Uspallata is a high, dry valley with a lot of history. The village sits at nearly two thousand metres in the Andes of Mendoza, in a wide basin ringed by brown, bare mountains, and it is a halfway point on the old road between Argentina and Chile. In 1817, the Army of the Andes under General José de San Martín crossed the mountains in several columns, and one of them marched through the Uspallata valley on its way to liberate Chile, a story that every schoolchild here knows.
The road you ride today is Ruta 7, the main highway over the Paso de los Libertadores, and it is a long, impressive ride. From Mendoza, it climbs through the Potrerillos reservoir and the gorge of the Mendoza river, past rust-red cliffs and rocky ridges, then into the Uspallata valley, where the horizons widen. The road is generally good, with long straights and sweeping bends, but trucks use it heavily and the wind can be fierce. West of Uspallata the road climbs towards Puente del Inca, with its natural stone bridge and sulphurous springs, and the great mass of Aconcagua, the highest peak in the Americas at almost 7,000 metres.
Uspallata has fuel, restaurants, a few hotels and small shops, so it is an important stop before the high mountains. The village was used as a location in the 1997 film Seven Years in Tibet, since the landscape looked like the Himalayas, and the local people take pride in the fact. The empanadas and grilled meat are good, and so is the local wine, as this is the edge of Mendoza's famous vineyards.
The pass above is open most of the year, but snow and wind can close it, especially in winter, and the border tunnel has customs and immigration with long queues for trucks. Check conditions before you set out. In summer, the days are hot and the nights cool, and the high light is brilliant.