Chug Chug December 2009

We visited a geoglyph site near Iquique (to the north) when we first arrived in Chile and knew that there was a site near Calama so decided to use a quiet weekend (okay, generally when we are in Calama all weekends are quiet) in between Christmas and New Year's to visit Chug Chug.

I decided I needed a lesson regarding terminology which I'll share with you here:

A *petroglyph is an  image created on a rock by removing part of the rock surface.
A *pictograph is an image drawn or painted on a rock surface.
A *geoglyph is a drawing on the ground by arranging stones, stone fragments, gravel or earth to create a positive geoglyph (raised) or removing stones, etc., to expose ground and create a negative geoglyph.
*Thanks Wikipedia!

As evidenced by the sign we found at the site, there wasn't a lot of information regarding these geoglyphs. The sign is merely stating that Chug Chug is an archeological site and to respect it.  I'm ever grateful for Google and my ability to find information on nearly anything I have a question about. See below this picture a link that references Chug Chug and a brief summary of the information I found at that site.

According to:
http://www.frommers.com/destinations/arica/A39129.html

pre-Columbian geoglyphs have been found in the Atacama Desert between Calama and Nazca in Peru. The geoglyphs were created between the 11th and 15th centuries and are believed to have most likely served as route markers for travelers.

It is amazing that we were able to follow a path that passes by some of the geoglyphs.

The Atacama Desert never ceased to amaze me at how barren it is.