
Access to this video is a benefit for members through PBS Passport.
Back to Show
The Desert Speaks
Tracking Trade into the Chilean Andes
Season 18
Episode 9
In this episode, host David Yetman, historian Bill Beezley and Archeologist María José Figuerero trace the Atacama Desert Trade route from the Pacific coast to the Chilean Andes from sea level to 15,000 feet elevation. Though a modern paved road has replaced the ancient llama caravan trail, the road still connects the goods from the Andes with the marine resources from the coast.
Support Provided By

Unlock with PBS Passport
26:12
A staple of the villages in the Valle de Tehuacán and nearby Oaxaca is the cactus.

Unlock with PBS Passport
26:12
The Gila River in Arizona and New Mexico is rapidly drying up.

Unlock with PBS Passport
26:12
The wild, frigid desert of southwestern Bolivia is full of natural treasures.

26:14
Visit the the historic village of Santiago de K, high in the foothills of the Andes.

Unlock with PBS Passport
26:14
Our journey to the highest desert in the world begins in Potosi, in southwestern Bolivia.

Unlock with PBS Passport
26:14
San Ignacio Lagoon is the home to the peninsula’s most famous visitors—the Gray Whales.
Celebrate 10 years of extraordinary and award-winning programs on public television

28:06
One universal thing about kids – they always want to know “why?” This inquisitiveness is t

28:00
Travel on the Verde River to learn its natural history

28:04
The Mayo turn to plants for a variety of uses - from medicines to making furniture

28:08
High temperatures, poor soil and aridity make gardening in the Sonoran Desert difficult.