Hi,

Just finished that run about a week ago. I met up with some other riders in Unyuni, so we did it as group and had a blast.

-This time of year the Salar still had some water on it and it really coated the bikes. Plan to go back to Unyuni after a trip on the Salar to wash your bike properly.
-Camping right in the middle was great, but seriously cold once the sun went down. It was amazing and completely unmissable.
-On Pescado Island you can get food, water, drop garbage, and hit up tour trucks for fuel if you need it.

-After the Salar we took the ride down to Chile and it was fantastic- great bush camping anywhere. The towns don't have gas stations, but if you ask around you should be able to find 5-10ltrs around. Same goes for water.
-Villa Mar has a couple of places to stay, a welder, and a few basic stores. It's a full day ride from Unyuni on a mix a good gravel, bad gravel, and occasional sandy stretches.
-Right before (going towards Chile) you hit the Gyser Sol de Marina you've got customs- look for the sign pointing you to a mine, about 2km off the main road.
-The thermal waters de Polgues are a great place to warm up and you can spend the night as well. You might just get space on the floor, but it's warmer than outside.
-Honestly the roads aren't that bad and almost any bike should be able to make it. We had an HP2, R1200GSA, KLR650, BMW Dakar 650, and a V-Strom. No one had any serious issues beyond some slow speed drops in deep sand and on the snow/ice around the gyser.
-We carried enough fuel for about 500km for everyone, though with what we could find in the small towns we could have made it with less. Most of the tour trucks carry extra petrol, though they charge at least double for it.
The bad stuff.....

The drivers are terrible. I mean really terrible. One of us was driven off the road by speeding tour trucks and cracked his pannier frame. Neither truck stopped.

After we had separated (rest going to Chile me going east along the border) I was driven off the road by a truck passing another with no visibility. I almost made it, but ended up breaking some rear spokes and my ankle in 3 places (I'm St. Pedro de Atacama right now healing). Neither truck stopped. Getting myself to surgery etc was a nightmare.

So, be VERY careful of the other drivers, ESPECIALLY the tour trucks as the drivers are really terrible and often drunk (we noticed more than one driver already drunk in the morning at the thermal waters).

All and all- it really is something not to be missed. Yes, it takes a little planning, but beyond that, its not really hardcore. Take it slow, watch out for truck drivers, and enjoy the amazing views.

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DRad
http://gsguy.wordpress.com