I apologise for the poor quality of the photo and scan thereof; I decided to upload it anyway because the landscape is so special and underlying ecological story so intriguing.
The drive inland from the small city of Arica in far northern Chile into the Andes begins by tracking to and then following an oasis valley upstream to 850 m elevation.
The road then climbs rapidly into the Andean foothills and one is again confronted with landscapes that are utterly, utterly barren, though eroded gulches tell of waters that once streamed past.
The first sign of life, at perhaps 1,300 m elevation, was a flock of finches. I was intrigued; what on earth could they be eating? A search revealed a few tiny shrubs well-hidden among boulders in a dry gulch; perhaps a source of seed and insects for the birds.
The next sign of life, at perhaps 2,500 m elevation, were these remarkable Candelabra Cactus (Browningia candelaris) rising to 10 m from bare rock. I gather that they survive by drawing moisture from misty air directly into their foliage rather than by roots from the soil. And as if on cue, as we climbed another 1,000 m we found ourselves immersed in thick cloud and misty drizzle with overnight snow on the peaks, carry-over from the wet season prevailing on the Amazon side of the Andes that seems such a world away.