Paso Pehuenche — Malargüe to Linares via the Andean High Crossing

Paso Pehuenche sits at roughly 2,553 metres on the Argentina-Chile border, connecting Malargüe in Mendoza Province with the Maule Region of Chile via the Río Grande valley. The Argentine side is a long, corrugated dirt road through the volcanic Payunia landscape — petrified lava fields, wind-blasted desert, and the occasional guanaco herd. The Chilean descent is steeper and rawer, dropping through the Río Maule canyon toward Linares with river crossings that can run fast during snowmelt and stretches of loose volcanic gravel that demand careful throttle work. This is not the tourist Andes — it’s the working Andes, used by stockmen and the occasional expedition crew.

The route rates Moderate to Difficult depending on snowmelt and seasonal rains. High-clearance 4WD is required on both sides; the Chilean descent is the more technical leg. The pass is typically open November through April — Andean winter closes it hard and fast. Fuel and supplies need to be sorted in Malargüe before you leave Argentina; the Chilean side is sparse until Linares. Argentine and Chilean border formalities apply, including vehicle and food import restrictions. The payoff is one of the continent’s most photogenic and uncrowded Andean crossings — vast, silent, and genuinely remote.