Licancabur is the volcano par excellence, its shape is so perfect that it almost looks like a drawing on the horizon. It is located in South America on the border between Chile and Bolivia and around its formation revolves a romantic and sad legend.
Even if you’re not an experienced photographer, the chances that your photo will turn out well here are very high, because Licancabur is located between the volcanoes Juriques and Sairecabur and is placed near the Green Lagoon. The landscape is therefore breathtaking.
But not only that, its crater even contains a lake and dominates the entire region of the Salar de Atacama, the first ascent to the volcano took place in 1884 by Severo Titichoca, but before that moment there was the legend that those who had climbed the volcano would be hit by bad luck and the mountain would punish him.
Luckily, it didn’t turn out that way, but climbing the 5920 meters is not an easy feat. But there is another, even more suggestive legend that surrounds this area. Many centuries ago in Chile, right here on the border with Bolivia, there were two brothers, the volcanoes Lascár and Licancabur.
The two were inseparable, but both fell in love one day with the beautiful princess Juriques. The flattered woman eventually chose Licancabur. The brother Lascár fell into despair and cried for days and days. His tears of sadness, on the ground gave birth to a large salt lake.
Attenuated the pain, the anger took over and Lascár began to spit fire and the heat dried up the water of the lake giving life to an immense desert. What today is the Salar de Atacama.
But the fire and the stones thrown by Lascár ended up accidentally hitting Juriques causing his death. Licancabur remained alone and unhappy for a long time, until he fell in love again. Not far from him lived, in fact, a foreign princess named Kimal who spent all the day admiring the volcano. They fell in love, but the two could not move because Kimal was a foreigner. The princess prayed to the gods to grant the two lovers to stay together at least once a year. Her prayers were answered and from that day, December 21, during the winter solstice, Kimal’s shadow joins Licancabur’s and the two lovers can be together.
