Andes High Mountain Full-Day Tour to Las Cuevas from Mendoza

Cacheuta and the Potrerillos Dam

The tour leaves Mendoza along the valley of the Mendoza River, and the first landmark is Cacheuta, a small settlement in a narrow canyon known for its natural hot springs, used since pre-Hispanic times. The river, the red rock walls and the green vegetation along the water give the first taste of the mountain scenery.

A little further on, the road reaches the Potrerillos Dam, where the river was blocked in the early 2000s to create a long turquoise reservoir. You stop for about thirty minutes to admire the water against the coloured hills and, on clear days, the snowy summits of the Cordon del Plata. The dam supplies water and electricity to Mendoza, and the lake has become a place for kayaking and rafting in summer.

Uspallata and the road to Los Penitentes

Uspallata is a peaceful village in a wide valley at about 1,900 metres, surrounded by mountains in shades of red, purple and ochre. It was a land of the Huarpe people and a stop on the Inca roads across the Andes. You have about 45 minutes of free time here to buy snacks, stretch your legs and take photos of the poplar-lined streets.

Beyond Uspallata the road follows the old Transandine railway past Picheuta, where a historic adobe fort recalls the wars of independence, and Polvaredas. It then climbs to Los Penitentes, a mountain area named after the rock spires on the slopes above, which look like rows of monks in hooded robes. In winter it becomes a ski area, while in summer the bare rock shows its colours.

Puente del Inca and its craft fair

Puente del Inca is a natural bridge of rock and sediment that spans the river at about 2,720 metres. The hot mineral springs that still run here cemented the arch together and stained it bright yellow, orange and rust, creating one of the most unusual geological monuments in Argentina. Below it are the ruins of an early twentieth-century spa building, and the mountains rise all around.

You spend about 45 minutes here, enough to look at the bridge from the viewpoint, hear your guide explain its formation and browse the small craft fair, where local sellers offer woollen goods, stones and objects left in the mineral water until they turn to stone. It is one of the longest stops of the day and a favourite place for photos on any Puente del Inca tour.

Aconcagua Provincial Park

Aconcagua Provincial Park protects the highest mountain in the Americas, Mount Aconcagua, which rises to about 6,960 metres. From the visitor area at the park entrance you look up the Horcones valley to the vast south face of the mountain, covered in glaciers and snow.

The tour stops here for about thirty minutes for photos and a short walk near the visitor centre, while your guide explains the geology of the Andes and the expeditions that attempt the summit each season. The light is often clearest in the morning, but the mountain is impressive at any time. For many visitors this Aconcagua Park photo stop is the moment of the day they remember most, and the reason they chose a high Andes tour from Mendoza.

Las Cuevas and Christ the Redeemer of the Andes

Las Cuevas, at about 3,150 metres, is the last village before the Chilean border, with stone houses and steep roofs built to bear the winter snow. You have about an hour of free time here for lunch or a hot drink in one of the small restaurants and for photos of the surrounding peaks.

From 3 January to 21 March, when the authorities open the road and the weather allows, the tour continues up a winding gravel track to the Christ the Redeemer of the Andes, a bronze statue placed on the border pass in 1904 as a symbol of peace between Argentina and Chile. Standing at nearly 3,850 metres, it offers some of the widest views of the high Andes. Outside these dates, the stop is replaced by other points on the route.