Cajon del Maipo (Chile)
pyanez
Registered Users Posts: 212 Major grins
One of the wonderful things about visiting Chile is the compactness of it's landscapes. Form the capital of Santiago (about 5 million people) it only takes about 1 hour to get into the high andes (with peaks in the 20,000+ foot range which are visible from the city) or 1 hour to get to the coast which in amazingly similar in many places to that Big Sur/Carmel/Monterey in California.
One of my favorite places to visit is the Cajon del Maipo (or the Maipo River Canyon). This small-ish and torrential river drains from the Andean peaks along the border with Argentina and discharges into the central valley of Chile along the southern boundary of Santiago. The area is very easily accessible from the city (35 minute drive to get into the bottom of the canyon) and offers lots of attractions such as waterfalls, outdoor activities, glaciers, TALL mountains and numerous hotsprings. In some locations a 4X drive is preferable, but I've made it almost to the border of Argentina on gravel roads using just a sedan.
I highly recommend it to anyone visiting Santiago, especially if your time is limited.
A sample of photos there are many more in this Gallery
Baños Colina (hotsprings):
It's easy to loose a sense of scale (BIG mining truck in the inset):
Wildflowers which covered large portion of high slopes:
Horses:
Summer snow starting to fall:
Exposed Geology:
El Yeso Reservoir (a tributary to the Maipo River):
View from the Refugio Lo Valdes (aka German Club)
A nice waterfall just off the main road (one of MANY) -- great air conditioning on a HOT day!!
View from Baños Colina
The Volcan San Jose (active ~20,000') dominates the eastern end of the Cajon del Maipo
]
Final one is not of the Cajon del Maipo and not even a good photo but it illustrates why Chile is often referred to as a "Long and Thin" country. Guilty of both counts. On average probably only a 100 miles or so in width (east-west), as "fat" as 250 miles in a couple of places, and as "skiny" as a dozen or so miles in a few places. North-South however, it is as long as the US is wide (about 2,700 miles or so).
This photo illustrates the "thin" part fairly well. In the foreground you can see the Pacific Ocean beach town of Papudo and in the background is Cerro Aconcagua, the tallest mountain outside of the Himalayas, which is in Argentina a few miles from the border with Chile.
So here is a complete slice of Chile... "sliced" the short way, for the long way I'd need a satellite.
One of my favorite places to visit is the Cajon del Maipo (or the Maipo River Canyon). This small-ish and torrential river drains from the Andean peaks along the border with Argentina and discharges into the central valley of Chile along the southern boundary of Santiago. The area is very easily accessible from the city (35 minute drive to get into the bottom of the canyon) and offers lots of attractions such as waterfalls, outdoor activities, glaciers, TALL mountains and numerous hotsprings. In some locations a 4X drive is preferable, but I've made it almost to the border of Argentina on gravel roads using just a sedan.
I highly recommend it to anyone visiting Santiago, especially if your time is limited.
A sample of photos there are many more in this Gallery
Baños Colina (hotsprings):
It's easy to loose a sense of scale (BIG mining truck in the inset):
Wildflowers which covered large portion of high slopes:
Horses:
Summer snow starting to fall:
Exposed Geology:
El Yeso Reservoir (a tributary to the Maipo River):
View from the Refugio Lo Valdes (aka German Club)
A nice waterfall just off the main road (one of MANY) -- great air conditioning on a HOT day!!
View from Baños Colina
The Volcan San Jose (active ~20,000') dominates the eastern end of the Cajon del Maipo
]Final one is not of the Cajon del Maipo and not even a good photo but it illustrates why Chile is often referred to as a "Long and Thin" country. Guilty of both counts. On average probably only a 100 miles or so in width (east-west), as "fat" as 250 miles in a couple of places, and as "skiny" as a dozen or so miles in a few places. North-South however, it is as long as the US is wide (about 2,700 miles or so).
This photo illustrates the "thin" part fairly well. In the foreground you can see the Pacific Ocean beach town of Papudo and in the background is Cerro Aconcagua, the tallest mountain outside of the Himalayas, which is in Argentina a few miles from the border with Chile.
So here is a complete slice of Chile... "sliced" the short way, for the long way I'd need a satellite.
0
Comments
gorgeous views !
Hope to visit Chile sooner or later.
Regards,
Giovanni.
http://300m.smugmug.com
You have shown us a beautiful collection of a beautiful country. I have long wanted to visit Chile for the reasons you stated: all kinds of luscious terrain in a relatively compact area. I don't see too many photos coming out of there, however.
I can't believe the size of some of those mountains. Your photos are so wonderful: a picturesque place shot with an artist's eye. Thanks for sharing! ... and pointing out that mining truck
Photos that don't suck / 365 / Film & Lomography
Cuong
thanks for sharing !
My Gallery
BTW - for those more experienced DGRIN'ers, should I have posted this in the "Journeys" forum instead of "Landscapes" (sorry, I'm not that experienced with the lay o' da land around here yet)
Pablo
Master Of Sushi Noms
Amateur CSS Dork