Vicuña
Vicuña was founded on February 22, 1821 by Coronel Joaquin Vicuña y Larraín (Military leader of the Province of Coquimbo) with the name “Villa de San Isidro de Vicuña”. In March 1872 it obtained the title of “town” and from then on it was called only “Vicuña” in tribute to its illustrious founder.
The town’s main pride is being the cradle of the extraordinary poet and teacher Gabriela Mistral, born in Vicuña on April 7, 1889. She won the Nobel prize in 1945 and Chile´s national literature prize in 1951.
Vicuña is the sector with the largest extension in the Elqui province and the region of Coquimbo with 7,694 square kilometers.
The average temperature in summer is about 28ª C (82°F), reaching sometimes 35 to 38ª C (95 – 100°F). In wintertime the average temperature is about 14ª C (57°F).
You can find here the purest air and the clearest sky. With 300 cloudless days and nights per year, this is an ideal climate for astronomy.