most first-timers are riding upright within a few runs. The board and the wax come with the tour, and wax matters — an unwaxed board will not slide on dry sand.
The name
Valle de la Muerte means Death Valley. It is widely said to be a mishearing of Valle de Marte — Mars Valley — attributed to the Belgian priest and archaeologist Gustavo Le Paige in the 1950s. The story is repeated everywhere and confirmed nowhere, and both names remain in local use. We state the dispute rather than resolve it.
Afterwards
The dune faces the right way for the sunset, so most tours finish looking at it from the ridge. You will have sand in everything for the rest of the trip.
Getting there
Three kilometres from the plaza, which makes it the closest of all the excursions and one of the very few you could reach on a bicycle. Most sandboarding tours collect you in the afternoon and are back by early evening. It shares the Cordillera de la Sal with Valle de la Luna, and the two are often sold together as a single afternoon ending at the same sunset.
What the valley is made of
The same folded salt, clay and gypsum as Valle de la Luna next door, laid down when this basin was a lake and then pushed up and eroded. The dune is wind-deposited sand sitting on top of that rock, which is why it is in one place rather than everywhere, and why the surrounding ground is hard and sharp rather than soft.
When to go
Late afternoon. The sand surface is hot enough to be unpleasant in the middle of the day, the light is flat and dull, and there is no shade anywhere in the valley. Tours run in the afternoon for all three reasons, and finish facing the sunset.
If you are not boarding
The valley is worth entering anyway: it is quieter than Valle de la Luna, the rock formations are on the same scale, and the walk along the valley floor is level. Some Valle de la Luna tours include it, and the two together make a fuller afternoon than either alone.
San Pedro de Atacama on Wikipedia
Frequently asked questions
Do I need snowboarding experience?
No. Sand is slower and more forgiving than snow, and instruction is included.
Is there a lift back up the dune?
No. You walk up through soft sand at 2,500 m after every run, and that is the main effort of the afternoon.
Is it really called Death Valley?
That is the Spanish name. It is widely said to be a mishearing of Valle de Marte, Mars Valley, though the story is not confirmed. Both are used locally.
Sources