April 9, 2018 – Iquique, Chile

We’ve reached Iquique, in northern Chile, an area that was part of Peru until after the War of the Pacific. Iquique is an interesting location for many reasons, one of which is that it is located in one of the absolute driest places in the world, but it’s also a thriving tourist area for its beautiful Pacific Ocean beaches.

We went on an excellent shore excursion today called, “Ghost Town of Humberstone and Iquique Highlights.” We had a wonderful tour guide named Evelyn who kept us entertained and informed the whole time – she was a wealth of information.

First some important background information on local topography and climate. There are two tall mountain ranges that greatly affect climate here. The Chilean Coastal Range runs from north to south along the Pacific coast of Chile, parallel to the Andes Mountains. The Atacama Desert is located on the leeward side of the Coastal Range, which blocks moisture from the Pacific Ocean from reaching the desert from the west; while the Andes Mountains are so high that they block any clouds that could bring precipitation (from the Amazon Basin) from ever reaching the desert from the east. The cold Humboldt current and the semi-permanent South Pacific high-pressure ridge also are large factors in the dry climate.

The result is that Atacama is the driest hot desert on Earth. We understand that It rains about two millimeters (0.08 inches) a year in Iquique, but some weather stations in the Atacama have never received any rain.

The city of Iquique (population approximately 180,000) has the Pacific Ocean on one side of the city, and the coastal mountains on all other sides. The mountains are so tall that it looks like a very tall fortress wall surrounding the city. Upon leaving Iquique this morning, headed into the desert, we had to climb up and over a 2,500 ft. mountain almost immediately.

As we rode along for about an hour, Evelyn told us the history of Iquique and of the ghost town of Humberstone. The city and port of Iquique developed during the peak of the Sodium Nitrate (saltpeter) mining boom in the late 19th century. In 1872, James Humberstone, an Englishman, established a saltpeter mining company in the Atacama Desert about 30 miles east of Iquique. The company built a town named “La Palma” for industrial operations and as housing for the workers. Of course, at this time, national borders in this desert were unmarked and perhaps never established. Most of the mining companies that operated in the area were run by Chileans, backed by British investment.

Humberstone’s business grew quickly, and La Palma become a very busy town, with more than 3,000 people working in this hostile environment to mine and ship saltpeter, first via railroad to Iquique, and then for freighter transportation all over the world. At its peak, there were 3,700 people living here – workers, employees, and family members. For a while in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, almost all the saltpeter in the world came from the Atacama Desert. It was known as "white gold" and was in huge demand for use in fertilizers and explosives.

Eventually, there were disputes over taxation of profits from saltpeter mining, which directly led to the War of the Pacific (1879 – 1883). Chile won the war and annexed a large section of this nitrate-rich territory that Bolivia and Peru had claimed. We understand this is still a bone of contention even to this day, especially in Bolivia which lost its access to the Pacific Ocean.

During and after World War I, the British blockaded exports of saltpeter to Germany. That prompted the Germans to look for alternatives, and they invented synthetic substitutes that could be used to make fertilizer. Suddenly, no-one needed Chilean nitrate anymore. Production dropped dramatically, and employment fell. In 1959, the mines and plants at Humberstone shut down, and by 1960 the community was abandoned. The Chilean government renamed the town in honor of Humberstone, and it was declared to be a national monument. It was named as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005.

We were amazed by what we saw in this ghost town. It looked like it had been a busy, lively community with a lot of activities for the residents. We thought there must be close to 100 buildings still standing, as if it was ready to fire up again at any minute. Evelyn gave us a guided tour of the town and told us that it was now being managed by a non-profit corporation of former children who had lived here with their parents. They want to preserve the town and are raising money through UNESCO and other sources to recreate what is part of their heritage.

No-one has lived or worked here for half a century. But in the dry desert air it apparently has been well-preserved. We visited the old company store where the workers bought their food and provisions, which has been set up as a nice museum. In the central town square, there is a tall town clock, a bandstand and large theater that must have provided residents with entertainment. Nearby are the remains of a hotel and restaurant, and even an old (empty) steel-lined swimming pool complete with diving board. We went in the four-room schoolhouse, still filled with wooden desks, as well as the old church building and the theater. 

After this most interesting visit, we returned to Iquique for a quick look at this city which appears to be booming again. Evelyn told us that this is partially due to the popular beach scene that has developed here, and the strong growth of copper mining, which is drawing businesses and workers to town. High-rise hotels and condos are springing up, especially along the Pacific coast. Our driver took us along the main avenue fronting the popular beach area of Cavancha, with big waves and a long, public walkway.

We stopped at the heart of town at Plaza Prat to do a little walking around. We spent a few minutes at a handicraft store and admired the 19th-century clock tower. One of the highlights of the day was a visit, including snacks and a Pisco Sour drink, at the “Centro Español” which was built in 1904 as a social and cultural center for the resident Spanish community. The interior of the building has tall ceilings, large paintings, and colorful tilework with a predominant Moorish flavor. Here we are with our Canadian world cruise friends Al & Karen.

In all, this was a great 5½-hour tour, which we enjoyed. We even learned some history lessons from this part of Chile. Now we’ll continue moving north in Peruvian waters and reach General San Martin, Peru on Wednesday, April 11th.

Jim & Ginny