A road trip through the Andes around Uspallata, Argentina

If you’re planning on visiting Mendoza you really just HAVE to go to the Andes. I mean, it’s one thing to see those gorgeous Andean backdrops from the city center, but another one to drive straight through them.

Rent a car for a day, start early and just be amazed while cruising in between those majestic peaks.

I just really, really loved this part from the Andes. Perhaps it was because we already encountered snow on the way there. Or because you can see the highest peak in the western hemisphere. Or because of the condors flying around. Though choice.

Curious whatever else you’ll see on the way? Join our road trip all the way from Mendoza through the mountain pass to the Argentine – Chilean border in this visual diary.

High Andes alert!

Just leaving Mendoza is already a treat with these wonderful panoramas and empty roads. This picture above is taken during the first bit of the route #7, on the way to Potrerillos.

The mountains are calling!

Embalse de Potrerillos

The dam reservoir near the lake of Potrerillos makes for a popular weekend escape. And I understand why as the blue / turquoise colour of the water is almost surreal for a lake at certain points. 

In summer you’ll find lots of kayaks, fishermen and wind surfers on the water and people having a picnic or asado next to it. There are some cute and rustic cabins for rent in the town of Potrerillos in case you can’t get enough the tranquil vibe and the waterside.

If you’re looking for food, the little town has quite some eateries and drinking establishments. Friends of ours – local to the area – brought us to La Escondida for a proper Argentine asado. It was amazing and very crowded on a Sunday (so if you want to go, reserve ahead). I don’t think you can go wrong in there! Unless you’re a vegan, but in that case you most likely know Argentina is not the best place for you to be. 

Uspallata

See this road above? Brilliant, isn’t it? Some 45 minutes from Potrerillos route #7 will bring you to the tiny town of Uspallata.

Uspallata itself isn’t extremely interesting, but its surroundings are superb. It was the reason that director Arnaud chose this area for shooting his ‘Seven years in Tibet’, since he couldn’t get a visum for Tibet itself. It’s just a funny idea that this small, Argentine town – situated 1,5 hour west of Mendoza near the border of Chile – has been the base for the crew of this iconic movie. 

Cafe Tibet, smack in the middle of the town of Uspallata, is a reminder of that era. But apart from this stop and a couple of other cafes, there’s little entertainment in town and therefore even fewer need for a long stopover.

This was a bit of a problem for us, as we had to wait a while before the mountain pass would open again. This road towards the border starts right outside Uspallata, but is often closed due to the heavy snowfall. 

Luckily we heard about a rainbow-like mountain right outside of town – rumour enough to go on an expedition.

Cerro de los 7 Colores

As seen from town we took the winding road #9 up the national park and drove a drilling, brain-shocking 10 km up east. Suddenly we saw the hillsides changing in many gorgeous pastel-kind of colours. Although the area was less intense in terms of colours compared to the other famous Andean rainbow mountains around Salta and Cuzco in Peru, this area still felt super special. Probably mainly because there was just nobody around. Nobody! How cool is that!

If you want to, you can even climb all the way to the top of the hill. Bring a picnic and just enjoy the sounds of the mountains. A great way to kill some time for sure! Also starring a beautiful drive back to town – with those ‘Seven years in Tibet’ mountains in the backdrop.

After we visited the rainbow hill, luckily the road to the border was open again according to the police. But we were only allowed to pass if we could show our cadenas, that is snow chains.

Clever enough, whenever snow starts to fall, there are always some guys (probably the nephews of the police men) circling around the blocking of the road, who’ll rent you some of those cadenas for the price of $10,- USD. Not so much perhaps, but a small waste of money if you realize you (most of the time and especially early in the season) REALLY don’t need those if you stick to the road. 

Ah well..

The mountain and valley overviews were worth it.

The Wall

The first bit of the road from Uspallata to the border leads along a broad piece of riverbank of the Río Mendoza. 

As you can see above there was a big kind of ‘wall’ smack right in the middle of this riverbank. It looks rather fascinating due to its length and height. Although the river was barely nonexistent at the time of our visit, you could see this geologic form must had been created due to erosion over time.

A sign in between (right picture above) gave some food for thought. Especially for Thatcher in the afterlife.  

Parque Punta de Vacas

While driving through the canyon, you’ll pass Punta de Vacas (the point of the cows). Although the name suggested otherwise, little cattle was there at the time of our visit. More interesting is that while driving around in this area you can see three rivers which are flowing from one into another. 

The most gorgeous view however is once you drive around the corner of the ‘punta’ along the Río Mendoza: suddenly the white peaks are starting to get in real close proximity.

I mean, just look at that road above! Winterwonderland in June, que extraño! 

Los Penitentes

Even weirder is it to spot the first ski slopes in the Andes. As I’ve travelled around the pristine mountain range from north to the south it’s really insane to suddenly see a hotel, ski lifts and big advertisement with luxury products in the Andes.

At the same time it must be mentioned that the area is super small. In the beginning of the season it’s almost as if you’re visiting a ghost town. However, if you happen to have a soft spot for skiing and you’re not going to any of the bigger ski areas of the Andes this might be your moment.

You can rent gear (from helmets to ski outfits) in the little village. And if you just want to experience that ski feeling without sliding down the slopes, it’s also possible to make a ride in the lift for fun. 

By the way, while driving around make sure you watch the sky from time to time. Before you know it one of those majestic condors is soaring by! Cawcaw!

Puente del Inca

From Los Penitentes you need to drive another 8 km along the #7. Make a stop whenever you see a bunch of cafes and some souvenirs stands come in sight. The most interesting at this place is a bit behind that small market area.

Cross the old railroad tracks and before you know it you’ll encounter a gorgeous arch. It forms a natural bridge over the Vacas River, which is a tributary of the Mendoza River. A small church is added to the scenic view.

As there are a lot of minerals in the area, the most spectacular thing about the arch are the changing colours of the rocks, right beneath it. Fun fact: apparently Darwin visited this spot as well, during his excursion to the Andes in 1835! And if it’s good enough for Darwin…

Aconcagua

Still from up far, but almost near the border you can easily see the Aconcagua; with its 6961 meters / 22837 ft this mountain is the highest on the western hemisphere. It was the highest mountain I’d ever seen! If only it was an easy one to climb.

At the small hut next to the parking lot you can read about some specs of the mountain; about what kind of animals live in the area and what kind of vegetation you can find here in summer (or winter, depends on the way you see it).

From the hut there are two paths that lead to a mirador. One is close to the station and for the other you need to walk 2 km / 1.3 miles (one-way that is). As it was freezing cold, the levels of snow were high, we forgot our gloves ánd we lacked the time, we couldn’t hike the longer road to the mirador. But I’ve heard it absolutely offers an even better view on the top of the Aconcagua. So go for it if the conditions of your visit are right. If not, the shorter tour is very much worth your time too!

Border stop at Las Cuevas

Only a couple of kilometers left to the border! There isn’t much to do there, but if you need to wait for a while (this is often the case between Argentina and Chile), you can find quite a few spots where you can warm up with a chocolate caliente or an empanada.

If you’re travelling between Chile and Argentina, do realize that it is a gamble to cross the border during the winter days. It’s the reason that we turned around ourselves in here too. Bye bye border!

The colours of sunset

With a bit of luck you’ve had so much delay during this day, while renting your car and waiting for the end of the snow storm, that there’s just no opportunity for you to miss the sunset :). 

As we drove back – a little in a hurry as we preferably didn’t want to drive the pass in the dark all the way to Mendoza – the colours of the vast mountain range began to change. The last rays of the days made them all the more reddish.

A perfect ending of this must-drive loop!