231218: Pulacayo ghost town and silver mine

So today we decided to go to Pulacayo under our own steam.  Having done some research on the internet we walked down to the bus station and asked about a bus to Potosi and said where we wanted to get off.  The bus lady told us to get on but didn't give us a ticket.

Vendors came on board offering humitas, ice cream and drinks.It turns out we were in someone else's seat so we got off and the lady showed us a plan with two spare seats.  Everyone else seemed to have tickets but not us!

The bus climbed quickly out of Uyuni and we were soon at Pulacay0.  The trip cost 10 Bolivianos for the two of us.

Pulacayo is virtually a ghost town now.  Built in 1890 to house the silver mine workers, it was abandoned when the silver ran out. At its height, 22,000 people lived here.

It was 10 Bolivianos to get in. and it was paid to someone in army uniform.  The hand painted sign says railway museum but the ticket gets you entrance to the whole town complex.

The first thing you come across is the trains.  One is on a turning table.  They were in slightly better condition than those at the cemetario de trenes with less vandalism.  From the guidebooks and literature we know that one of these trains was allegedly held up by Butch Cassidy himself but there was no interpretation signs to help out.

The town wasn't totally deserted.  Some of the houses were still occupied and there were a few small businesses Also since the silver mine ostensibly shut down in 1959, there has been some further exploration for the zinc, silver and tin reserves.

Some bloggers have reported that they have been taken into the silver mines by local guides but the Bocamina or mine entrance was well and truly locked today.  Perhaps because there are plans to re-open the mine, there is now more security.

The mine is at 4150 m altitude and both of us were surprised by the thinness of the air.  We should have adapted by now.

After a look around we decided to head back to Uyuni.   Given that the mine is on the Uyuni to Potosi road - there was little traffic.  The guidebook says to catch one of coaches that run between the two cities but they are rather irregular.  After 20 minutes waiting only two cars had passed in our direction - both were full.  We could see a lorry in the distance and Kevin decided to hitch it.  Kindly the lorry stopped and we clambered up into the cab.

Like many Bolivian drivers, the camionista took the racing line but drove quite slow down into town. From the cabin, there were good views of Uyuni spread out on the plane below.

He dropped us off at the market at the end of the railway street.

The rest of the afternoon we blogged and Kevin finished his John Grisham book.  We went to one of the restaurants on Arce for dinner.  The portions were plentiful and delicious.  However both of us have lost our appetites and feel a bit off.  We wondered whether we had picked something up on the tour.  We were both still breathless.  Back at the hotel we made Coca tea to help with the altitude before turning in for the night.