Ranchillos lies in the Uspallata valley in Mendoza province, Argentina, on the high road that runs west from the city of Mendoza toward Chile. The valley is a broad, dry basin at about 1,900 metres between the Precordillera and the High Andes, with poplars along the river, scrubby desert and bare peaks banded in rust, yellow and green. The famous Ruta 7, the road to the Cristo Redentor pass and the border, runs through it, and people have travelled this corridor for a very long time.
That includes the Inca. The Qhapaq Ñan, their great road network, reached this part of the Andes, and the Argentine sections of the network are part of the 2014 UNESCO listing shared with five other countries. Ranchillos and the nearby Tambillos were stopping points, small tambos where travellers could rest and store supplies on the route over the Andes. Later, Spanish travellers, mule trains and eventually the railway used the same natural line, and you can see remains of the old railway in the valley today.
For a rider, this is one of the great Andean roads. Climbing from Mendoza, the road passes the reservoirs of Potrerillos, climbs through red canyons and arrives in Uspallata, where you can find fuel and food. Uspallata is a small town of a few thousand people and a handy base. Beyond it Ruta 7 rises past Puente del Inca, a natural rock bridge stained yellow by mineral springs, and Aconcagua comes into view, the highest mountain outside Asia at nearly 6,960 metres. The pass into Chile is regularly closed by snow or weather in winter, so check conditions and border status first.
The air is thin and dry, and the weather can change fast. The wind in Uspallata can be strong, and nights are cold even in summer, so layers are not optional. Sunshine is intense at this altitude, and the sky can be a deep, very clean blue. The valley was also used as a location for the film Seven Years in Tibet. Mendoza's malbec is the natural drink to look forward to, and a grilled asado with a glass of red is the classic reward at the end of the day.